Does Vertical Farming Actually Work?
Videos
Grades6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12Biology, Economics, Engineering
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Provided by Our Changing Climate
What it is
- This video from Our Changing Climate explains how vertical farms work and the benefits and drawbacks of vertical farming.
- Students will learn whether vertical farms are a viable alternative to traditional outdoor agriculture.
Teaching tips
Positives
- This video acknowledges the potential benefits of vertical farming but ultimately concludes that techno-fixes have limitations and don't address the larger issues of food waste and meat production.
- Students will benefit from the realistic look at this proposed solution.
Prerequisites
- The video begins with a 7-second sponsored ad.
- The content of the video ends at 9:21, and the remaining time is a sponsored ad.
- The video is sectioned into timestamped chapters listed in the description.
Differentiation & Implementation
- Students can write their own answers to the video's main questions, including:
- Do vertical farms work?
- Are vertical farms sustainable?
- Should governments spend more money investing in vertical farming or reducing food waste?
- Should governments spend more money investing in vertical farming or reducing meat consumption?
- Students can debate the pros and cons of vertical farming.
- Students who want to learn about regenerative farming can look at How Regenerative Farming Can Help Combat the Climate Crisis and Regenerating for the Next Gen.
- Students who want to take action can look into Meatless Mondays or the Zero Food Waste Challenge.
From the scientist review
This 12-minute video presents the potential for vertical farming to address climate change. This resource first presents claims made by existing or start-up vertical farming operations and then presents challenges and critiques of the method. It concludes with a look at other agricultural processes that emit more greenhouse gases and thus should be prioritized more. Citations are provided in small text on the bottom right corner of the screen, which need to be looked up from a list of resources linked in the video description. Although it takes additional effort to follow citations, this resource is recommended for teaching.
Ready to use it?
Hosted on youtube.com
Want this to fit your class?
Add your location for local examples, questions, and action ideas.
