Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

What does the term “Anthropocene” refer to? What issues does this name attempt to foreground?

Teaching Suggestion: Depending on students’ backgrounds, they may know the definition of this term, may be able to guess at its meaning, or have no idea what the term refers to. For students who are struggling, you might hint that part of the word is also found in terms like “Paleocene,” “Eocene,” “Pleistocene,” and “Holocene,” and ask what they associate with these words and how “anthro” probably contributes to the term’s meaning. Before they answer the second section of this question, you might offer students one or both of the resources below, which will offer more in-depth information about the term and its origin.

• The “Anthropocene” entry from the National Geographic encyclopedia defines the term.
• “Anthropocene: A Very Short Introduction” by Earle C. Ellis provides a short video explaining the term’s origin and implications.
• “What Is the Anthropocene and Why Does It Matter?” by Katie Pavid is an in-depth article from the British Natural History Museum offering some historical context for the term.