TEXTO 1- What is Earth Hour?

Every year, in late March, people and institutions come together (juntos) to switch off (apagar) all non-essential lights
(luzes não necessárias) for sixty minutes at 8.30 p.m. local time. They do this to show their support for the fight against
the climate crisis and loss (perda) of biodiversity. Millions of people all around the world join in (juntar-se), as do
governments, businesses and institutions. By switching off their lights and measuring the reduction in the amount of
energy that is being used, people are showing that it is possible to make a difference.
But Earth Hour is more than one hour without lights, once a year. It’s part of a movement of people who are working
together all year round to protect the environment.
How did it start?
The World Wide Fund for Nature in Australia introduced the idea in 2007. They wanted to find a way to raise awareness
(uma forma de conscientizar) about climate change. And they wanted to show that when millions of individuals work
together, they can make a difference.
The first (a primeira) Earth Hour was held on 31 March 2007 at 7.30 p.m. in Sydney. More than two million residents
and 2,000 businesses turned their lights out for one hour. The lights also went out (apagadas) on the famous Sydney
Opera House. The people of the city of San Francisco were so inspired by the event in Sydney that they held their own
(realizar seu próprio movimento) ‘Lights Out’ event in October of the same year. This was the beginning of the Earth
Hour movement.
How many cities take part?
The event has grown over the years, with more and more people, businesses, organisations and governments taking
part (fazem parte) every year.
In 2008, a year after the first Earth Hour event, 35 countries and more than 400 cities joined in. Websites also took part
(também participaram), turning their homepages black (deixaram suas paginas em preto) in support (em apoio) of
the initiative. By 2012, 152 countries and more than 7,000 cities and towns were taking part. In recent years, the
numbers have kept increasing (tem crescido), with more than 188 countries and territories worldwide (todo o mundo)
taking part each year. In 2019, more than two billion photos were shared on social media platforms.
Famous people and famous places
A number of celebrities have put their names to the cause, including singer Ellie Goulding, tennis star Andy Murray, TV
host Ellen de Generes, actor Leonardo di Caprio and ex-Beatle Paul McCartney. Politicians and world leaders have also
given their support, and thousands of famous landmarks have turned off their lights, including the Eiffel Tower in Paris,
the Empire State Building in New York and the Pyramids in Egypt.
What has the movement achieved?
The Earth Hour movement has achieved (conseguiu) much more than getting people to turn off their lights. Since 2007,
among other actions, they have planted trees (plantar arvores) in various countries around the world, including a 2,700
hectare forest in Uganda and 17 million trees in Kazakhstan. They worked together to ban (trabalhar juntos para banir)
the use of plastics on the islands of the Galapagos, one of the most important nature reserves on the planet. And they
have sponsored (patrocinar) solar power projects in India and the Philippines.
What can I do?
Join (fazer parte) the movement. Find out the date and time for this year. Visit the Earth Hour website and find out
what’s going on. Then get ready (prepare-se) to turn off (apagar) your lights and join the millions of other people
around the world who are fighting (lutando) to save our planet!

TEXTO 2 Environmental impact of online shopping

In the past few decades, the way we shop has changed dramatically. We used to buy our goods (produtos) in traditional
shops, on the high street or in department stores. Now, customers ( clientes) are increasingly (aumentando) buying
online, where they can order (podem pedir) whatever (qualquer coisa) they want (querem) directly to their door with the
click of a mouse. One in seven sales are now made online and studies suggest that by 2021, global online retail
(varejista) will reach an enormous US$4.8 trillion. As companies race to improve ( correm para melhorar) their internet
shopping experience, the trend towards (a tendência) shopping online is predicted to continue.
But what is the impact of all this online shopping on the environment ( meio ambiente)? You might think (você pode
pensar) that online shopping is greener than (mais ecológico) in-store shopping (lojas físicas). After all (afinal de contas ),
an online store does not use the electricity that a traditional store might use and it doesn’t require the customer to
drive anywhere (qualquer lugar). Items are often delivered to several homes at once (diversas casas de uma vez só), so
you would think the carbon savings must be significant (deve ser significante). Take the typical home delivery round in
the UK, for example. Supermarket drivers often do 120 deliveries on an 80-kilometre round, producing 20 kilograms of
CO2 in total. In contrast (em contrapartida), a 21-kilometre drive to the store and back for one household would
generate 24 times more CO2! However (no entanto), the reality is slightly more complex than that. Many home
deliveries fail the first time and the driver has to make a second or third attempt ( tentativa) to deliver the purchase
(para entregar a compra). Customers who choose speedy delivery (clientes que pedem uma entrega rápida) or those who
buy single items (ou aqueles que compram um único item) from different places also contribute towards increasing the
carbon footprint (aumentam a emissão de carbono).
The carbon footprint also goes up (aumenta) if the customer chooses (se o cliente escolher) to return the item. A study
in Germany showed (mostrou) that as many as one in three online purchases (uma em três compras online) are returned.
According to another study, merchandise worth nearly (mercadorias no valor de) US$326 million is returned each year
(a cada ano) in the USA. Two billion kilograms of this ends up in landfill (são colocados em aterros), leading to 13 tonnes
of CO2 being released (libera 13toneladas de CO2).
Clothing (vestimenta) is one product that has high return rates (maior numero de devolução ). Unlike (diferente) in a walk-
in store (lojas físicas ), the online shopper can’t try things on before buying (compradores online não podem provar as coisas
antes de comprar). So, companies offer free returns (lojas oferecem retorno sem pagamento) to make it easier (facilitar)
for shoppers to purchase the same item (para facilitar) of clothing in different sizes (tamanhos diferentes) and colours.
Customers try them at home (provam em casa), keep one and return the rest (ficam com 1 peça e devolvem o restante ) of
them. However, when clothes are returned, they are not always cleaned and put back for sale ( recolocadas a venda).
This is because many companies have found it cheaper to Simply ( mais barato e simples) throw away (jogar fora) the
returned items than to pay someone to sort the damaged goods from the unwanted ones (que pagar alguém para separar
as peças danificadas ou não desejadas ). In these cases, the returned clothes, which might be in perfect condition, end up
in landfills or burnt (as peças terminam em aterros ou são queimadas).
When we take all these factors into consideration, we realise that online shopping isn’t necessarily as green as people
might think. That last kilometre to your door is costly (caro), for companies and for the environment (meio ambiente).
There is some positive news, as various online retailers (muitos varejistas ) are starting to lower their carbon footprint
(diminuindo a emissão de carbono) by investing in electric delivery vehicles. However, the question of how to deal with
returns efficiently and without waste (sem desperdício) is a challenge that many companies have not wanted to face.
As online shoppers become aware (ter consciência) of what companies are doing, and campaign groups demand urgent
action in the face of the climate and ecological emergency, there is increasing pressure ( crescente pressão) for
companies to take responsibility for the environmental impact of their activities.

Texto 1- Relacione as colunas.

Vocabulary Definition
1. …… biodiversity a. a famous place
2. …… to raise awareness b. when there is less of something
3. …… a landmark c. the variety of plants and animals in a place
4. …… an initiative d. a plan to do something together
5. …… climate change e. across the whole world
6. …… worldwide f. to make people think about something
7. …… to ban g. a change in temperatures and weather around the world
8. …… a reduction h. to say that people cannot do or use something

Complete com informações do texto.

1. Earth Hour takes place ______________________________ every year.
2. Earth Hour started in __________________________________.
3. It was celebrated around the world for the first time in ___________________________________________________.
4. In 2008, ________________________________________________________________ countries took part in the event.
5. The Earth Hour movement is __________________________________________________________ a one-hour event.
6. The ___________________________________________ is the organisation that introduced the idea for Earth Hour.
Relacione.
1. Where? 4. Who?
2. When? 5. What?
3. Why? a. To raise awareness of climate change
b. Switch off lights for one hour or more d. All over the world
c. The end of March e. Individuals, businesses and organisations

TEXTO 2 – Relacione as colunas

Vocabulary Definition
1. …… an impact a. the activity of selling goods to the public
2. …… ecological b. the powerful effect that something has on something else
3. …… landfill c. to buy something
4. …… retail d. the calculation of how much CO2 a person, company, organisation, etc.
produces, which is used to measure the environmental damage they cause
5. …… a retailer e. a place where large amounts of rubbish are buried in the ground
6. …… carbon footprint f. a person or shop that sells goods to the public
7. …… a campaign group g. a group of people that organises actions or protests to achieve a particular aim
8. …… to purchase h. relating to the relationship between plants, animals, people, water, land, air,
etc.

Complete com informações do texto.

1. In the past few decades, the way we shop ……………………………… changed dramatically.
2. We used ……………………………… buy our goods in traditional shops.
3. Now, customers ……………………………… increasingly buying online.
4. The trend towards shopping online is predicted ……………………………… continue.
5. You might think that online shopping is greener ……………………………… in-store shopping.
6. Customers ……………………………… choose speedy delivery or buy single items from different places also
contribute towards increasing the carbon footprint.
7. The carbon footprint also goes ……………………………… if the customer chooses to return the item.
8. Many companies have found it cheaper to simply throw ……………………………… the returned items.

Verdadeiro ou falso
1. More sales are now made online than in shops.
2. It is predicted that more and more shopping will be done online in the future.
3. Online shopping uses less electricity than in-store shopping.
4. The carbon footprint of online shopping is made worse by failed deliveries, speedy delivery and returns.
5. Companies encourage customers to try clothes on at home.
6. Companies make sure returned clothes are repackaged and resold.
7. Most companies now use electric delivery vans.
8. Most companies have found environmentally-friendly solutions for the problem of returned goods.