The Galápagos Islands, part of the Republic of Ecuador, are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed on either side of the equator in the Pacific Ocean surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere, 906 kilometres (563 miles) west of continental Ecuador. The islands are known for their large number of endemic species and were studied by Charles Darwin during the second voyage of HMS Beagle. His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin’s theory of evolution by means of natural selection.

Hi Emma,

I am really sorry for not being able to come to your birthday party. Thomas and I were really looking forward to it but at the last moment our babysitter canceled on us. I still remember when we were little we used to share everything with each other whenever the family used to get together. How time flies!

I am really glad that Liam and you have finally decided to go on vacation. You guys really deserve it. The weather of Vancouver is really great around this time of the year. We’d be delighted to have Nathan with us while you are away. I am dying to see my cute little Nathan again. How old is he now? Eight, right? It has been so long. Marcus is also eager to meet his cousin. He is rather calm for a 6 year old, you know. I’m sure he and Nathan will get on like a house on fire.

I have taken a leave this Saturday. So you can drop him at my place in the evening. By the way, I almost forgot to tell you that we have moved house. My new address is 64 Whitehall Street, Hamilton. Winnipeg was way too much for us. Call me just in case you need directions. I know it will be a long trip from Brantford.

I have a few things in mind to keep Nathan entertained while you are away. As soon as he comes, I am thinking of taking him to the new exhibition right across the corner, called ""Making it to Space"". I know he wants to be an astronaut and that he always gets excited when he watches science shows or sci-fi movies. We may also go to the Chedoke Falls. Remember the look on his face when he was running in the fresh air, sunshine, and water the last time we went there?

Looking forward to seeing you all after all these years,

Love,

Betty

A. Pure Canadian maple syrup can be used as a healthy alternative to sugar in a variety of dishes, such as desserts and baked goods (pies and cakes, just to name a few). The natural sweetener also adds depth and complexity to a wide range of entrees, and can be used as an ingredient in glazes, rubs or barbeque sauces for poultry, meat, seafood or vegetables. To substitute maple syrup for granulated sweeteners such as white sugar, use 2/3 cup of maple syrup for every 1 cup of granulated sugar, reduce the quantity of liquid ingredients in the recipe (water, milk, juice) by 1/4 cup and lower the baking temperature by 25° F. Maple syrup also serves as a one-to-one substitution for other liquid sweeteners, such as honey, molasses and corn syrup

. B. Maple syrup is 100% pure and natural, and producers must adhere to strict guidelines and standards set forth by Canadian law and the Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers throughout the production process. Each maple harvest season, the sugar trees are tapped in a slightly different area than the previous year, preserving the health and enforcing the sustainable growth of the trees. The Canadian ’Preservation of Agricultural Land and Agricultural Activities’ Act (i.e., Loi sur la protection du territoire et des activités agricoles) forbids cutting down an entire maple grove in an agricultural zone.

C. Canada produces 71% of the world’s pure maple syrup, 91% of which is produced in Quebec. Canada’s maple syrup producing regions are located in the provinces of Quebec (primary producer), Ontario, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. There are more than 8,600 maple syrup businesses in Canada. The Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup (FPAQ) ensures the economic, social and ethical interests for the more than 7,400 maple businesses in Quebec.

D. Maple syrup has long been part of Canada’s cultural fabric. The country’s Amerindian people taught the early settlers how to harvest, sap and boil it to make maple syrup. Today, Canadian maple syrup is exported to approximately 50 countries, including the U.S. which is the primary importer. In 2007, Canada produced 67.6 million pounds of maple syrup yet exported 67.7 to the U.S. using reserve supply from previous years to support the growing exportation demand.

E. Not given in any of the above paragraphs.

Kristof and Stacia Nordin’s 3.7-acre garden outside Lilongwe, in Malawi, is a food forest. Mango trees grow beside tall tamarinds, acacia, guavas, passion fruit and coconut palms. The ground is thick with pineapples and watermelon, and decomposing leaves and other plants cover a rich soil growing yams and sweet potatoes. Where the Nordins have a 10-month growing season, picking fresh fruit and vegetables throughout the year, Malawian agriculture is dominated by maize, which is vulnerable to droughts, heat waves, floods and insect infestations.

The Nordins are permaculturalists, two of many thousands of people around the world who are achieving extraordinary yields by planting a huge diversity of foods in very small areas, without using chemical fertilizers, pesticides or mechanization. By getting many different food crops to grow together, as they would in any natural forest or ecosystem, permaculture seeks to avoid the negative ecological effects of conventional, large-scale farming, which tries to maximize the yield of a single crop, or monocrop.

Stacia and Kristof were U.S. Peace Corps volunteers sent to Malawi in 1997 to help with HIV prevention work. They quickly learned that the southern African country had some of the highest malnutrition and HIV levels in the world, and that modern drugs alone were not the answer. ""We couldn’t work on improving nutrition without working to improve the diversity of what was being grown. And we couldn’t improve the diversity of agricultural crops without working to improve soil fertility,"" says Stacia Most permaculturalists work on the household scale, and there have been few peer-reviewed studies to quantify their achievements. But many studies suggest permaculture could be both viable and productive, and call for more scientific research. ""Despite our inexperience, the farm was transformed in barely 10 years from a bare field to a rich eco-agro system,"" says Charles Hervé-Gruyer, a market gardener from France. ""This capacity for repairing the planet more rapidly than one might think is possible from reading scientific papers, gives a lot of hope for the generations to come.""

It has real promise, says Nick Jacobs, coordinator of I-PES food, the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems, but he calls for more study. ""Agro-ecological systems, which include permaculture, are showing huge potential to reconcile productivity gains, environmental resilience, social equity, and health benefits. We need to know more about the impacts of these alternative systems, and which policies can help them to thrive,"" he says.