Shadowing Practice: Vol 2 - test 4 - section 4 - Learn English Speaking with Video

Les maken...
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You will hear a lecture about how carbon dioxide is produced from food And what are the effects of the emission problem?
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First, You have some time to look at questions 31 to 40.
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Now listen carefully and answer questions 31 to 40.
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Good afternoon.
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Thanks for coming to today's lecture.
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In the last few decades the environmental impact of food production and consumption has become one of the greatest concerns.
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When we look at what we eat and how we produce the food, we can find extensive evidence for how we damage our environment.
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Greenhouse gas emissions may come from livestock such as cows, agricultural soils and rice production.
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According to statistics, the carbon dioxide emissions from the production of the food people
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consume every day are almost the same as the emissions we make when we are driving.
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Let's look at some more specific examples.
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The cultivation and processing of 100 grams of coffee beans are responsible for 140 grams of carbon dioxide.
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Now, some international organizations are training farmers in many countries to
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use sustainable agricultural methods as a way of reducing their carbon dioxide emissions.
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All agricultural practices have been found to have a variety of effects on the environment.
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Some of the environmental effects are associated with meat production.
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The popular red meat requires 28 times more land to produce than chicken,
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11 times more water and results in 5 times more climate warming emissions.
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According to another research, cooking process also causes greenhouse gas emissions.
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Scientists now are working on how to best minimize its impact.
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Another problem that we cannot neglect is the packaging of food products.
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as packaging takes a lot of energy, water and other natural resources to produce.
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So a lot of natural resources are wasted.
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when we throw the packaging materials away.
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Furthermore, Packaging waste produces a big amount of greenhouse gas.
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To make things even worse, the food we eat often comes from places far away.
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Therefore, the transportation of our food across long distances contributes to air and water pollution.
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In recent decades with the growing number of population, more food is in demand.
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So more land has been used to produce food.
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Hundreds and even thousands of forests have been cut down.
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It had a devastating effect on the climate because forests can absorb greenhouse gases.
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People in different parts of the world apply various kinds of farming practices.
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In most countries, cows and other livestock are kept on the farms, while in some countries they are kept in a restricted area on a mountain,
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but they all contribute to the carbon dioxide emissions.
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And for animal agriculture, the problem can be more serious because the livestock need food all the time.
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In America, cows eat an overwhelming amount of corn and soybeans each year.
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In order to create a better world for us and our future generations, we should adopt sustainable agriculture.
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The goal of sustainable agriculture is to meet the world's growing demand for food at the present without affecting future generations.
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Every person involved in the food system, growers, food processors, distributors, retailers,
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consumers and waste managers can play a role in ensuring a sustainable agricultural system.
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There are many practices commonly used by people working in sustainable agriculture and sustainable food systems.
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Crop growers may change their food production methods to prevent pollution.
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Although some other areas of agriculture are very hard to change such as fishing,
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Consumers and retailers concerned with sustainability can look for foods that are environmentally friendly.
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However, Sustainable agriculture is more than a collection of practices, It is also a process of negotiation.
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a push and pull between the competing interests of an individual farmer
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or of people in a community as they work to solve complex problems about how we grow our food.
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In conclusion, I want to emphasize
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that we may not be able to go back to the old times and live a simpler lifestyle,
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but we can take an active role in preventing more environmental problems caused by carbon dioxide emissions.
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In the next lecture, I will share some of the studies and effective solutions with you.
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That is the end of Section 4.
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You now have half a minute to check your answers.
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That is the end of the listening test.
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In the IELTS test, you would now have 10 minutes to transfer your answers to your answer sheet.

Who Is This Video For?

This video is ideal for intermediate English learners aiming to boost their listening comprehension and academic vocabulary. It’s perfect for those practicing shadowing speech—repeating phrases aloud in real time—since the lecture’s clear, steady pace mirrors academic settings. Whether you’re prepping for exams or want to discuss environmental topics fluently, the content balances complex ideas with accessible language, making it a strong tool for learn English with YouTube strategies.

Words & Idioms Worth Stealing

  • Devastating effect: A severe, destructive impact (e.g., "Deforestation had a devastating effect on the climate").
  • Overwhelming amount: A huge, unmanageable quantity (e.g., "Cows eat an overwhelming amount of corn").
  • Push and pull: A dynamic of conflicting forces (e.g., "Sustainable agriculture involves a push and pull between interests").
  • Neglect: To ignore or pay no attention to (e.g., "We cannot neglect packaging waste").

How to Get the Accent Right

The speaker uses a neutral academic accent with clear stress on key terms like "sustainable," "emissions," and "livestock." To master this, use a shadowing site to replay short clips: focus on elongating the first syllable in "agricultural" (ag-ri-CUL-tur-al) and softening the "t" in "climate" (CLI-mit). Practice the rising intonation in questions like "What are the effects?" and the steady rhythm of lists (e.g., "28 times more land, 11 times more water"). For shadow speak fluency, mimic the speaker’s pauses after statistics to emphasize impact. Repeat phrases like "the goal of sustainable agriculture" to nail the natural flow—this trains your mouth to move like a native.

Wat is de Shadowing-techniek?

Shadowing is een wetenschappelijk onderbouwde taalleermethode die oorspronkelijk is ontwikkeld voor professionele tolkentraining en gepopulariseerd door polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. De methode is eenvoudig maar krachtig: je luistert naar native Engelse audio en herhaalt het onmiddellijk hardop — als een schaduw die de spreker volgt met slechts 1–2 seconden vertraging. In tegenstelling tot passief luisteren of grammaticadrills, dwingt shadowing je hersenen en mondspieren om echte spraakpatronen tegelijkertijd te verwerken en te reproduceren. Onderzoek toont aan dat het de uitspraaknauwkeurigheid, intonatie, ritme, verbonden spraak, luisterbegrip en spreekvaardigheid aanzienlijk verbetert — waardoor het een van de meest effectieve methoden is voor IELTS Speaking-voorbereiding en echte Engelse communicatie.

Shadowing-techniek: lees de volledige stap-voor-stap-gids →