Protecting wildlife

C2 Proficiency · Speaking Collaborative · Cambridge Ready original exercise

Work with your partner. First talk about two of the pictures for about a minute, then use all five pictures to discuss a situation and reach a decision together in about three minutes.

Now you'll do a task together. Here are some pictures of people working to protect wildlife and the natural world.

Protecting wildlife

Divers attaching coral fragments to an underwater frame.

https://cdn.cambridgeready.com/images/f7cdf2d16157b49be95849577330ad8d5b36751a81833e4cc5b1619727b458db.avif

candid documentary photograph, marine biologists in wetsuits attaching coral fragments to an underwater metal frame, clear blue water, shafts of sunlight, natural light, shot on 35mm film, no print, logos or writing on anyone's clothes, no signs or labels with readable text, no text, no watermark

Volunteers planting young trees on a bare hillside.

https://cdn.cambridgeready.com/images/8c432fc0f47b0a6c1816c0c50338fb61a62558dc6db3bdc6746a7e9460aca913.avif

candid documentary photograph, a group of volunteers of mixed ages planting young trees on a bare hillside, spades and buckets, damp misty morning, everyone in plain solid-colour jackets and jumpers with nothing printed on them, plain blue buckets, natural light, shot on 35mm film, no print, logos or writing on anyone's clothes, no signs or labels with readable text, no text, no watermark

A vet gently examining an injured owl at a wildlife rescue centre.

https://cdn.cambridgeready.com/images/221deb27d635aa750b7f0b817ac6eb906d4c0e7358c0f3c685e7edfdc972ffbe.avif

candid documentary photograph, a wildlife vet gently examining an injured owl at a rescue centre, careful hands, focused mood, natural light, shot on 35mm film, no print, logos or writing on anyone's clothes, no signs or labels with readable text, no text, no watermark

A park ranger watching elephants through binoculars on a dry savannah.

https://cdn.cambridgeready.com/images/ca922287d742faae339987b50f96bff7437997c0e477fc3d6095450c24e25508.avif

candid documentary photograph, a park ranger watching a herd of elephants through binoculars across a dry savannah at sunset, the ranger in a plain dark green T-shirt and a plain wide-brimmed hat, bare arms, nothing on his sleeves, seen from the side so his face shows, natural light, shot on 35mm film, no print, logos or writing on anyone's clothes, no signs or labels with readable text, no text, no watermark

Visitors watching flamingos through telescopes from a viewing platform at a wetland reserve.

https://cdn.cambridgeready.com/images/751b768c6498d145aa863fcf9339ab1f68b947f9746a93efad06914d2218520a.avif

candid documentary photograph, families and older visitors watching flamingos through telescopes from a wooden viewing platform at a protected wetland reserve, still morning, natural light, shot on 35mm film, no print, logos or writing on anyone's clothes, no signs or labels with readable text, no text, no watermark

First, please take pictures {a} and {b}. Discuss together how much difference efforts like these are likely to make in the long run. You have about a minute for this.

Now look at all the pictures. Imagine an environmental charity has enough funding for only one major project next year. Discuss what each of these approaches might achieve and where its limitations might lie. Then decide which approach would make the most lasting difference. You have about three minutes for this.

Answer this Speaking task out loud and an AI examiner marks it on the official Cambridge Speaking criteria, with what you did well and what to fix next.

Practise this Speaking task free online: solo with exam timers and a self-recorder, as a live mock Speaking test with a partner over a video call, or as a full three-person mock exam — a real examiner reads the official examiner script to Candidates A and B. Rooms are invite-by-link; partners can join without an account.

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