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Lesson
B2ENHumanitarian Mission: Every Decision Counts
Practice mixed conditionals and formal proposal language through a humanitarian crisis simulation. A massive earthquake has struck — resources are limited, needs are overwhelming, and every decision you make saves some lives and risks others. A practical B2/C1 English lesson on mixed conditionals, formal proposals, and making decisions under moral pressure. Ideal for adult learners, English tutors, and language schools.
How this lesson works
Students participate
Students interact directly with the lesson — responding, speaking, solving tasks, making decisions and joining activities.
You see what is happening
See student responses, answers, mistakes and activity in real time where supported.
You guide the experience
Guide the lesson, manage activities and timing, and respond to what students are doing where supported.
Everyone participates
Students actively contribute and interact instead of simply consuming lesson content.
First Things First — What Do You Do When? Sequence
Sequence
- Confirm the scale of the disaster — send a team to assess what happened and where
- Establish communication — set up a base with phones, radio, and internet
- Secure access routes — clear roads so trucks and teams can reach affected areas
- Deliver water and food — people can survive days without shelter but not without water
- Deploy medical teams — treat the injured now that you can reach them and supply them
- Build temporary shelter — protect people from weather now that immediate dangers are addressed
Humanitarian and Crisis Response Vocabulary. Word Cards
Word Cards
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- Triage|You have 100 injured people and 3 doctors. Explain what triage means and how you would prioritise.
- Displaced persons|What is the difference between a displaced person and a refugee? Use both in one sentence.
- Logistics|Aid supplies are stuck at the airport because the roads are destroyed. Describe two alternative logistics solutions.
- Sanitation|Clean water is available but there are no toilets for 5,000 people in a camp. Why is sanitation as urgent as food?
- Donor|You need €2 million in 48 hours. Write one sentence that would make a donor act immediately.
- NGO|Explain what an NGO is to someone who has never heard the term. Give two real examples.
- Coordination|Four aid organisations arrive at the same village at the same time. Why is coordination critical?
- Field assessment|You arrive at a disaster zone. What five things do you check first in a field assessment?
Lesson Board
Lesson Board
Past Decisions, Present Consequences. Word Choice
Word Choice
- If the early warning system waswerehad been functional, thousands of people would have evacuated in time.
- If we havehadwould have more field hospitals, we wouldn't be turning patients away right now.
- If the government would investhad investedinvested in infrastructure last decade, the roads would be passable today.
- We willwouldcould have reached the northern villages by now if the bridges weren't destroyed.
- If supplies arehad beenwere pre-positioned in the region, we wouldn't be waiting for airlifts.
- Given the circumstances, we are proposingproposeproposed that all available helicopters be redirected to the eastern zone.
- If the local teams werearehad been better trained, the initial response would have been much faster.
- It is recommendedrecommendrecommending that the committee approve emergency funding within the next 12 hours.
- If we hadwould havehave more translators on the ground, communication with local communities would be much easier.
- The situation wouldwillcould have been far less severe if earthquake drills had been conducted regularly.
Four Field Reports — Where Do the Resources Go? Jigsaw Reading
Jigsaw Reading
Zone A — The Collapsed School
A three-storey primary school collapsed during morning classes. An estimated 120 children and 8 teachers are trapped under the rubble. Local volunteers are digging with their hands but they have no equipment. A structural engineer says some air pockets exist — survivors are possible but the window is closing. The nearest heavy machinery is 6 hours away by road, or 45 minutes by helicopter. If rescue teams had arrived within the first 12 hours, survival rates would be significantly higher. It has now been 18 hours.
Zone B — The Flooded Hospital
The regional hospital survived the earthquake but a burst dam has flooded the ground floor. All power is out. Ninety-three patients are stranded on upper floors, including 14 on life support running on generator backup — fuel will last approximately 8 more hours. Medical staff are exhausted and running low on critical medications. Evacuation requires boats that the team does not have. If the dam had been reinforced last year as engineers recommended, this would not have happened.
Zone C — The Refugee Camp
Approximately 8,000 people have gathered in an open field outside the city. They have no shelter, no clean water, and no sanitation. Temperatures drop below zero at night. Three children died of hypothermia last night. Disease outbreaks are likely within 48 hours if sanitation is not established. Local authorities say they have no resources to help. If the international community had pre-positioned emergency supplies in the region, the camp could have been operational within hours.
Zone D — The Cut-Off Village
A remote mountain village of 600 people has been completely cut off by landslides. The only road is buried under 20 metres of rock. No communication has been received from the village since the earthquake — 36 hours ago. A helicopter flyover showed damaged buildings but could not confirm casualties. Satellite imagery suggests the village water source may be contaminated. If the roads were not blocked, a ground team could assess the situation in under two hours. Currently, the only access is by air.
Comprehension questions
- If you could only send help to two of these four locations, which would you choose and why?
- Which location has the most urgent need versus the most people affected — and does that change your decision?
- What information is missing from these reports that you would need before deciding?
The Resource Allocation Meeting. Hidden Role
Hidden Role
Scenario
The coordination committee has assembled to allocate limited resources. You have: 2 helicopters, 1 heavy rescue team, 50 tonnes of supplies, and 3 medical units. There are four zones that all need help urgently. You cannot help everyone. The committee must decide who gets what — and who waits. But someone at this table has a personal reason for pushing resources in a specific direction...
UN Coordinator
You chair the meeting. You have the final say on resource allocation. You want decisions based on data: number of people affected, severity, and likelihood of saving lives.
Secret goal: You believe Zone A (the school) and Zone C (the camp) should get priority — the school because of the rescue window and the camp because 8,000 people is the largest affected group. Push for evidence-based decisions.
Head of Medical Team
You are responsible for the 3 medical units. You believe Zone B (the hospital) is the most urgent — 14 people on life support will die in 8 hours without fuel and evacuation.
Secret goal: You are terrified of making the wrong call. Last year you prioritised a larger group over a smaller critical one, and 6 people died. You promised yourself: never again. You will fight hard for the hospital.
Military Liaison
You control the 2 helicopters and the heavy rescue team. You favour Zone A (the school) because rescue operations are time-critical and you have the equipment to save lives immediately.
Secret goal: You are practical and action-oriented. You think the committee talks too much and acts too slowly. You will push for immediate deployment to the school and get frustrated if the discussion drags on.
Local Government Representative
SpyYou represent the regional government. You are pushing hard for Zone D (the cut-off village) to receive a helicopter immediately. You argue that 600 people have had zero contact for 36 hours and could all be dead or dying.
Secret goal: You are secretly from this village. Your elderly parents live there and you have not heard from them since the earthquake. You will argue based on data — "600 people, no contact, 36 hours" — but your real motivation is personal. Do not reveal this unless someone questions why you are so insistent about Zone D.
Convince the Donors. Elevator Pitch
Elevator Pitch
Useful phrases
- If we had acted sooner, we wouldn't be facing this situation today.
- Given the scale of the crisis, we propose that...
- Every hour of delay costs lives — this is not an exaggeration.
- If we receive funding within 48 hours, we will be able to...
- It is recommended that the committee prioritise...
- We urge you to consider the long-term consequences of inaction.
You need €5 million in emergency funding within 48 hours. Present the situation to a room of international donors and convince them to act now, not next week.
Use mixed conditionals to show what could have been prevented and what can still be saved: "If the early warning system had been in place...", "If we receive funding today, we will..." Be specific about what the money buys — not abstract promises.
The earthquake was two weeks ago. Media attention has moved on. But 8,000 people are still living in a field with no shelter and winter is coming. Convince donors to fund the next phase.
The hardest fundraising is after the cameras leave. Use formal proposal language: "We propose that...", "It is critical that..." Paint a picture of what happens if funding doesn't come.
A major donor is threatening to withdraw funding because they saw a news report claiming aid supplies were stolen by local officials. You don't know if it's true yet. Convince them to stay.
Be honest about the allegation without confirming or denying. Use hedging: "We are investigating...", "If this proves to be accurate, we will..." Show the donor what their money HAS achieved so far.
Your organisation wants to shift from emergency response to long-term reconstruction. Convince the board that building earthquake-resistant schools now will save more lives than any future rescue mission.
Use mixed conditionals powerfully: "If these buildings had existed before the earthquake, we would not be here today." Present a clear proposal with costs, timelines, and outcomes.
Why Edugine?
Turn your lessons into experiences.
Edugine helps tutors create and run live learning experiences where students actively participate, interact and collaborate — while tutors see what students are doing and guide the lesson in real time.