Introduce the global issues through a general discussion or over several class periods. On the day of the activity, you will need at least three people per issue, so the number of issues may vary depending on class size. Add issues if needed. Get students into groups of three according to the topic they are interested in. Each group should have an identifying label.
Groups first brainstorm the issues surrounding their topic on scrap paper.
Each one ties the end of a ball of yarn around their waist and holds the other end. Mobile negotiators from each group seek out other mobile negotiators around the circle, one by one. The goal is to decide if there is a relationship between their two issues. If they agree such a connection exists, they report their supporting reasons to their respective note-taker and static negotiator. The static negotiator creates a symbol of the agreed upon interrelationship between the two issues by looping their ball of yarn around the waist of the static negotiator from the other issue.