A brief overview of crimes against geography in the 113th Congress.
Redistricting today has become a common tool in American politics. Every ten years with the new census, political parties seize the opportunity to maximize their political influence by trying to minimize the ‘demographic and spatial limitations’ of their particular voting bloc.
Tags: gerrymandering, political, mapping, census, unit 4 political.
See on www.washingtonpost.com
Report details deaths of 964 workers from Nepal, India and Bangladesh from cardiac arrests, falls and suicide
Qatar’s population pyramid has a very distinct shape that you will only find in places with high migrant worker populations. This type of demographic influx is now common in oil-rich gulf states as the forces of globalization draw in pools of labor so countries like Qatar can now ‘import’ the low-wage workers needed to keep their economy rolling. The economic, cultural and political power imbalance between the classes leads to many migrant workers being exploited, leading to the social problems listed in this article.
Tags: Middle East, Qatar, globalization, migration, economic, labor.
See on www.theguardian.com
“The Habitable Planet is a multimedia course for high school teachers and adult learners interested in studying environmental science. The Web site provides access to course content and activities developed by leading scientists and researchers in the field.”
Much like the Power of Place resources were created by Annenberg Learner to share World Regional Geography videos, the Habitable Planet has diverse resources for Physical Geography and Environmental Science. In essence, it is an excellent free online textbook.
Tags: textbook, environment, physical.
See on www.learner.org
“The American policymaking sphere has long been dominated by political scientists and economists. While I have nothing against these disciplines, and acknowledge that they have made important contributions to our public discourse, I am also concerned that we have not always heard the full range of perspectives on important questions of the day. Geography has a different perspective to offer, and our public discourse is impoverished without it.“
Spatial thinking needs to be infused into many of our public conversations, and geographers collectively need to find ways to be a part of them.
See on mn2020.org
“France’s administrative regions — Normandy, Alsace, Burgundy, etc. — have long been part of the identity of citizens of this diverse country. Now, merging some of them is seen as a logical way to save money on bureaucracy, and the French support it — as long as it’s someone else’s turf.”
This is an interesting concept that shows the divergence between national and regional identities. 68% of French citizens recognize that consolidating regional administration will be economically more efficient at the national level; however 77% don’t want to see the elimination of their own local region. The formation of place-based identities operate an multiple scales. How would you feel if your state was absorbed by a neighboring state? How come?
Tags: community, place, governance, France.
See on bigstory.ap.org
See on Scoop.it – Geography Education
When streams emerge from mountains, they often spread out and deposit sediment in a distinctive pattern known as an alluvial fan.
In dry areas of interior drainage (such as Central Asia and the Great Basin in the U.S.), the human settlements are often clustered along the foothills of the mountains near landforms called alluvial fans. Take time to analyze this image (and this one as well); in alluvial fans and the agricultural patterns that people create on them, we can see some striking geometric and spatial configurations that show how human settlements are highly dependent of the physical environment.
Tags: spatial, remote sensing, geospatial, Kazakhstan, Central Asia, landscape.
See on earthobservatory.nasa.gov
See on Scoop.it – Geography Education
China has recently increased its pursuit of territorial claims in nearby seas, leading to tense exchanges with neighboring countries. A map of some of the most notable disputes.
Many of the geopolitical conflicts in the East Pacific have their roots in the territorial disputes over islands that at first glance seem as if they wouldn’t be worth the trouble. However, since the the UNCLOS agreement gives countries 200 nautical miles off their coasts to be an Exclusive Economic Zone, that greatly enhanced the strategic value of controlling these islands. This interactive map briefly highlights some of the details behind the conflicts with links for further readings.
Questions to Ponder: Why do countries care so much about some minor islands? Why would other countries not want to accept China’s territorial assertions? Experts are saying that Chinese-Japanese relations are as bad as they’ve been since the end of World War II–Why all the commotion?
See on www.nytimes.com
See on Scoop.it – Geography Education
“More than 60 percent of the world’s economic output takes place near our coastlines. Yet our oceans are in danger from over fishing, pollution and global warming. World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim explains how good business practices can improve marine life, as well as human livelihoods. Oceans are essential to the systems that produce the water we drink & food we grow. Healthy oceans are vital to healthy economies and promote global food security.”
Recently there was a summit on protecting the world’s oceans attending by representatives of most countries. Overfishing is but one of the many issues that are plaguing our oceans. We can’t pretend that the oceans are external to our national ecosystems; the World is a closed system and oceanic pollution and degradation impacts the entire system. You can also explore more using these ESRI StoryMaps with over 25 interactives on a variety of topics about our Oceans.
Tags: environment modify, consumption, water, physical, industry, economic, pollution, industry, sustainability, urban ecology.
See on www.youtube.com
See on Scoop.it – Geography Education
They’ve driven prices so low that Mexican growers are giving up.
For the first time ever, many of the farmers who supply Mexican drug cartels have stopped planting marijuana, reports the Washington Post. “It’s not worth it anymore,” said Rodrigo Silla, a lifelong cannabis farmer from central Mexico. “I wish the Americans would stop with this legalization.” Facing stiff competition from pot grown legally and illegally north of the border, the price for a kilogram of Mexican schwag has plummeted by 75 percent, from $100 to $25.
Events that we think of as local (Washington and Colorado legalizing marijuana use) have national and global implications, especially in a globalized economy. This article is but one example of why geographers try to approach every issue at a variety of scales to more fully comprehend the ramifications and ripple effects of any given phenomenon.
See on www.motherjones.com
GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION 
