GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION

What makes a country a country?  There isn’t just one definition that is universally excepted as to what a country is; that make the first question even harder to answer.  Exploring these terms though is incredibly geographic and highlights some of the lesser known but fascinating places that are mired in geopolitical quanderies.

If you haven’t discovered CGP Grey yet, his YouTube channel is a veritable fountain of geographic tidbits.  His distinctive style helps to contextualizes some of the more odd and complicated parts of the Earth (but some find the rush of facts disorienting).  

Tags: borders, political, territoriality, sovereignty, CGP Grey.

 See on www.youtube.com

This is a glimpse into the BBC’s “Don’t Panic-The Truth about Population” which will be airing November 7th.  If you have never seen his TED talks or his Gapminder data visualization tool, it is a must see for geography teachers to show the connections between population statistics and developmental patterns by letting students see the data. 

Tags: gapminder, population, poverty, development.

The Maldives is a small country in the Indian Ocean composed of 1,200 islands.  Virtually every spot in this country is under 8 feet in elevation.  Pictured above is the capital of Malé, which has the largest population (explore these islands on a variety of scales).   

Questions to Ponder: What physical forces and processes account for the presence of these islands in the Ocean?  In a geological time scale, what does the future hold for these islands.  What would be the main economic assets of the Maldives?  What would be the main economic and environmental concerns of this country?

Tags: density, sustainability, economic, environment, environment adapt, climate change, urban ecology.

One county commission discribed these political movements thus: “It’s grounded in the legitimate feeling that if you’re marginalized by geography, it’s easy to feel neglected by the central government.”  The political division between urban and rural citizens can lead to pockets of the population feeling as though the state government ignores your and the surrounding communities.  It took the Civil War to separate West Virginia from Virginia, and while many may want to be in a different state, it’s not happening simply because there is grassroots support for greater local autonomy.  Hypothetically, let’s say that many new states are generated; what consequences might come of this?  Would it leading to further gerrymandering?      

Tags: political, conflict, devolution, autonomy, borders, gerrymandering.

The AAG has requested that I share this with geography educators and I’m delighted to do so because this is fantastic program; please encourage students to apply for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  “This program aims to provide opportunities for youth to learn more about online geospatial technologies and how to apply them in service to their communities, while gaining a deeper understanding about different places and cultures of the world.  It is conducted by the Association of American Geographers (AAG) with funding and support from the US Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Youth Programs Division. The MyCOE partnership has actively led more than ten years of youth leadership programs, finding solutions to sustainable development challenges in local communities using geographic concepts and tools, while connecting with each other globally.” 

According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), Scandinavia is the place to be.  This interactive map uses data that was compiled from an index to measure gender equality in health, access to education, economic participation and political engagement.  The four highest ranked countries in the world, Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden) are all in Scandinavia.  Thanks to the Guardian Datablog, you can download all of data in a spreadsheet to map on your own.  This interactive map is excellent, but a more expanded series of maps concerning gender (in)equality in the world regarding the status of women can be found on the WomanStats project page. 

Tags: gender, mapping, statistics, development.

This magazine feature is filled with resources for teaching urban geography and development.  In this feature you’ll find 8 videos, articles, maps and images discuss some of the geographic factors that have created megacities and the difficulties that they pose for future development.

Tags: urban, megacities, unit 7 cities, National Geographic.