GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION

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Indonesia has the largest share of the world’s mangroves — coastal forests that have adapted to saltwater environments. They play important environmental and ecological roles.

Mangroves play a key role of acting as an ecological buffer in coastal region that provide the area with resilience against tsunamis, hurricanes and other forms of coastal flooding.  Their role in carbon sequestration is also vital as energy emissions globally continue to rise.  So let’s jump scales: how are global issues locally important?  How is the local deeply global?  How can stakeholders at either scale find common ground with the other?  

See on www.npr.org

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

Indonesia has the largest share of the world’s mangroves — coastal forests that have adapted to saltwater environments. They play important environmental and ecological roles.

Mangroves play a key role of acting as an ecological buffer in coastal region that provide the area with resilience against tsunamis, hurricanes and other forms of coastal flooding.  Their role in carbon sequestration is also vital as energy emissions globally continue to rise.  So let’s jump scales: how are global issues locally important?  How is the local deeply global?  How can stakeholders at either scale find common ground with the other?  

See on www.npr.org

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

The new African country, founded in part to escape from the northern government’s violence, is showing some hostility of its own.

Independence for ethnic/religious groups, while culturally satisfying, does not necessarily solve all the problems within a region.  South Sudan’s 1-year anniversary shows that even though they have a short history, it has been marked by ineffective governance and social instability.  

See on www.theatlantic.com

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

The West African state of Niger is now the worst place in the world to be a mother, a Save the Children annual report says.

Gender, Demographics and Development are the main geographic themes that run through this report.  As many countries prepare to celebrate Mother’s Day, the Non-Governmental Organization Save the Children considers the geography of motherhood and the difficulties in raising a healthy, educated, well-fed child with economic opportunities for the future.  The variables used in the index included factors such as health, education, economic status and nutrition as key indicators that would be pertinent to motherhood. 

The most difficult place to raise a child according to the report are: 1) Niger, 2) Afghanistan, 3) Yemen, 4) Guinea-Bissau and 5)Mali.  The best places to raise healthy, education children are: 1) Norway, 2) Iceland, 3) Sweden, 4) New Zealand and 5)Denmark.  For more information about Save the Children, see: http://www.savethechildren.net/

See on www.bbc.co.uk

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

If All of Earth’s Water was put into Single Sphere, from the USGS Water Science School…

“This picture shows the size of a sphere that would contain all of Earth’s water in comparison to the size of the Earth. The blue sphere sitting on the United States, reaching from about Salt Lake City, Utah to Topeka, Kansas, has a diameter of about 860 miles (about 1,385 kilometers) , with a volume of about 332,500,000 cubic miles (1,386,000,000 cubic kilometers). The sphere includes all the water in the oceans, seas, ice caps, lakes and rivers as well as groundwater, atmospheric water, and even the water in you, your dog, and your tomato plant.” 

See on ga.water.usgs.gov

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

A new study suggests vehicular travel affects children’s ability to navigate their neighborhood and connect to their community.

We learn about the places around us by exploring.  Literally our mental map is formed by making choices (in part through trial and error) and that process strengthens our spatial perception of the neighborhood.  Research is showing that kids with a ‘windshield perspective’ from being driven everywhere are not able to draw as accurate maps as children for who walk and bike their neighborhood.  The built environment and the transportation infrastructure in place play a role in developing spatial thinking skills for young minds. 

This is a compelling article with some important implications.  What are the ramifications for geographers?  City planners? Educators?  Families moving to a new neighborhood?   

See on www.theatlanticcities.com

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/GlobalMaps/view.php?d1=MOD13A2_M_NDVI# Satellites observe global-scale patterns of vegetation that scientists use to study c…

The NDVI (Normalized Digital Vegetation Index) is on of the primary methods for detecting healthy vegetation using satellite imagery.  This also serves as a useful way to distinguish between distinct ecological and agricultural regions and the temporal patterns of planting seasons. 

See on www.youtube.com

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

Kennedy Smith is considered one of the nation’s leading experts on downtowns, downtown economics, independent business development and the economic impact of urban sprawl, with a long career in downtown revitalization.

This video discusses the decline of the American Central Business District, the rise of shopping malls, the importance of the automobile and spatial organization of particular economic sectors.

Parts Two ( http://vimeo.com/37041011 ) and Three ( http://vimeo.com/37050944 ) continue the discussion with an emphasis on practical urban planning policies for small cities to revitalize the downtown region with some domestic and foreign examples. 

See on vimeo.com

See on Scoop.it – Geography Education

Documenting the megacities of our time….

Over half of humanity is living in cities and that statistic is likely to reach 70% by 2050.  Studying the urban environment, especially the ‘megacities’ (cities with populations over 10 million people) which are growing especially fast, becomes increasingly important.  This photo gallery of the worlds 23 megacites employs long exposure images, with highlights the movements and dynamism of the urban networks.  To see the gallery and this stunning image of Jakarta’s rush hour traffic, visit: http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/05/06/sunday-review/06METROPOLIS.html?ref=sunday#4 

See on www.nytimes.com