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GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION

Supporting geography educators everywhere with current digital resources.

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sethdixon

I am a geography professor at Rhode Island College.

Why Do Some in UK Want To Leave The EU?

” Also see our video, Will The European Union Fall Apart? http://testu.be/1UYWZPm “

Source: www.youtube.com

The European Union at one time seemed as though it would continue to further and further integrate European politics and economics.  With talk of possibly leaving the EU and a referendum on whether the UK should stay in the EU or not, the EU offered some extra special exemptions for the UK.  For a more in depth coverage, see this PBS News Hour video.  

 

Tags: Europe, supranationalism, economic, political.

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America’s year without a winter: The 2015-2016 season was the warmest on record

Every state but two were warmer than normal and all six New England states set winter records.

 

 

Tags: physical, weather and climate, climate change.

Source: www.washingtonpost.com

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Walk Appeal and Public Health

“The core idea of Walk Appeal is that people walk longest and most often in places that entice them, but rarely walk just because they’re told they ought to. Some Walk Appeal factors are measurable, while others are immeasurable, and it has long been clear that Walk Appeal is the best predictor of the viability of neighborhood businesses.”

Source: www.originalgreen.org

What is a reasonable distance to walk around town?  Research shows that cities with improved sidewalks, less parking lots, attractive storefronts and other amenities that encourage walking.  If  walking the urban environment is and of itself an experience worth having and makes the person feel like a flâneur, experiencing the city on a deeper level, automotive transport goes down and walking goes up.  Urban infrastructure is more important for most people than distance in deciding whether to get in the car or walk down the street (for distances under 2 miles).   Bottom line: neighborhoods that have an appealing sense of place are more walkable.

 

Tags: urban, place, transportation, planning, urbanism, architecture.

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Geographic Profiling Has Revealed Banksy’s True Identity

banksys-true-identity-revealed-1457108469“Art meets science in a new geographical profiling study from Queen Mary University of London, which probably just revealed the identity of the art world’s most and least iconic figure.”

Source: i-d.vice.com

I’m deeply ambivalent about this.  The spatial analyst in me loves see that mapping patterns can uncover truths but the cultural geographer in me feels sad that anonymity has been removed since that led to a greater mystique to his subverse, place-based art installations.  You can read the article to find out who he is, but I prefer the Banksy of my mind’s eye. 

Tags: place, spatial, images, art, landscape, socioeconomic, class. 

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Mumbai or Bombay? A British newspaper reverts to a colonial-era name.

The Independent’s concerns over Hindu nationalism led to a change in policy.

 

The city has been officially known as Mumbai since 1995 when it was renamed by the far-right regional party Shiv Sena, an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which currently holds national office in India. Shiv Sena advocates the use of the Marathi language, which is dominant in the state of Maharashtra, of which Mumbai is the capital. Marathi speakers have long referred to the city as Mumbai, after the Hindu goddess Mumbadevi, the city’s patron deity.

Shiv Sena had argued that the previous name, Bombay, was an unwanted relic of British colonial rule in India. That name is believed to be an Anglicized version of the city’s name from when it was occupied by the Portuguese — “Bom Bahia,” which means “good bay.” Both Bombay and Mumbai are now used interchangeably by locals during casual conversation.

 

Tags: culture, India, South Asia, colonialism, place, regions, language, toponyms.

Source: www.washingtonpost.com

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Why most 8th graders are not good at geography

Some experts argue overemphasis on reading and math tests is to blame for narrowing of content curriculum, reducing motivation to learn and breadth of knowledge.

Source: www.deseretnews.com

The U.S. government report on 8th grade geography is not a ‘pick-me-up’ but a sobering reminder of the task that lays before us.  This article quotes a few alliance coordinators on the current situation and how to change it. 

 

Tags: education, K12, geography education.

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Changing How We Think About Africa

Do you speak African? Well, neither do the 1 billion people on the continent.Africa is home to 54 different nations, more than 2,000 languages and four of the world’s 10 fastest growing economies, but is often painted with a sweeping stroke of doom and gloom. In this week’s Reality Check, Mehdi Hasan exposes popular misconceptions about the African continent.

Source: www.youtube.com

This short video is full of with examples and statistics that show that many of the ‘doom and gloom’ perspectives and ways of thinking about Africa are outdated (at best).  Here are some good facts to update how we talk about Africa. 

 

Tags: Africa, perspective.

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The Most Aussie Interview Ever

“The 2 Aussie legends that prevented a fast food shop robbery get interviewed!”

Source: www.youtube.com

While this is hardly common in Australia, and most people don’t speak this way, it only makes sense if you know Australian culture well.  There are so many jokes, phrases, and words that don’t make sense if you don’t understand the cultural context.  Just to help you start to make sense of this: busted pluggers = broken flip-flops.   

 

Tags: Australia, language, place, culture, Oceania.

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We Don’t Coast

A celebration of who we are, where we are and how we operate. It belongs to the 30+ communities who make Omaha—Greater Omaha.

Source: wedontcoast.com

This website is a great example a city selling it’s regional distinctiveness to create a sense of civic pride, promote tourism, and attract more businesses.  Often Omaha’s distance for the coasts is portrayed as a major weakness, but in a clever play on words, the weakness is acknowledged and reformed into a strength.   

 

Questions to Ponder: How would you promote your own city/region/state?  What would be highlighted on a similar page for your city?  What slogan would you use?

 

Tags: place, tourism, urban, culture, economic. 

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