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Turning the Sahara into Farmland

“In the African Sahel, a country called Niger bordering the Sahara Desert, the largest desert in the world, is stopping desertification and turning is deserts into an Oasis. Regenerative Agriculture is leading the way with a technique called Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR).  The innovative technique has been adopted by local farmers through peer-to-peer learning making it cost effective and easy to implement. Over the last 40 years the visual results and the data have shown FMNR has been extremely successful in turning desert into farmland. It has regenerated 5 million hectares of degraded land; 200 million trees have been restored and has benefited 2.5 million people increasing household income by 18-24%. The available arable land has doubled since the severe droughts of the 1970s and tree density has 10x since its all-time low in the 1980s. This is an extraordinary achievement considering Niger only receives on average 6.5 inches of rainfall a year and 80% of the country is considered a desert.” SOURCE: Leaf of Life on YouTube  

This video highlights the effort that Niger has made to prevent the desertification.  The Sahara could easily spread further south into the Sahel given the right (or wrong conditions).  Overgrazing on marginal lands with little precipitation can easily lead to the expansion of the desert.  Once of the strategies used by local communities in the Sahel is known as farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR). 

This strategy of having farmers manage the land is seen as an effective way to promote sustainable environmental, economic, and developmental goals.   In dry ecosystems on the edge of a desert like the Sahel in Niger, FMNR can reverse tree loss and biodiversity. 

TAGS: Niger, Africa, development, agriculture.

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Here’s How America Uses Its Land

The 48 contiguous states alone are a 1.9 billion-acre jigsaw puzzle of cities, farms, forests and pastures.

Source: www.bloomberg.com

This set of 15 maps on how land is used in the 48 contiguous U.S. states is a phenomenal resource to visualize how we use our land (admittedly this does exclude Alaska and Hawaii, but given that Alaska’s land use patterns can skew the patterns considerably).  This is especially useful in agricultural units, but has many other applications. 

Scoop.it Tags: agriculture, food production, land use, rural, USA.

WordPress TAGS: agriculture, food production, land use, rural, USA.

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The Sling Shot Man

This is the story of a man who makes sling shots and shoots them like an expert marksman.

Source: www.youtube.com

While I don’t think that the folk/popular dichotomy is the most important way to conceptualize differences in culture traits and groups, it is still how many textbooks arrange their cultural chapters.  Given that, I love showing this clip–this man is the embodiment of folk culture and his story shows the elements that differentiate folk culture from popular culture. 

Scoop.it Tags: culture, rural, folk culture, the South,

WordPress Tags: culture, rural, folk culture, the South.

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Welcome to Monowi, Nebraska: population 1

Eighty-four-year-old Elsie Eiler pays taxes to herself, grants her own alcohol licence and is the only remaining resident in Monowi, Nebraska.

Source: www.bbc.com

What is it like living in a town with a population of 1?  Would you stay as the last remnant of your withering town? This case study is absolutely fascinating since it defies what we consider the minimum threshold of what is required for a city or a town.  However, the other compelling geographic story is how a once, low-order central place in rural Nebraska, has been (almost) completely abandoned.  

 

Tag: rural, migration, USA.

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How Dollar General Is Transforming Rural America

“Dollar General stores thrive in low-income rural towns, and the deep-discount chain has opened hundreds of new shops in the past year.”

 

Dollar General is set to open 1,000 locations this year, for a total of more than 14,000 stores. It will have more stores than McDonald’s has restaurants in the entire country. That includes plenty of urban locations, but the chain’s bright yellow and black signs pop up about every 10 miles along many remote state highways. Like Walmart, it has rural roots. Dollar General started in small-town Kentucky. Al Cross, who runs the Institute for Rural Journalism at the University of Kentucky, says Dollar General competes with the world’s largest retailer on price and convenience.

 

Tags: rural, retail, podcast.

Source: www.npr.org

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How Does the U.S. Census Bureau Define Rural?

“The U.S. Census Bureau has designed a multimedia application experience, a story map, called ‘Rural America: How Does the U.S. Census Bureau Define Rural?’ This story map contains interactive web maps, tables, information, and images to help explain how the Census Bureau defines ‘rural.’ Many rural communities rely on American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, rather than ACS 1-year estimates, because of population thresholds. This story map helps data users understand the history and definition of ‘rural.’ Watch this video and then visit the story map to learn more.” Visit the Story Map: http://go.usa.gov/x8yPZ  

Source: www.youtube.com

Census geography brings statistical data to life as seen in their newly designed interactive story map, called “Rural America: How Does the U.S. Census Bureau Define ‘Rural?” Not only does this story map helps explain how the Census Bureau defines rural, but it displays some fantastic data that helps students to explore rural America.  Many APHG teachers refer to unit 5 as the “ag unit” but the full title, Agriculture, food production, and rural land use, certainly does highlight why this can be a valuable resource.  

 

Tags: rural, census, regions, mapping, ESRI, StoryMap.

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Walmart Nation: Mapping the Largest Employers in the U.S.

Walmart employs 1.5 million people across the country – and the retail behemoth is now the largest private employer in 22 states.

 

In an era where Amazon steals most of the headlines, it’s easy to forget about brick-and-mortar retailers like Walmart.

But, even though the market values the Bezos e-commerce juggernaut at about twice the sum of Walmart, the blue big-box store is very formidable in other ways. For example, revenue and earnings are two areas where Walmart still reigns supreme, and the stock just hit all-time highs yesterday on an earnings beat.

 

Tag: rural, retail, labor, economic, industry.

Source: www.visualcapitalist.com

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In The Mountains Of Georgia, Foxfire Students Keep Appalachian Culture Alive

For 50 years, high school students in Rabun County have chronicled their region’s disappearing traditions and mountain people, from blacksmiths to moonshiners, in publications and a living museum.

Source: www.npr.org

This is an excellent, rich example of preserving old elements of rural, folk cultures that are rapidly disappearing.  The project ties local students to the region to appreciate past more and creates a remarkable archive for the future. 

 

Tags: culture, historical, rural, folk cultures, the South, podcast, unit 3 culture.

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‘Normal America’ Is Not A Small Town Of White People

“The sense that the normal America is out there somewhere in a hamlet is misplaced: it’s not in a small town at all.  I calculated how demographically similar each U.S. metropolitan area is to the U.S. overall, based on age, educational attainment, and race and ethnicity.1 The index equals 100 if a metro’s demographic mix were identical to that of the U.S. overall.”

Source: fivethirtyeight.com

We often do imagine that your typical American is from the Heartland, and that very term, strengthens that connotation.  100 years ago that was true that your average American was one a farm or a small town, as 72% of Americans lived in rural areas.  Today, that is decidedly not the case but we still sometimes think (and act) as if it were (84% today live in urban areas).  The United States is urban, diverse, and bi-coastal in it’s primary demographic composition.   

 

Tag: rural, migration, USA, census.

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