EDSS8 Prelim Coverage.pdf

Preface Geography is a discipline of explorers. Some geographers explore the world using satellite imagery and others by interviewing members of an indigenous community in an isolated area. What unites geographers everywhere is a desire to dig deeper, a desire to better understand why the spatial p...

Preface Geography is a discipline of explorers. Some geographers explore the world using satellite imagery and others by interviewing members of an indigenous community in an isolated area. What unites geographers everywhere is a desire to dig deeper, a desire to better understand why the spatial patterns and unique features we find in the world exist and how they interact and change. World Regional Geography presents an overview of the discipline by introducing students to key themes and concepts in the discipline of geography through a study of the world’s regions. In a traditional World Regional Geography textbook, chapters are arranged around the various regions of the world with each chapter focusing on the geographic features of the particular region. Concepts such as climate, physical features, culture, economics, and politics are discussed in every chapter and particular places and names of physical features found in each region are emphasized. In essence, most World Regional Geography textbooks privilege breadth over depth. There are two key problems with this traditional approach. First, most regional chapters follow the same basic outline of topics, perhaps beginning with physical features, then outlining historical developments, and then moving on to culture and economics. Countries and specific places within the region are emphasized rather than the patterns found across the region as a whole. There is rarely an over-arching theme or story that connects the regions to one another. Secondly, in most primary-level geography courses, breadth is already emphasized. Students may take map quizzes or learn a list of physical features, but have little exposure to the depth of concepts and theories that are central to geography as a discipline. This book takes a different approach. Rather than present students with a broad, novice- level introduction to geography, emphasizing places and vocabulary terms, this text approaches geography as experts understand the discipline, focusing on connections and an in-depth understanding of core themes. This thematic approach, informed by pedagogical research, provides students with an introduction to thinking geographically. Instead of repeating the same several themes each chapter, this text emphasizes depth over breadth by arranging each chapter around a central theme and then exploring that theme in detail as it applies to the particular region. In addition, while chapters are designed to stand alone and be rearranged or eliminated at the instructor’s discretion, the theme of globalization and inequality unites all of the regions discussed. This core focus enables students to draw connections between regions and to better understand the interconnectedness of our world. Furthermore, the focus on both globalization and inequality helps demonstrate the real-world application of the concepts discussed. Colonialism, for instance, rather than a historical relic, becomes a force that has shaped geography and informs social justice. This thematic approach is also intended to facilitate active learning and 1 2 CAITLIN FINLAYSON would be suitable for a flipped or team-based learning-style course since it more easily integrates case studies and higher-order thinking than the traditional model. Each chapter begins with a list of learning objectives. This text was written with the backward course design model in mind and the content of each chapter was structured around these learning objectives. Because of this backward design focus, the length of each chapter is considerably shorter than most traditional textbooks. The intention is for the instructor to supplement the text with problems, case studies, and news articles and to use the text as a springboard for discussing deeper issues. The chapters are written in an accessible style, often addressing the student directly, and the author’s voice has intentionally tried to remain present in the text. Following the Washington Post’s gender-inclusive style guide, the singular they is intentionally used throughout the text. Rhetorical questions are also used to help students reflect on concepts and to encourage them to dig deeper and consider concepts from different perspectives. Finally, a key difference between this text and others on the subject is that it is provided at no cost under the CC BY license. This means that the content can be distributed, remixed, tweaked, or built upon simply by crediting the author. Geography is an open discipline. In truth, anyone can be a geographer as long as they are curious about the world around them. This isn’t a perfect text and it doesn’t attempt to be. In emphasizing depth over breadth, some content was sacrificed. However, the intention is that students will not only know the material much more deeply, but in doing so, will also develop a passion for geography and a geographical imagination that will continue beyond this course. Happy exploring, geographers. CHAPTER 1 Introduction Learning Objectives Understand the principles of geographic study Summarize the key physical and human features of the world Distinguish between different types of regions Understand the major subfields of geography and their key conceptual frameworks Describe the process of globalization and the principal measures of inequality 1.1 THE WHERE AND THE WHY What is “geography”? It might seem like a simple enough term to define. In middle school or high school, your answer might have been something to do with the study of maps, of where things were located in the world. In fact, much of primary and secondary school geography is explicitly focused on the where, answering questions like where a particular country is located, what a country’s capital is, and where major landforms are located. Just as simple arithmetic operations form the backbone of mathematics as a discipline, these kinds of questions are foundational to geographic study. However, one wouldn’t likely define math as the study of calculators or of multiplication tables. Similarly, there is much more to geography and geographic inquiry than the study of maps. Geographers seek to answer both the “where” and the “why.” Simply knowing where a country is located is certainly helpful, but geographers dig deeper: why is it located there? Why does it have a particular shape, and how does this shape affect how it interacts with its neighbors and its access to resources? Why do the people of the country have certain cultural features? Why does the country have a specific style of government? The list goes on and on, and as you might notice, incorporates a variety of historical, cultural, political, and physical features. This synthesis of the physical world and human activity is at the heart of the regional geographic approach. 3 4 CAITLIN FINLAYSON The term “geography” comes from the Greek term geo meaning “the earth” and graphia meaning “to write,” and many early geographers did exactly that: they wrote about the world. Ibn Battuta, for example, was a scholar from Morocco and traveled extensively across Africa and Asia in the 14th century CE. Eratosthenes is commonly considered to be the “Father of Geography,” and in fact, he quite literally wrote the book on the subject in the third century BCE. His three-volume text, Geographica, included maps of the entire known world (see Figure 1.1), including different climate zones, the locations of hundreds of different cities, and a coordinate system. This was a revolutionary and highly regarded text, especially for the time period. Eratosthenes is also credited as the first person to calculate the circumference of the Earth. Many early geographers, like Eratosthenes, were primarily cartographers, referring to people who scientifically study and create maps, and early maps, such as those used in Babylon, Polynesia, and the Arabian Peninsula, were often used for navigation. In the Middle Ages, as academic inquiry in Europe declined with the fall of the Roman Empire, Muslim geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi created one of the most advanced maps of pre-modern times, inspiring future geographers from the region. Figure 1.1: Reconstruction of Eratosthenes’ Map of the Known World, c. 194 BCE (© E. H. Bunbury, A History of Ancient Geography among the Greeks and Romans from the Earliest Ages till the Fall of the Roman Empire, 1883, Public Domain) Geography today, though using more advanced tools and techniques, draws on the foundations laid by these predecessors. What unites all geographers, whether they are travelers writing about the world’s cultures or cartographers mapping new frontiers, is an attention to the spatial perspective. As geographer Harm deBlij once explained, there are three main ways to look at the world. One way is chronologically, as a historian might examine the sequence of world events. A second way is systematically, as a sociologist might explore the societal systems in place that help shape a given country’s structures of inequality. The third way is spatially, and this is the geographic perspective. Geographers, when confronted with a global problem, immediately ask the questions “Where?” and “Why?” Although geography is a broad discipline that includes quantitative techniques like statistics and qualitative methods like interviews, all geographers share this common way of looking at the world from a spatial perspective. INTRODUCTION 5 1.2 THE SPATIAL PERSPECTIVE At the heart of the spatial perspective is the question of “where,” but there are a number of different ways to answer this question. Relative location refers to the location of a place relative to other places, and we commonly use relative location when giving directions to people. We might instruct them to turn “by the gas station on the corner,” or say that we live “in the dorm across from the fountain.” Another way to describe a place is by referring to its absolute location. Absolute location references an exact point on Earth and commonly uses specific coordinates like latitude and longitude. Lines of latitude and longitude are imaginary lines that circle the globe and form the geographic coordinate system (see Figure 1.2). Lines of latitude run laterally, parallel to the equator, and measure distances north or south of the equator. Lines of longitude, on the other hand, converge at the poles and measure distances east and west of the prime meridian. Figure 1.2: Lines of Latitude and Longitude (© Djexplo, Wikipedia Commons, CC0 1.0) Every place on Earth has a precise location that can be measured with latitude and longitude. The location of the White House in Washington, DC, for example, is located at latitude 38.8977 °N and longitude 77.0365°W. Absolute location might also refer to details like elevation. The Dead Sea, located on the border of Jordan and Israel, is the lowest location on land, dipping down to 1,378 feet below sea level. Historically, most maps were hand-drawn, but with the advent of computer technology came more advanced maps created with the aid of satellite technology. Geographic information science (GIS), sometimes also referred to as geographic information systems,uses computers and satellite imagery to capture, store, manipulate, analyze,manage, and present spatial data. GIS essentially uses layers of information and is often used to make decisions in a wide variety of contexts. An urban planner might use GIS to determine the best location for a new fire station, 6 CAITLIN FINLAYSON while a biologist might use GIS to map the migratory paths of birds. You might use GIS to get navigation directions from one place to another, layering place names, buildings, and roads. One difficulty with map-making, even when using advanced technology, is that the earth is roughly a sphere while maps are generally flat. When converting the spherical Earth to a flat map, some distortion always occurs. A map projection , or a representation of Earth’s surface on a flat plane, always distorts at least one of these four properties: area, shape, distance, and direction. Some maps preserve three of these properties, while significantly distorting another, while other maps seek to minimize overall distortion but distort each property somewhat. So which map projection is best? That depends on the purpose of the map. The Mercator projection , while significantly distorting the size of places near the poles, preserves angles and shapes, making it ideal for navigation (see Figure 1.3). Figure 1.3: Mercator Projection (© Daniel R. Strebe, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) The Winkel tripel projection is so-named because its creator, Oswald Winkel, sought to minimize three kinds of distortion: area, direction, and distance (see Figure 1.4). It has been used by the National Geographic Society since 1998 as the standard projection of world maps. INTRODUCTION 7 Figure 1.4: Winkel Tripel Projection (© Daniel R. Strebe, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) When representing the Earth on a manageable-sized map, the actual size of location is reduced. Scale is the ratio between the distance between two locations on a map and the corresponding distance on Earth’s surface. A 1:1000 scale map, for example, would mean that 1 meters on the map equals 1000 meters, or 1 kilometer, on Earth’s surface. Scale can sometimes be a confusing concept for students, so it’s important to remember that it refers to a ratio. It doesn’t refer to the size of the map itself, but rather, how zoomed in or out the map is. A 1:1 scale map of your room would be the exact same size of your room – plenty of room for significant detail, but hard to fit into your glove compartment. As with map projections, the “best” scale for a map depends on what it’s used for. If you’re going on a walking tour of a historic town, a 1:5,000 scale map is commonly used. If you’re a geography student looking at a map of the entire world, a 1:50,000,000 scale map would be appropriate. “Large” scale and “small” scale refer to the ratio, not to the size of the landmass on the map. 1 divided by 5,000 is 0.0002, which is a larger number than 1 divided by 50,000,000 (which is 0.00000002). Thus, a 1:5,000 scale map is considered “large” scale while 1:50,000,000 is considered “small” scale. All maps have a purpose, whether it’s to guide sailing ships, help students create a more accurate mental map of the world, or tell a story. The map projection, color scheme, scale, and labels are all decisions made by the mapmaker. Some argued that the widespread use of the Mercator projection, which made Africa look smaller relative to North America and Eurasia, led people to minimize the importance of Africa’s political and economic issues. Just as texts can be critiqued for their style, message, and purpose, so too can maps be critiqued for the information and message they present. The spatial perspective, and answering the question of “where,” encompasses more than just static locations on a map. Often, answering the question of “where” relates to movement across 8 CAITLIN FINLAYSON space. Diffusion refers to the spreading of something from one place to another, and might relate to the physical movement of people or the spread of disease, or the diffusion of ideas, technology, or other intangible phenomena. Diffusion occurs for different reasons and at different rates. Just as static features of culture and the physical landscape can be mapped, geographers can also map the spread of various characteristics or ideas to study how they interact and change. 1.3 CORE AND PERIPHERY One way of considering the location of places relative to one another is by examining their spatial interaction. In a given region, there is generally a core area, sometimes known as the central business district (CBD) and a hinterland, a German term literally meaning “the land behind” (see Figure 1.5). The hinterland is more sparsely populated than the core and is often where goods sold in the core are manufactured. It might include rural farmland, for example. Figure 1.5: The Core and the Hinterland (Figure by author, Images courtesy of Espresso Addict, Wikimedia Commons; Mike – Flickr; Pam Brophy – Wikimedia Commons; CC BY-SA) The core, on the other hand, is the commercial focus for the area where most goods and services are exchanged. The hinterland relies on the central city to sell its goods, but similarly the city relies on the hinterland to produce raw materials. Consider where the hinterland is located around your closest city; the hinterland is characteristically rural, while the core is urban. All countries contain core areas and hinterlands. Globally, we can apply the hinterland-city model to an understanding of a global core and a global periphery (see Figure 1.6). The core areas are places of dominance, and these areas exert control over the surrounding periphery. Core areas are typically more developed and industrialized whereas the periphery is more rural and generally less developed. Unlike the interactions between the city and the hinterland, economic exchange between the core and periphery is characteristically one-sided, creating wealth for the core and patterns of uneven development. However, these interactions do contribute to economic stability in the periphery. Some argue that it benefits the core countries to keep the periphery peripheral; in other words, if the periphery can remain underdeveloped, they are more likely to sell cheap goods to the core. This generates more wealth for core areas and contributes to their continued influence and economic strength. INTRODUCTION 9 Figure 1.6: The Global and Periphery (Map by Lou Coban, Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain) 1.4 THE PHYSICAL SETTING When we describe places, we can discuss their absolute and relative location and their relationship and interaction with other places. As regional geographers, we can dig deeper and explore both the physical and human characteristics that make a particular place unique. Geographers explore a wide variety of spatial phenomena, but the discipline can roughly be divided into two branches: physical geography and human geography. Physical geography focuses on natural features and processes, such as landforms, climate, and water features. Human geography is concerned with human activity, such as culture, language, and religion. However, these branches are not exclusive. You might be a physical geographer who studies hurricanes, but your research includes the human impact from these events. You might be a human geographer who studies food, but your investigations include the ecological impact of agricultural systems. Regional geography takes this holistic approach, exploring both the physical and human characteristics of the world’s regions. Much of Earth’s physical landscape, from mountains to volcanoes to earthquakes to valleys, has resulted from the movement of tectonic plates. As the theory of plate tectonics describes, these rigid plates are situated on top of a bed of molten, flowing material, much like a cork floating in a pot of boiling water. There are seven major tectonic plates and numerous minor plates (see Figure 1.7). 10 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 1.7: Map of Global Tectonic Plate Boundaries (United States Geological Survey, Public Domain) Where two tectonic plates meet is known as a plate boundary and boundaries can interact in three different ways (see Figure 1.8). Where two plates slide past one another is called a transform boundary. The San Andreas Fault in California is an example of a transform boundary. A divergent plate boundary is where two plates slide apart from one another. Africa’s Rift Valley was formed by this type of plate movement. Convergent plate boundaries occur when two plates slide towards one another. In this case, where two plates have roughly the same density, upward movement can occur, creating mountains. The Himalaya Mountains, for example, were formed from the Indian plate converging with the Eurasian plate. In other cases, subduction occurs and one plate slides below the other. Here, deep, under-ocean trenches can form. The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami occurred because of a subducting plate boundary off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. INTRODUCTION 11 Figure 1.8: Types of Tectonic Plate Boundaries (United States Geological Survey, Public Domain) Interaction between tectonic plates and historical patterns of erosion and deposition have generated a variety of landforms across Earth’s surface. Each of the world’s regions has identifiable physical features, such as plains, valleys, mountains, and major water bodies. Topography refers to the study of the shape and features of the surface of the Earth. Areas of high relief have significant changes in elevation on the landscape, such as steep mountains, while areas of low relief are relatively flat. Another key feature of Earth’s physical landscape is climate. Weather refers to the short-term state of the atmosphere. We might refer to the weather as partly sunny or stormy, for example. Climate, on the other hand, refers to long-term weather patterns and is affected by a place’s latitude, terrain, altitude, and nearby water bodies. Explained another way, “weather” is what you’re wearing today while “climate” is all the clothes in your closet. Geographers commonly use the Köppen climate classification system to refer to the major climate zones found in the world (see Figure 1.9). 12 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 1.9: World Map of Köppen Climate Classifications (© Ali Zifan, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0) Each climate zone in the Köppen climate classification system is assigned a letteredcode, referring to the temperature and precipitation patterns found in the particular region. Climate varies widely across Earth. Cherrapunji, India, located in the Cwb climate zone, receives over 11,000 mm (400 in) of rain each year. In contrast, the Atacama Desert (BWk), situated along the western coast of South America across Chile, Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina, typically receives only around 1 to 3 mm (0.04 to 0.12 in) of rain each year. Earth’s climate has gone through significant changes historically, alternating between long periods of warming and cooling. Since the industrial revolution in the 1800s, however, global climate has experienced a warming phase. 95 percent of scientists agree that this global climate change has resulted primarily from human activities, particularly the emission of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide (see Figure 1.10). 17 of the 18 warmest years ever recorded have occurred since 2000. Overall, this warming has contributed to rising sea levels as the polar ice caps melt, changing precipitation patterns, and the expansion of deserts. The responses to global climate change, and the impacts from it, vary by region. INTRODUCTION 13 Figure 1.10: Mean Land-Ocean Surface Temperature Index, 1880 to Present (NASA, Public Domain) 1.5 THE HUMAN SETTING The physical setting of the world’s places has undoubtedly influenced the human setting, just as human activities have shaped the physical landscape. There are currently around 7.4 billion people in the world, but these billions of people are not uniformly distributed. When we consider where people live in the world, we tend to cluster in areas that are warm and are near water and avoid places that are cold and dry. As shown in Figure 1.11, there are three major population clusters in the world: East Asia, South Asia, and Europe. 14 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 1.11: Map of Global Population Clusters (Derivative work from original by Cocoliras, Wikimedia Commons) Just as geographers can discuss “where” people are located, we can explore “why” population growth is occurring in particular areas. All of the 10 most populous cities in the world are located in countries traditionally categorized as “developing.” These countries typically have high rates of population growth. A population grows, quite simply, when more people are born than die. The birth rate refers to the total number of live births per 1,000 people in a given year. In 2012, the average global birth rate was 19.15 births per 1,000 people. Subtracting the death rate from the birth rate results in a country’s rate of natural increase (RNI). For example, Madagascar has a birth rate of 32.9 per 1,000 (as of 2017) and a death rate of 6.19 per 1,000. 32.9 minus 6.19 is 26.71 per 1,000. If you divide the result by 10, you’d get 2.671 per 100, or 2.671 percent. In essence, this means that Madagascar’s population is increasing at a rate of 2.671 percent per year. The natural increase rate does not include immigration. Some countries in Europe, in fact, have a negative natural increase rate, but their population continues to increase due to immigration. The birth rate is directly affected by the total fertility rate (TFR), which is the average number of children born to a woman during her child-bearing years (see Figure 1.12). In developing countries, the total fertility rate is often 4 or more children, contributing to high population growths. In developed countries, on the other hand, the total fertility rate may be only 1 or 2 children, which can ultimately lead to population decline. INTRODUCTION 15 Figure 1.12: Map of Countries by Fertility Rate, 2015 (© Our World in Data, CC BY-SA) A number of factors influence the total fertility rate, but it is generally connected to a country’s overall level of development. As a country develops and industrializes, it generally becomes more urbanized. Children are no longer needed to assist with family farms, and urban areas might not have large enough homes for big families. Women increasingly enter the workforce, which can delay childbearing and further restrict the number of children a family desires. Culturally, a shift occurs as industrialized societies no longer value large family sizes. As women’s education increases, women are able to take control of their reproductive rights. Contraceptive use becomes more widespread and socially acceptable. This shift in population characteristics as a country industrialized can be represented by the demographic transition model (DTM) (see Figure 1.13). This model demonstrates the changes in birth rates, death rates, and population growth over time as a country develops. In stage one, during feudal Europe, for example, birth rates and death rates were very high. Populations were vulnerable to drought and disease and thus population growth was minimal. No country remains in stage one today. In stage two, a decline in death rates leads to a rise in population. This decline in death rates occurred as a result of agricultural productivity and improvements in public health. Vaccines, for example, greatly reduced the mortality from childhood diseases. 16 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 1.13: The Demographic Transition Model (Figure by author) Stage two countries are primarily agricultural, and thus there is a cultural and historical preference for large families, so birth rates remain high. Most of Sub-Saharan Africa is in stage two. In stage three, urbanization and increasing access to contraceptives leads to a decline in the birth rate. As country industrializes, women enter the workforce and seek higher education. The population growth begins to slow. Much of Middle and South America as well as India are in stage three. In stage four, birth rates approach the death rates. Women have increased independence as well as educational and work opportunities, and families may choose to have a small number of children or none at all. Most of Europe as well as China are in stage four. Some have proposed a stage five of the demographic transition model. In some countries, the birth rate has fallen below the death rate as families choose to only have 1 child. In these cases, a population will decline unless there is significant immigration. Japan, for example, is in stage five and has a total fertility rate of 1.41. Although this is only a model, and each country passes through the stages of demographic transition at different rates, the generalized model of demographic transition holds true for most countries of the world. As countries industrialize and become more developed, they shift from primarily rural settlements to urban ones. Urbanization refers to the increased proportion of people living in urban areas. As people migrate out of rural, agricultural areas, the proportion of people living in cities increases. As people living in cities have children, this further increases urbanization. For most of human history, we have been predominantly rural. By the middle of 2009, however, the number of people living in urban areas surpassed the number of people living in rural areas for INTRODUCTION 17 the first time. In 2014, 54 percent of the world’s population lived in urban areas. This figure is expected to increase to 66 percent by 2050. The number of megacities, cities with 10 million people or more, has also increased. In 1990, there were 10 megacities in the world. In 2014, there were 28 megacities. Tokyo-Yokohama is the largest metropolitan area in the world with over 38 million inhabitants. 1.6 THE WORLD’S REGIONS The world can be divided into regions based on human and/or physical characteristics. Regions simply refer to spatial areas that share a common feature. There are three types of regions: formal, functional, and vernacular. Formal regions, sometimes called homogeneous regions, have at least one characteristic in common. A map of plant hardiness regions, as in Figure 1.14, for example, divides the United States into regions based on average extreme temperatures, showing which areas particular plants will grow well. This isn’t to say that everywhere within a particular region will have the same temperature on a particular day, but rather that in general, a region experiences the same ranges of temperature. Other formal regions might include religious or political affiliation, agricultural crop zones, or ethnicity. Formal regions might also be established by governmental organizations, such as the case with state or provincial boundaries. Globes with lines of latitude and longitude labeled Figure 1.14: Map of Plant Hardiness Zones in the United States (USDA, Public Domain) Functional regions, unlike formal regions, are not homogenous in the sense that they do not share a single cultural or physical characteristic. Rather, functional regions are united by a particular function, often economic. Functional regions are sometimes called nodal regions and have a nodal arrangement, with a core and surrounding nodes. A metropolitan area, for example, often includes a central city and its surrounding suburbs. We tend to think of the area as a “region” not because everyone is the same religion or ethnicity, or has the same political affiliation, but because it functions as a region. Los Angeles, for example, is the second-most populous city in the United States. However, the region of Los Angeles extends far beyond its official city limits as show in Figure 1.15. In fact, over 471,000 workers commute into Los Angeles County from the surrounding region every day. Los Angeles, as with all metropolitan areas, functions economically as a single region and is thus considered a functional region. Other examples of functional regions include church parishes, radio station listening areas, and newspaper subscription areas. 18 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 1.15: Map of Los Angeles Metro Area (© Kmusser, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) Vernacular regions are not as well-defined as formal or functional regions and are based on people’s perceptions. The southeastern region of the United States is often referred to as “the South,” but where the exact boundary of this region is depends on individual perception (see Figure 1.16). Some people might include all of the states that formed the Confederacy during the Civil War. Others might exclude Missouri or Oklahoma. Vernacular regions exist at a variety of scales. In your hometown, there might be a vernacular region called “the west side.” Internationally, regions like the Midlands in Britain or the Swiss Alps are considered vernacular. Similarly “the Middle East” is a vernacular region. It is perceived to exist as a result of religious and ethnic characteristics, but people wouldn’t necessarily agree on which countries to include. Vernacular regions are real in the sense that our perceptions are real, but their boundaries are not uniformly agreed upon. INTRODUCTION 19 Figure 1.16: Map of the US “South” Vernacular Region (© Qz10, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) As geographers, we can divide the world into a number of different regions based upon formal criteria and functional interaction. However, there is a matter of perception, as well. We might divide the world based on landmasses, since landmasses often share physical and cultural characteristics. Sometimes water connects people more than land, though. In the case of Europe, for example, the Mediterranean Sea historically provided economic and cultural links to the surrounding countries though we consider them to be three separate continents. Creating regions can often be a question of “lumpers and splitters;” who do you lump together and who do you split apart? Do you have fewer regions united by only a couple characteristics, or more regions that share a great deal in common? This text takes a balanced approach to “lumping and splitting,” identifying nine distinct world regions (see Figure 1.17). These regions are largely vernacular, however. Where does “Middle” America end and “South” America begin, and why is it combined into a single region? Why is Pakistan, a predominantly Muslim country, characterized as “South” Asia and not “Southwest” Asia? Why is Russia its own region? You might divide the world into entirely different regions, maybe seven based on the continents, or just two: the “core” and the “periphery.” These nine regions are not universally agreed-upon; they are simply foundations for discussing the different areas of the world. 20 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 1.17: Map of World Regions (Image adpated from Cogito ergo sumo, Wikimedia Commons) Furthermore, while it might seem like there are clear boundaries between the world’s regions, in actuality, where two regions meet are zones of gradual transition. These transition zones are marked by gradual spatial change. Moscow, Russia, for example, is quite similar to other areas of Eastern Europe, though they are considered two different regions on the map. Were it not for the Rio Grande and a large border fence dividing the cities of El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, you might not realize that this metropolitan area stretches across two countries and world regions. Even within regions, country borders often mark spaces of gradual transition rather than a stark delineation between two completely different spaces. The border between Peru and Ecuador, for example, is quite relaxed as international borders go and residents of the countries can move freely across the boundary to the towns on either side (see Figure 1.18). Sign welcoming people entering Peru from Ecuador along a busy street Figure 1.18: Sign Welcoming People Entering Peru from Ecuador (© Vanished_user_j123kmqwfk56jd, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) 1.7 SUB-DISCIPLINES OF GEOGRAPHY Geography has two primary branches, physical and human geography, but numerous sub- disciplines, many of which include both physical and human elements. Furthermore, as with world regions, it’s often difficult to make precise boundaries between fields of study. A geographer might be a human geographer who specializes in culture who further specializes in religion. That same geographer might also conduct side research on environmental issues. And she might, in her spare time, investigate geographies of fictional landscapes. One benefit of geography is that its INTRODUCTION 21 breadth offers a wide array of phenomena to explore. Everything happens somewhere, and thus everything is geographical. Within physical geography, the main sub-disciplines are: biogeography (the study of the spatial distribution of plants and animals), climatology (the study of climate), hydrology (the study of water), and geomorphology (the study of Earth’s topographic features). This list is not inclusive, however. Some geographers study geodesy, the scientific measurement and representation of Earth. Others study pedology, the exploration of soils. What unites physical geographers is an emphasis on the scientific study of the physical features of Earth in all of its many forms. Human geography, too, consists of a number of sub-disciplines that often overlap and interact. The main sub-disciplines of human geography include: cultural geography (the study of the spatial dimension of culture), economic geography (the study of the distribution and spatial organization of economic systems), medical geography (the study of the spatial distribution of health and medicine), political geography (the study of the spatial dimension of political processes), population geography (also known as demography, the study of the characteristics of human populations), and urban geography (the study of urban systems and landscapes). Human geographers essentially explore how humans interact with and affect the earth. Political geography provides the foundation for investigating what many people understand as geography: countries and governmental structures. Political geographers ask questions like “Why does a particular state have a conflict with its neighbor?” and “How does the government of a country affect its voting patterns?” When political geographers study the world, they refer to states, which are independent, or sovereign, political entities recognized by the international community. States are commonly called “countries” in the United States; Germany, France, China, and South Africa are all “states.” So how many states are there in the world? The question is not as easy to answer as it might seem. What if a state declares itself independent, but is not recognized by the entirety of the international community? What if a state collaborates so closely with its neighbor that it gives up some of its sovereignty? What happens if a state is taken over by another state? As of 2019, there are 206 states that could be considered sovereign, though some are disputed and are only recognized by one other country. Only 193 states are members of the United Nations. Others, like Palestine, are characterized as “observer states.” The United States Department of State recognizes 195 states as independent, including the Holy See, often known as Vatican City, and Kosovo, a disputed state in Southeastern Europe. In addition to questions of sovereignty, political geographers investigate the various forms of government found around the world (see Figure 1.19). States govern themselves in a variety of ways, but the two main types of government are unitary and federal. In a unitary state, the central government has the most power. Local or regional governments might have some decision-making power, but only at the command of the central government. Most of the states of the world have unitary systems. A federal state, on the other hand, has numerous regional governments or self-governing states in addition to a national government. Several large states like the United States, Russia, and Brazil are federations. 22 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 1.19: Map of Federal and Unitary States (Derivative work from original by Lokal_Profil, Wikimedia Commons) Economic geographers explore the spatial distribution of economic activities. Why are certain states wealthier than others? Why are there regional differences related to economic development within a country? All countries have some sort of economic system but have different resources, styles of development, and government regulations. So how can we compare countries in terms of economic development? One way is by examining a country’s gross domestic product (GDP), the value of all the goods and services produced in a country in a given year. Often, it is helpful to divide GDP by the number of people in a country; this is known as GDP per capita and it roughly equates to average income. However, goods have different costs in different countries, so GDP per capita is generally given in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP), meaning that each country’s currency is adjusted so that it has roughly the same purchasing power. Thus, GDP per capita in terms of PPP simply refers to the amount of goods and services produced in a country divided by the number of people in that country and then adjusted for how much goods and services actually cost in that country. One limitation of GDP is that it only takes into account the goods and services produced domestically. However, many businesses today have locations and production facilities in other countries. Gross national income (GNI) is a way to measure a country’s economic activity that includes all the goods and services produced in a country (GDP) as well as income received from overseas. 1.8 GLOBALIZATION AND INEQUALITY When we start to explore the spatial distribution of economic development, we find that there are stark differences between and within world regions. Some countries have a very high standard INTRODUCTION 23 of living and high average incomes, while others have few resources and high levels of poverty. Politically, some countries have stable, open governments, while others have long-standing authoritarian regimes. Thus, world regional geography is, in many ways, a study of global inequality. But the geographic study of inequality is more than just asking where inequalities are present, it is also digging deeper and asking why those inequalities exist. How can we measure inequality? Generally, inequality refers to uneven distributions of wealth, which can actually be challenging to measure. By some accounts, the wealthiest one percent of people in the world have as much wealth as the bottom 99 percent. Wealth inequality is just one facet of global studies of inequality, however. There are also differences in income: around half of the world survives on less than $2 per day, and around one-fifth have less than $1 per day (see Figure 1.20). There are also global differences in literacy, life expectancy, and healthcare. There are differences in the rights and economic opportunities for women compared to men. There are differences in the way resources are distributed and conserved. Figure 1.20: Share of the Population Living in Extreme Poverty (World Bank Estimates, 2017) (© Our World in Data, CC BY-SA) Furthermore, these differences don’t exist in a bubble. The world is increasingly interconnected, a process known as globalization. This increased global integration is economic but also cultural. An economic downturn in one country can affect its trading partners half a world away. A Hollywood movie might be translated in dozens of different languages and distributed worldwide. 24 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Today, it is quite easy for a businesswoman in the United States to video chat with her factory manager in a less developed country. For many, the relative size of the world is shrinking as a result of advances in transportation and communications technology. For others, though, particularly those in the poorest, most debt-ridden countries, the world is not flat. As global poverty rates have decreased over the past few decades, the number of people living in poverty within Sub-Saharan Africa has increased. In addition, while global economic integration has increased, most monetary transactions still occur within rather than between countries. The core countries can take advantage of globalization, choosing from a variety of trading partners and suppliers of raw materials, but the same cannot always be said of those in the periphery. Globalization has often led to cultural homogenization, as “Western” culture has increasingly become the global culture. American fast food chains can now be found in a majority of the world’s countries. British and American pop music plays on radio stations around the world. The Internet in particular has facilitated the rapid diffusion of cultural ideas and values. But how does globalization affect local cultures? Some worry that as global culture has become more homogenized, local differences are slowly erasing. Traditional music, clothing, and food preferences might be replaced by foreign cultural features, which can lead to conflict. There is thus a tension between globalization, and the benefits of global connectivity, and local culture. It is the uniqueness of the world’s regions, the particular combination of physical landscapes and human activities, that has captivated geographers from the earliest explorers to today’s researchers. And while it might simply be interesting to read about distant cultures and appreciate their uniqueness, geographers continue to dig deeper and ask why these differences exist. Geography matters. Even as we have become more culturally homogeneous and economically interconnected, there remain global differences in the geography of countries and these differences can have profound effects. Geographic study helps us understand the relationship between the world’s communities, explain global differences and inequalities, and better address future challenges. CHAPTER 2 Europe Learning Objectives Identify the key geographic features of Europe Explain how the industrial revolution has shaped the geographic landscape of Europe Summarize how migration has impacted Europe’s population Describe the current controversies regarding migration to Europe 2.1 EUROPEAN PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND BOUNDARIES Europe? Where’s that? It might seem like a relatively easy question to answer, but looking at the map, the boundaries of Europe are harder to define than it might seem. Traditionally, the continent of “Europe” referred to the western extremity of the landmass known as Eurasia (see Figure 2.1). Eurasia is a massive tectonic plate, so determining where exactly Europe ends and Asia begins is difficult. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean in the North, the Atlantic Ocean and its seas to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea to the south. Europe’s eastern boundary is typically given as the Ural Mountains, which run north to south from the Arctic Ocean down through Russia to Kazakhstan. The western portion of Russia, containing the cities of St. Petersburg and Moscow, is thus considered part of Europe while the eastern portion is considered part of Asia. Culturally and physiographically, Western Russia is strikingly similar to Eastern Europe. These two regions share a common history as well with Russian influence extending throughout this transition zone. 25 26 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 2.1: European Physical Geography and Political Boundaries (© San Jose, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) In addition to the Ural Mountains, Europe has several other mountain ranges, most of which are in the southern portion of the continent. The Pyrenees, the Alps, and the Carpathians divide Europe’s southern Alpine region from the hilly central uplands. Northern Europe is characterized by lowlands and is relatively flat. Europe’s western highlands include the Scandinavian Mountains of Norway and Sweden as well as the Scottish Highlands. Europe has a large number of navigable waterways, and most places in Europe are relatively short distances from the sea. This has contributed to numerous historical trading links across the region and allowed for Europe to dominate maritime travel. The Danube, sometimes referred to as the “Blue Danube” after a famous Austrian waltz of the same name, is the European region’s largest river and winds its way along 2,860 km (1,780 mi) and 10 countries from Germany to Ukraine. This proximity to water also affects Europe’s climate (see Figure 2.2). While you might imagine much of Europe to be quite cold given its high latitudinal position, the region is surprisingly temperate. The Gulf Stream brings warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean to Europe’s coastal region EUROPE 27 and warms the winds that blow across the continent. Amsterdam, for example, lies just above the 52°N line of latitude, around the same latitudinal position as Saskatoon, in Canada’s central Saskatchewan province. Yet Amsterdam’s average low in January, its coldest month, is around 0.8°C (33.4°F) while Saskatoon’s average low in January is -20.7°C (-5.3°F)! Figure 2.2: Europe Climate Classification (© Ali Zifan, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0) While geographers can discuss Europe’s absolute location and the specific features of its physical environment, we can also consider Europe’s relative location. That is, its location relative to other parts of the world. Europe lies at the heart of what’s known as the land hemisphere. If you tipped a globe on its side and split it so that half of the world had most of the land and half had most of the water, Europe would be at the center of this land hemisphere (see Figure 2.3). This, 28 CAITLIN FINLAYSON combined with the presence of numerous navigable waterways, allowed for maximum contact between Europe and the rest of the world. Furthermore, distances between countries in Europe are relatively small. Paris, France, for example, is just over a two-hour high speed rail trip from London, England. Figure 2.3: Map of Land and Water Hemispheres and Europe’s Relative Location (Derivative work from original by Citynoise, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0) This relative location provided efficient travel times between Europe and the rest of the world, which contributed to Europe’s historical dominance. When we consider globalization, the scale of the world is shrinking as the world’s people are becoming more interconnected. For Europe, however, the region’s peoples have long been interconnected with overlapping histories, physical features, and resources. 2.2 COOPERATION AND CONTROL IN EUROPE Europe’s physical landforms, climate, and underlying resources have shaped the distribution of people across the region.When early humans began settling this region, they likely migrated through the Caucasus Mountains of Southwest Asia and across the Bosporus Strait from what is now Turkey into Greece. The Greeks provided much of the cultural and political foundations for modern European society. Greek ideals of democracy, humanism, and rationalism reemerged in Europe during the Age of Enlightenment. The Roman Empire followed the Greek Empire, pushing further into Europe and leaving its own marks on European society (see Figure 2.4). Modern European architecture, governance, and even language can be traced back to the Roman Empire’s influence. EUROPE 29 Figure 2.4: Map of the Roman Empire, 117 AD/CE (Map by Andrei nacu, Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain) The Roman’s vast European and Southwest Asian empire united the region under Christianity and created new networks of roads and trading ports. With the fall of the Roman Empire, however, tribal and ethnic allegiances reemerged and a number of invasions and migrations occurred. England, for example, was settled by the Germanic Anglo-Saxons, from which the name “England” or “Angeln” is derived, then by the Normans from present-day France. Europe today is comprised of 40 countries, but historically, this was a region dominated by kingdoms and empires – even fairly recently. A map of Europe from just 200 years ago looks strikingly different from today’s political boundaries (see Figure 2.5). At that time, Greece and Turkey were still controlled by the Ottoman Empire and Italy was a conglomerate of various city- states and independent kingdoms. Many of the countries and political boundaries of Europe we know today were not formed until after World War II. 30 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 2.5: Map of Europe, 1812 CE (© Alexander Altenhof, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) Europe’s population has shifted and changed over time as well. Whereas Europe was once largely feudal and agrarian, today around 75 percent of its people live in cities. Europe’s largest city is London, with a population of around 8.5 million within its city limits. Although the United Kingdom was the dominant force in Europe during industrialization, Germany now dominates the region in terms of population, gross domestic product, and size. The political map of Europe continues to change, with shifting alliances, competing goals, and new pushes for independence. In general, Western Europe has moved toward cooperation. The European Union developed out of the Benelux Economic Union signed in 1944 between Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. France, Italy, and West Germany signed an economic agreement with the Benelux states in 1957, and from there, the economic cooperation continued to expand. The European Union (EU) itself was created in 1993 and today, the organization has 28 member countries (see Figure 2.6). Not all members of the EU use the euro, its official currency; the 19 member states who do are known as the eurozone. EUROPE 31 Figure 2.6: The European Union and the Eurozone (Derivative work from original by JLogan, Wikimedia Commons) Today, it is relatively easy to travel across Europe, in part because of economic and monetary cooperation, but also because internal border checks have largely been abolished. The Schengen Agreement, signed in the 1990s allows member states to essentially function as a single territory in terms of entry. These states share a common visa system and residents and vehicles can travel freely throughout states participating in the agreement. Although the European Union has provided member states with a number of advantages, the system has had some structural concerns. Greece, for example, admitted to the EU in 1981, adopted the euro in 2001. It has had continued issues with debt, however, and has required massive bailouts from other member states. The United Kingdom held a referendum in June 2016 and decided to leave the EU, the first time a country has made the decision to leave the organization. When analyzing the EU and its advantages and disadvantages, you might consider why a country would join a supranational organization. To join an organization like the EU, a country gives up some of its sovereignty, its independence in making economic, political, or legal decisions. Ideally, a country would gain more than it loses. Countries united economically can more easily facilitate trade, for example, or could share a common military rather than each supporting their own. Those who favored the United Kingdom withdrawing from the EU, however, argued that membership in the EU did not offer enough advantages and preferred the United Kingdom to control its own trade deals and immigration restrictions. Devolution, which occurs when regions within a state seek greater autonomy, has continued in Europe, representing a tension between nationalistic ideals and ethnic ties. In the United 32 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Kingdom, a 2014 Scottish independence referendum was narrowly defeated but led to greater autonomy for Scotland. In general, policies offering increased autonomy have kept the map of Western Europe fairly intact. Ethnic groups seeking sovereignty often want political autonomy but economic integration, and thus devolution generally allows them more decision-making power. In the Balkan region, however, strong ethnic identities has contributed to continued political instability and the formation of new states. In fact, the devolutionary forces found in this region led to the creation of the term Balkanization, referring to the tendency of territories to break up into smaller, often hostile units. The Balkans came under the control of the Ottoman Empire, and once the empire collapsed following World War I, several territories in this region were joined together as the country of Yugoslavia (see Figure 2.7). Following World War II, Yugoslavia was led by Josip Broz Tito who attempted to unify the region by suppressing ethnic allegiances in favor of national unity. After his death, however, those ethnic tensions reemerged. In the 1990s, Yugoslavia was led by the dictator Slobodan Miloševi´c, a Serbian who supported a genocidal campaign against the region’s Croats, Bosnians, and Albanians. In Bosnia alone, over 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were killed. Most recently, Kosovo, comprised mostly of Albanian Muslims, declared independence from Serbia in 2008, though its status as a sovereign state is still contested by some, including Serbia, Bosnia, and Greece. Figure 2.7: Map of Former Yugoslavia (United Nations, Public Domain) EUROPE 33 The map of Europe continues to evolve. In February 2019, for instance, the country formerly known as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia officially changed its name to the Republic of North Macedonia, or just North Macedonia, resolving a long dispute with Greece. While some countries in the region have decidedly benefitted from globalization, others remain fairly limited in terms of global trade and global economic integration. Figure 2.8, a map of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita reveals a marked difference between the states of Western Europe and the eastern region. Germany’s GDP per capita as of 2017, for example, was $44,470 (in US dollars), according to the World Bank. In Moldova, a former Soviet republic bordering Romania, that figure was $2,290. Figure 2.8: GDP (in PPP) per capita, 2012 from WorldBank (© XNeverEver, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) 2.3 THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION The differences in levels of development across Europe today have largely been shaped by the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution refers to the changes in manufacturing that 34 CAITLIN FINLAYSON occurred in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. These changes had profound effects on society, economics, and agriculture, not just in Europe, but globally. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, most goods in Europe were produced in the home. These so- called “cottage” industries consisted of individual workers making unique goods in their homes, usually on a part-time basis. These products, such as clothing, candles, or small housewares, could be sold by a farming family to supplement their income. The Industrial Revolution began in the United Kingdom, and while it’s difficult to pinpoint the exact point at which the revolution began, a key invention was James Watt’s steam engine, which entered production in 1775. This steam-driven engine was adopted by industries to allow for factory production. Machines could now be used instead of human or animal labor. Interestingly, a side effect of the steam engine was that it enabled better iron production, since iron required an even and steady stream of heat. This improved iron was then used to build more efficient steam engines, which in turn produced increasingly better iron. These improvements and new technologies gradually spread across Europe, eventually diffusing to the United States and Japan. During this time, there were also significant changes in agricultural production. The Agrarian Revolution began in the mid-1750s and was based upon a number of agricultural innovations. This was the Age of Enlightenment, and the scientific reasoning championed during this era was applied to the growing of crops. Farmers began using mechanized equipment, rather than relying solely on human or animal labor. Fertilizers improved soil conditions, and crop rotation and complementary planting further increased crop yields. During this time period, there was a shift to commercial agriculture, where excess crops are sold for a profit, rather than subsistence agriculture, where farmers primarily grow food for their own family’s consumption. Around the same time improvements in rail transportation changed both the way goods were distributed across Europe and the movement of people across the region. The use of steam engines and improved iron also transformed the shipping industry, with steamships beginning to set sail across the Atlantic Ocean. The Agrarian Revolution coupled with the Industrial Revolution profoundly changed European geography. With the improvements of the Agrarian Revolution, farmers could produce more with less work. This provided an agricultural surplus, enabling a sustained population increase. Port cities and capital cities became centers of trade and expanded. Critically, the Agrarian Revolution freed workers from having to farm, since fewer farmers were needed to produce the same amount of crops, enabling people to find work in the factories. These factories were primarily located in cities, and thus it was the combination of these two revolutions that dramatically increased urbanization in Europe. At the start of the 19th century, around 17 percent of England’s population lived in cities; by the end of the 19th century, that figure had risen to 54 percent. Overall, the Industrial Revolution considerably improved European power by boosting their economies, improving their military technology, and increasing their transportation efficiency. Even before the Industrial Revolution, Europe exerted a considerable amount of control over the rest of the world. European colonialism began in the 1400s, led by Portugal and Spain. In the 1500s, England, France, and the Dutch began their own colonial campaigns. By the start of WorldWar I, the British Empire, boosted by the improvements of the Industrial Revolution, had the largest empire in history, covering 20 percent of the world’s population at the time (see Figure 2.9). EUROPE 35 Figure 2.9: European Colonization (Derivative work from original by Cogito ergo sumo, Wikimedia Commons) Coinciding with the Industrial and Agrarian Revolutions were a number of political revolutions in Europe. The most influential political change came as the result of the French Revolution, which occurred between 1789 and 1799 CE. This revolution ended France’s monarchy, establishing a republic, and provided the foundation for numerous political revolutions that followed. It also weakened the power of the Roman Catholic Church in France, inspiring the modern-day separation between church and state that is typical of many Western countries, including the United States. Today, the map of Europe reflects the changes brought about by the Industrial and Agrarian Revolutions as well as the political changes that took place throughout the time period. Europe’s core area, where economic output is highest, is largely centered around the manufacturing areas that arose during the Industrial Revolution (see Figure 2.10). These manufacturing areas in turn were originally located near the raw materials, such as coal, that could sustain industrial growth. 36 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 2.10: Regions of Europe (Map by Koyos, Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain) The shift in labor that occurred during the Industrial Revolution, as people left rural farms to find work in factories, led to the specialization of labor that is found in Europe today. Areas within Europe tended to specialize in the production of particular goods. Northern Italy for example, has maintained a specialty in the production of textiles. Germany continues to specialize in automotive manufacturing. The Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the world’s first gasoline powered automobile, was first built in Germany in 1886 and would later develop into the Mercedes-Benz corporation. As regions focused on the manufacture of particular goods, they benefited from economies of scale, the savings in cost per unit that results from increasing production. If you wanted to build a chair, for example, you’d have to buy the wood, glue, and screws as well as the tools needed to construct it, such as a drill, sander, and saw. That single chair would be quite costly to produce. If you wanted to make ten chairs, however, those same tools could be used for every chair, driving the EUROPE 37 cost of each chair down. Many areas in Europe have shifted from more traditional to high-tech manufacturing and industrial output in the region remains high. 2.4 EUROPEAN MIGRATION The Industrial and Agricultural Revolutions shaped both migration patterns within Europe and immigration to the region. Migration refers to a move from one place to another intended to be permanent. When considering migration, geographers look at both intraregional migration, movement within a particular region, and interregional migration, such as migration from Europe to North America. Geographers who study migration also investigate push and pull factors that influence people to move. Push factors are those that compel you to move from your current location. A lack of job opportunities, environmental dangers, or political turmoil would all be considered push factors. Pull factors, on the other hand, are those that entice you to move to a new place, and might include ample jobs, freedom from political or religious persecution, or simply the availability of desirable amenities. Historically, most intraregional migration in Europe was rural to urban, as people moved from farms to cities to find work. Cities grew rapidly in the region as centers of trade and industry. Before the industrial revolution, migration to the region was usually in the form of invasions, such as with the Roman Empire, the Islamic Empire, and the Ottoman Empire. One notable, historical migration that did not represent an invading empire was the Jewish diaspora following the conquest of Judea, the region now known as Israel and Palestine, by a number of groups including the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Romans. A diaspora refers to a group of people living outside of their ancestral homeland and many Jewish people moved to Europe to escape violence and persecution, particularly after the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE. Jews migrating to Europe were often met with anti-Semitism, however. During the Middle Ages, European Jews were routinely attacked and were expelled from several countries including England and France. Jewish communities were destroyed during the mid-14th century as the Black Death swept across Europe and thousands of Jews were murdered, accused of poisoning the water and orchestrating the epidemic. In actuality, the disease was likely spread by rats, and worsened by the superstitious killing of cats in the same time period. European Jews were often forced to live in distinct neighborhoods, also known as ghettos. In fact, this requirement to live in specific areas was required in Italy under areas ruled by the Pope until 1870. These distinctive communities were often met with suspicion by European Christians, many of whom continued to foster the same anti-Semitic sentiment that had been prevalent during the Middle Ages. This anti-Semitic fervor and persecution of Jews reached its height at the time of the Nazi Party’s rule in Germany. Prior to World War II, close to 9 million Jews lived in Europe; 6 million of them were killed in the Holocaust, the European genocide that targeted Jews, Poles, Soviets, communists, homosexuals, the disabled, and numerous other groups viewed as undesirable by the Nazi regime. Following the war, many surviving Jews emigrated back to the newly created state of Israel. Around 2.4 million Jews live in Europe today. 38 CAITLIN FINLAYSON There was another shift in population after the signing of the Schengen Agreement in 1995, with large numbers of immigrants from Eastern Europe migrated to the western European countries in the core. Citizens of European Union countries are permitted to live and work in any country in the EU, and countries like the United Kingdom and Spain contain large numbers of Eastern European immigrants. Around half of all European migrants are from other countries within Europe. Economic and political inequalities have driven much of the interregional migration to Europe since the 1980s. Immigrants from North Africa and Southwest Asia, for example, driven by limited employment opportunities and political conflict, have migrated to Europe in large numbers and now represent approximately 12 percent of all European migrants. 2.5 SHIFTING NATIONAL IDENTITIES What does it mean to be European? Perhaps simply it means someone who’s from Europe. But what does it mean to be French or German or Spanish or British? These countries have long been comprised of a number of different ethnic and linguistic groups (see Figure 2.11). Spain, for example, not only contains groups speaking Spanish, the language of the historic Castilian people of the region, but also the Basque-speaking region in the north, the Catalan-speaking region centered around Barcelona, and numerous other distinct language groups. The United Kingdom, while comprised primarily of people who identify as “English,” also includes the areas of Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, each with a distinct linguistic and cultural identity. The Welsh are actually believed to be the oldest ethnic group within the United Kingdom, so perhaps they could argue that they represent the original national identity. EUROPE 39 Figure 2.11: Languages of Europe (Map by Andrei nacu, Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain) Before the creation of states as we understand them today, Europe, as with the rest of the world, was divided largely by ethnicity or tribe. Empires often took control of multiple ethnic areas. Familial allegiances were of fundamental importance. That’s not to say that geography or territory didn’t matter, but simply that who you were mattered more than where you were. The creation of sovereign political states changed this notion. Multiple ethnicities were often lumped together under single political entities, sometimes due to peaceful alliances and sometimes due to armed conquest. In cases where a state was dominated by a single, homogeneous ethnic and linguistic cultural identity, we would refer to it as a nation-state, from the term state, meaning a sovereign political area, and nation, meaning a group with a distinct ethnic and cultural identity. Several European countries today are considered nation- states, including Poland, where 93 percent of the population is ethnically Polish, and Iceland, which is 92 percent Icelandic. Historically, countries like France and Germany were also considered nation-states, though immigration has changed their cultural landscape. 40 CAITLIN FINLAYSON The concept of nation-state is distinct from the idea of nationalism, which refers the feeling of political unity within a territory. National flags, anthems, symbols, and pledges all inspire a sense of belonging amongst people within a geographic area that is distinct from their ethnic identity. What happens when feelings of nationalism and national identity are linked with a particular ethnic group? In cases where a particular ethnic group represents the majority, nationalist ideals might be representative of that group’s language or religion. But what if there are other, minority ethnic groups that are excluded from what people think it means to be part of a particular state’s nationalist identity? Migration has continually changed the cultural landscape of Europe and as immigrant groups have challenged or been challenged by ideas of nationalism. In 1290 CE, King Edward I expelled all Jews from England, essentially establishing Christianity as being at the core of English national identity. This expulsion lasted until 1657 CE. In France after the French Revolution, ideas of nationalism included “liberty, equality, and fraternity,” and extended into areas they conquered. In Germany, what it meant to be “German” under the Nazi Party excluded those who were considered to be “undesirable” and “enemies of the state,” such as Jews, Roma (sometimes referred to as Gypsies), persons labeled as “homosexuals,” communists, and others. Under Benito Mussolini, Italian nationalism excluded Slavs, Jews, and non-white groups. Nationalism, taken to this extreme, is known as fascism. Fascists believe that national unity, to include a strong, authoritarian leader and a one-party state, provides a state with the most effective military and economy. Fascist governments might thus blame economic difficulty or military losses on groups that threaten national unity, even if those groups include their own citizens. Within every country, ideas of nationalism grow, weaken, and change over time. Centrifugal forces are those that threaten national unity by dividing a state. These might include differing religious beliefs, linguistic differences, or even physical barriers within a state. Centripetal forces, on the other hand, tend to unify people within a country. A charismatic leader, a common religion or language, and a strong national infrastructure can all work as centripetal forces. Governments could also promote centripetal forces by unifying citizens against a common enemy, such as during the Cold War. Although the countries of Europe always had a significant amount of ethnic and linguistic variety, they typically maintained a strong sense of national identity. Religion in particular often worked as a centripetal force, uniting varying cultural groups under a common theological banner. Religious adherence in Europe is shifting, however. In Sweden, for example, over 80 percent of the population belonged to the Church of Sweden, a Lutheran denomination, in 2000. By 2014, only 64.6 percent claimed membership in the church and just 18 percent of the population stated that they believed in a personal God (see Figure 2.12). This is indicative of a broad shift in Europe from traditional, organized religion toward humanism or secularism. Humanism is a philosophy emphasizing the value of human beings and the use of reason in solving problems. Modern humanism was founded during the French Revolution, though early forms of humanism were integrated with religious beliefs. Secular humanism, a form of humanism that rejects religious beliefs, developed later. Secularism refers broadly to the exclusion of religious ideologies from government or public activities. EUROPE 41 Figure 2.12: Percentage of People Who Answered “I believe there is a God” in 2005 Eurobarometer Poll (© Alphathon, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) Geographers can examine how secularization has occurred in Europe; that is, how Europe has been transformed from countries with strong religious values to a more nonreligious society. In general, areas within the core of Europe tend to be more secular and thus some researchers link secularization with rising economic prosperity. Most Western European countries have strong social welfare programs, where citizens pay a higher percentage of taxes to support universal healthcare, higher education, child care, and retirement programs. These social welfare programs often serve as centripetal forces, unifying a country by providing government support and preventing citizens from falling into extreme poverty. 2.6 CURRENT MIGRATION PATTERNS AND DEBATES The increasing secularization of Western Europe has magnified the conflict over immigration to the region. Whereas Western Europeans have become less religious over time, immigrants to the region are generally more religious. Increasing numbers of Muslim immigrants from North Africa and Southwest Asia have settled in Europe, lured by the hope of economic prosperity and political 42 CAITLIN FINLAYSON freedom. In 2010, around 6 percent of Europe identified as Muslim. That number is expected to grow to 10 percent by 2050. Muslims have the highest fertility rate among the major religious groups, so coupled with increasing immigration, this population is growing. In contrast, just under three-quarters of Europeans identified as Christian in 2010. This is expected to drop to 65 percent in 2050. Europeans are divided about how open the region should be to immigrants, and how asylum seekers, refugees seeking sanctuary from oppression, should be treated. Even before the 2015 wave of Syrian migrants to Europe, a 2012-2014 survey showed that most Europeans (52 percent) wanted immigration levels to decrease. Opinions vary within the region, however. In the United Kingdom, 69 percent of people support decreased immigration. In Greece, a gateway country for migrants attempting to enter Europe, 84 percent of people desire decreased immigration. A majority of adults in Northern European countries, however, want immigration to stay the same or increase. In 2014 and 2015, migration to Europe intensified as a result of an ongoing civil war in Syria. There were more refugees in 2014 than in any other year since World War II. 2015 shattered that record, however, as 65.3 million people were displaced. Germany has received the most applications for people seeking refugee status. The journey for migrants is difficult and dangerous. Many attempt to cross by sea into Greece. Boats are often overcrowded and capsizing is common. Around 34 percent of refugees are children, many of them unaccompanied. Although the entire influx of refugees represents around 0.5 percent of Europe’s population, it is not necessarily the sheer number of refugees that poses a problem, but rather, the idea of how immigrant populations might change the identity of a nation- state. Many small towns in Europe have experienced shifting demographics as people move away to work in cities and immigrants move in to work in the available jobs. As Western Europe moved through industrialization, it has increasingly shifted away from heavy manufacturing and increased employment in service and high-tech industries, a process known as deindustrialization. The higher-skilled and higher-educated workers from small towns moved to the cities to find work, while lower-skilled immigrants worked the often dangerous or labor intensive jobs that remained. In the United Kingdom in particular, many of the people who oppose immigration and supported Britain leaving the EU are located in these small towns where immigration has quite visibly changed the cultural landscape that had already shifted as a result of deindustrialization. For some, the debate over immigration and asylum are less questions of national identity and more issues of social justice. Do countries that have political freedom and economic prosperity have a moral obligation to assist those in need? Historically, the answer has often been “no.” In 1938, on the brink of World War II, representatives from Western European countries voted not to accept Jewish refugees from Germany and Austria. Numerous countries in Europe have similarly voted not to accept Syrian migrants. Countries like Germany, which has accepted a relatively large number of asylum seekers, have been critical of other countries that have not been as welcoming. Sweden has specifically argued that if every country in Europe accepted a proportional amount of refugees, they would easily be able to accommodate the influx. Refugee populations typically have lower unemployment rates than native-born populations and though they require social services like housing and employment, can provide a long-term economic boost by increasing the labor force, especially in countries with otherwise declining populations. EUROPE 43 Europe’s population will continue to shift in terms of demographics and cultural identity. Recent economic changes and migration patterns have highlighted deep divides about ideas of national identity and the role of the region in global affairs. Europe continues to be an influential and economically important region and will likely continue to attract migrants from surrounding areas. CHAPTER 3 Russia Learning Objectives Identify the key geographic features of Russia Analyze how the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union approached the issue of ethnic identity Describe the current areas of ethnic conflict within Russia Explain how Russian history impacted its modern-day geographic landscape 3.1 RUSSIA’S PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE Russia is the largest country in the world, containing 1/8 of the entire world’s land area (see Figure 3.1). Russia is also the northernmost large and populous country in the world, with much of the country lying above the Arctic Circle. Its population, however, is comparatively small with around 143 million people, the majority of whom live south of the 60 degree latitude line and in the western portions of Russia near Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Russia stretches across eleven time zones, spanning 6,000 miles from Saint Petersburg on the Baltic Sea to Vladivostok on the Pacific Coast. The country also includes the exclave, or discontinuous piece of territory, of Kaliningrad situated between Poland and Lithuania. 44 RUSSIA 45 Figure 3.1: Map of Russia (CIA World Factbook, Public Domain) Because of its large size, Russia has a wide variety of natural features and resources. The country is located on the northeastern portion of the Eurasian landmass. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Pacific Ocean, and to the south, by the Black and Caspian Seas. The Ural Mountains, running north to south, traditionally form the boundary between Europe and Asia and presented a formidable historical barrier to development. Culturally and physiographically, Western Russia, beyond the Ural Mountains, is quite similar to that of Eastern Europe. The region of Russia east of the Ural Mountains is known as Siberia. In addition to the Ural Mountains, Russia contains several other areas of high relief (see Figure 3.2). Most notably, the Caucasus Mountains, forming the border between Russia and Southwest Asia, and the volcanic highlands of Russia’s far east Kamchatka Peninsula. The western half of Russia is generally more mountainous than the eastern half, which is mostly low-elevation plains. 46 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 3.2: Topographical Map of Russia (© Tobias1984, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) Russia’s Volga River, running through central Russia into the Caspian Sea, is the longest river on the European continent and drains most of western Russia. The river is also an important source of irrigation and hydroelectric power. Lake Baikal, located in southern Siberia, is the world’s deepest lake and also the world’s largest freshwater lake. It contains around one-fifth of the entire world’s unfrozen surface water. Like the deep lakes of Africa’s rift valley, Lake Baikal was formed from a divergent tectonic plate boundary. Although Russia’s land area is quite large, much of the region is too cold for agriculture. As shown in Figure 3.3, the northernmost portion of Russia is dominated by tundra, a biome characterized by very cold temperatures and limited tree growth. Here, temperatures can drop below -50°C (-58°F) and much of the soil is permafrost, soil that is consistently below the freezing point of water (0°C or 32°F). South of the tundra is the taiga region, where coniferous, snow- capped forests dominate. This area of Russia contains the world’s largest wood resources, though logging in the region has diminished the supply. South of the taiga region are areas of temperate broadleaf forests and steppe, an area of treeless, grassland plains. RUSSIA 47 Figure 3.3: Biomes of Russia (Derivative work from original by Sten Porse, Wikimedia Commons) Although looking at a map, you might assume that Russia has extensive port facilities owing to its vast eastern coastline, it actually has relatively few ice-free ports. Vladivostok, located in the extreme southeastern tip of Russia, is its largest port on the Pacific Ocean (see Figure 3.4). Much of the rest of Russia’s Far East region is ice-covered throughout the year, making maritime and automotive transport difficult. In fact, this region was only connected to the rest of Russia by highway for the first time in 2010. 48 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 3.4: Port of Vladivostok, Russia (© Dr. Leonid Kozlov, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0) Russia’s climate more broadly is affected by a number of key factors. In terms of its latitudinal position, meaning its position relative to the equator, Russia is located very far north. In general, as you increase in latitude away from the equator, the climate gets colder. The strong east- west alignment of Russia’s major biomes reflects this latitudinal influence. Russia’s climate is also affected by its continental position. In general, areas that exhibit a continental climate are located near the center of a continent away from water bodies and experience more extremes in temperature due to drier air. Water helps regulate air temperature and can absorb temperature changes better than land. In the winter, areas away from water can be very cold, while in the summer, temperatures are quite hot and there is little precipitation. The third key driver of climate in Russia is its altitudinal position. As you increase in elevation, temperatures decrease. You might have experienced this when hiking in mountains or flying on an aircraft and feeling the cold window. Russia’s Ural Mountains, for example, are clearly visible on a map of its biomes as the alpine tundra region owing to its high altitude. 3.2 SETTLEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGES Russia’s size and varied physiographic regions have presented some challenges for its population. Much of Russia is simply too cold for widespread human settlement. Thus, even though Russia is RUSSIA 49 the largest country, the area that is suitable for agriculture and intensive development is much smaller. In Russia’s northern regions, agricultural development is restricted by short growing seasons and frequent droughts. As snow melts, it takes topsoil with it, and thus erosion is a serious issue in these areas as well. Still, some have carved out settlements in this frigid environment. Oymyakon, located in northeastern Russia, is considered to be the coldest permanently inhabited places in the world (see Figure 3.5). It has a population of around 500 and temperatures here once dropped to -71.2°C (-96°F)! It takes 20 hours to reach Oymyakon from the nearest city of Yakutsk. Figure 3.5: Map of Oymyakon, Russia (Derivative work from original by Marmelad, Wikimedia Commons) Industry, too, is hampered by Russia’s cold climate in the Siberian region. Although Siberia accounts for over three-quarters of Russia’s land area, it contains only one-quarter of its population. In a region so sparsely populated, how do you build roads, factories, and large settlements? Even if there are resources present, as there are, how do you get them to nearby industrial areas? The industrial developments and human settlements that do exist in this region require high energy consumption and highly specialized facilities needed to cope with cold temperatures and permanently frozen soil. However, global changes in climate have had some dramatic effects on Russian geography. Areas that were previously permafrost have begun to thaw, leading to erosion and mud, which both present challenges for development. In Siberia, giant holes in the ground began to appear around 2014 and initially baffled scientists. These massive holes were later found to be pockets of methane gas trapped in previously frozen soil that had thawed due to the warming climate. If global temperatures continue to climb, the area of permafrost will shrink, increasing the potential for agriculture in northern Russia. New oil and gas reserves that were previously trapped under 50 CAITLIN FINLAYSON frozen soil could likewise become available. Previous shipping routes along Russia’s eastern and northern coasts that were covered in ice could become passable. While warming temperatures might seem beneficial for Russia’s frigid northern region, they are accompanied by more troublesome long-term concerns. It is estimated that a huge amount of carbon, around 1600 gigatons (or 1.6 trillion tons), is stored in the world’s permafrost. The methane and carbon released from these permafrost stores could exacerbate global warming. Changing temperatures have also been associated with the increased risk of wildfires. In Russia, peatlands, areas of partially decayed vegetation, are particularly at risk. There has been an increase in droughts and flooding throughout Russia and many scientists believe that Russia’s close proximity to the Arctic Circle makes it even more vulnerable to changes in temperature. Climate factors have also shaped the distribution of Russia’s population. Most of Russia’s population lives west of the Ural Mountains where the climate is more temperate and there are more connections with Eastern Europe (see Figure 3.6). Russia is highly urbanized, with almost three-quarters of the population living in cities. Its largest city and capital, Moscow, is home to around 12 million people. Figure 3.6: Population Density in Russia, 2012 (Derivative work from original by Kartoshka1994, Wikimedia Commons) Russia’s population has experienced some interesting changes over the past few decades. Its population peaked at over 148 million in the early 1990s before experiencing a rapid decline. When geographers explore a country’s population, they don’t just ask “Where is it changing?” but also “Why is it changing?” For Russia, the economic declines coinciding with the dissolution of the Soviet Union contributed to low birth rates. Generally, when a country experiences economic decline or uncertainty, people tend to delay having children. Today, due to higher birth rates and a RUSSIA 51 government push to encourage immigration, Russia’s population growth has stabilized and could grow from 143.5 million in 2013 to 146 million by 2050. Russia’s death rate remains quite high, however, at 13.1 per 1000 people compared to the European Union average of 9.7 per 1000. Alcoholism rates are high, particularly among men in Russia, and cardiovascular disease accounts for over half of all deaths. In addition, although Russia is highly urbanized, more people are now moving from Russia’s crowded cities to more sparsely populated rural areas, in contrast to the more common rural to urban migration seen elsewhere in the world. 3.3 RUSSIAN HISTORY AND EXPANSION Russia’s current geographic landscape has been shaped by physical features, such as climate and topography, as well as historical events. Why is the capital of Russia Moscow, and why is its population so clustered in the west? In the 13th century, Moscow was actually an important principality, or city-state ruled by a monarch. The Grand Duchy of Moscow, or Muscovy as it was known in English, became a powerful state, defeating and surrounding its neighbors and claiming control over a large portion of Rus’ territory, an ancient region occupied by a number of East Slavic tribes. The Slavs represent the largest Indo-European ethno-linguistic group in Europe and include Poles, Ukrainians, Serbs, as well as Russians. From the mid-1400s onward, the Muscovite territory expanded at an impressive rate (see Figure 3.7). In 1300 CE, the territory occupied an area of around 20,000 square kilometers; by 1462 CE, that number increased to 430,000 square kilometers. By 1584 CE, the territory had swelled to 5.4 million square kilometers. 52 CAITLIN FINLAYSON Figure 3.8: Growth of Russia, 1300-1900 (Map by Stephan Steinbach, www.alternativetransport.wordpress.com, CC BY-SA) During this time, Russia’s government shifted as well. In 1547 CE, Grand Duke Ivan IV, better known as “Ivan the Terrible,” crowned himself the first Tsar. The term tsar, also spelled czar, stems from the Roman title “Caesar” and was used to designate a ruler, much like the term “king” or “emperor.” Ivan IV nearly doubled the territory of Russia during his reign, conquering numerous surrounding ethnic groups and tribes. Russia’s status as an “empire” dates back to the 1700s under the rule of Peter the Great. Peter was able to conquer Russia’s northwestern regions, establishing eastern seaports and founding the forward capital of Saint Petersburg along the Baltic Sea. A forward capital is a capital that RUSSIA 53 has been intentionally relocated, generally because of economic or strategic reasons, and is often positioned on the edge of contested territory. Overall, the reforms of Peter the Great transformed the country and made it more similar to Western Europe. The conclusion of World War I coincided with the end of the Russian Empire. The Russian Army fared poorly in the war, with approximately 1.7 million casualties. Russia’s people felt that the ruling class had become detached from the problems of everyday people and there were widespread rumors of corruption. Russia went through a rapid period of industrialization, which left many traditional farmers out of work. As people moved to the cities, there was inadequate housing and insufficient jobs. The economic and human cost of World War I, coupled with the plight of workers who felt exploited during the Industrial Revolution, ultimately led to the overthrow of Nicholas II who, along with his family, was imprisoned and later executed. Eventually, the Bolsheviks, a Marxist political party led by Vladimir Lenin, overthrew the interim government and created the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, abbreviated as the USSR and sometimes simply called the Soviet Union. The capital was also moved back to Moscow from Saint Petersburg. After Lenin’s death in 1924, Joseph Stalin took control and instituted both a socialist economy and collective agriculture. Ideally, the changes the Bolsheviks supported were intended to address the failures of Nicholas II providing more stable wages and food supplies. Rather than have individual peasant farms that had limited interconnections and poor systems of distribution, the state would collectivize farming with several farming families colle