World geographyChapter 1Globalization and World Regions

Different and similar world If you compared places, you would findwhat the different is.what the common is.

People Xiongnu GermanicRoman Emperor, Leo I

FoodChinese foodJapaneseEnglish food (Fired! Fired! Fired!)Turkish food (Donser Kebap )PastaItalian Food

LandscapeVancouverTaipei City

Different and Changing WorldsPolitical, economic, and social experience and expectations are rapidly change nowadays.The physical shape of world isnt change.But connecting among people bring places closer as cooperation, competition, and conflict with other peoples become more intense.

9/11

9/11The 911 event alerted Americans government You can not dominate another county arbitrarily

Whats different from Muslims and Americans?Environment Society, Economics, Politics

Oil Economics Political Power Cultural decline, poverty, belief conflict reaction

4 geographic levels to see EarthGlobalviews from spacecraft show the contrasts between continental land areas and ocean waters. Major World regionsare whole or large parts of continents and are the division used in this text for the regional chapters.Countriesare the building blocks of major world regions.Local regionsare parts of countries and the places where many individuals voice their concerns.

Globalization vs. LocalizationGlobalization Globalization is increasing level of interconnections among people throughout the world. The speed and intensity of globalization, in terms of world trade and the flow of financial investments, increased markedly in the 1990s.

Globalization vs. LocalizationLocalization is both response to and the outcome of globalization. On the one hand, global exchanges and flows of information, ideas, people, money, and technology move us toward worldwide political solutions, economic exchanges, cultural attitudes, and environmental concerns. On the other, localization focuses on distinctive identities of places or people in regions, countries, or local areas.

Facets of GlobalizationIncreasing connections take place through intensified flows of ideas, goods, and people:Ideas, technologies, and diseases;Goods from many place of manufacture;People migrations for work, political asylum, family consolidation, and long-distance tourism;The spread of images and message through the media of TV, film, the Internet and print.

Facets of LocalizationLocal voice remain loud in our consciousness and ensure that global trends are often far from being fulfilled.Political nationalism maintains separation countries and of groups within countries. Ex. Basque, Aceh

Facets of LocalizationDespite globalization force, many local customs and practices preserve local identities. Ex. Pop musicChanges and intensification of ideologies, especially religious or political beliefs. Ex. Religious difference among Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, and Hindu countries continue to be signification.Demonstrators resist the visible economic penetration of countries around the world by global media and corporations such as CNN, the Murdoch group, McDonalds, Starbuck, Toyota, and Nike.

Figure 1.3

Despite of globalization, the World remained diversePolitical activity: Countries Act1950-1991 Cold warNorth Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) vs. Soviet UnionAssociation of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) vs. Communist governmentsSouthern Africa Development Coordination (SADCC) vs. apartheidUN become a world-wide level arbitrator Inside vs. Outside

Economic Activities: Global TrendsThe numbers people living on < $1 per day900 m (85%)(1820)1.4 b (30%)(1980) 1.2 b (20%)(2000)In the 1990s, the uneven spread of expanding global economic activities caused group of countries to enter into or revive regional economic agreements, mainly through trade.European Union (EU)North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)Mercosur (southern South America)Association of South East Asian CountriesSouth Africa Development conferenceUS, the countries of western Europe and Japan Controlled nearly all the investment, production, and consumption of goods.China, India and Brazil increased their contribution.

Wealthier people vs. Poorer people

Cultural Activities: Major Regions, Local VoiceOne world culture? Did these wiped out the local cultural differenceCocacola-ization of eating and drinking habitsthe spread of Western TV, movies, pop musicglobal markets for some consumer goodsEx. IndiaWestern cultural normsdemocracy, individual ,and human rightsMaterialism, consumerism, and superficial value

Civilizations (World Cultures)Figure 1.6

Environmental issues at varied scalesEarth is marked by a variety of natural environments that create differences among regionsNatural environments affects human events at global, world regional, country, and local scales.world regional, country, or local scales: Prediction of hurricanelike storms, effects of acid rain, and damage from river floods and volcanic eruptions global scale: global warming, El Nino, the ozone hole over Antarctica, and the destruction of tropical rain forestsRio de Janeiro, Brazil (1992), Kyoto, Japan (1997)

What is geography about?Geography is study of where and how human and natural feature and events (political, economic, cultural, and environmental) are distributed on Earths surface, the relationships among them, how their distributions change over time, and how those features and relationships affect human lives.

Subject matterThe tensions among globalization, localization, and the continuing significance of country governments provide a basis changes and move toward either greater interdependence or conflict.Thus, geographers compare places and assess the interactions among them at different levels of geographic scale.

Geographic methodsLocationPlaceHuman/Environment interactionMovementRegion

First, geography is about placePlace might be a Individual placeSmall townLarge cityRural areaAnother stateAnother countryPlace might be perceived as points on a map or as large area.However, they all have different relationships to each other in terms of location, direction, distance, and size.

Latitude and LongitudeFigure 1.8

Distance and DirectionMeridian and parallel is the basic of time, distance and direction

Map and ScaleSize of Scale Representative Franction (RF) Large Scale 1:25,000 or largerMedium Scale 1:1,000,000 to 1:25,000Small Scale 1:1,000,000 or smaller

Next, geography is about explaining the difference among placeThe two basic geographic concepts of place and location are combined in three main approaches to geographic information gathering and explainingRegional geographyA region is a area of Earths surface with similarities within and between defined areas, or regions, of the world.Spatial analysisHuman-environment relationship

Regions and GlobalizationRegions are defined by A high degree of uniformityLimited variabilityMore-or-less lasting boundariesRegional boundaries may include physical features, political boundaries, or economic characteristics.

Regions dynamic featuresRegions are also dynamic geographic entities that have distinctive internal and external flow patterns of such phenomena as people, goods, and ideas.Nodes are key features of regions, being specific places from which flows begin or through which of a set of nodes may define the boundary of a region.

Flow featureFlows within and among regions include population migrationsinformation from the media, Internet, or publicationsmovements of moneytechnology innovations in manufacturing process, information processing, or new transportation modesand ideology through political and regions within world regions

The flows of geographic levelsThe dynamic elements of such flows within and among regions affect the prominenceof regions within a countriesof countries within world regionsof world regions within the global system

The characteristics of flowsThe variety of these flows is generated bypathspeeddirection and the different relationship to social structure imposed by governments and other institutions.Breaks or interruptions in the flows may result in social problem such as inequities, injustices, and underresourced livelihoods at the local level.

Changes in dynamic regionsPeople create regionsRegions shape peoples activitiesPeople remake regionsRegions interact with other regionsRegions are used by those in power

Major world regionsEuropeRussia and Neighboring CountriesEast AsiaSouthern Asia and South PacificSouth AsiaNorth Africa and Southwestern AsiaAfrica South of the SaharaLatin AmericaNorth America

Figure 1.11

Development of world regionsEarly history (about 5000 B.C)Settle Farming City-State and Empires (2500-1000 B.C.)Trading Empires and Classical Civilizations (1000 B.C.- A.D.600)Disruptions, Migrations, and Feudalism (A.D. 600 - 1450)The modern, globalizing worldExplorations and colonies ( around A.D. 1450)Industrialization (mid-1700s)Globalization, Countries, and Protectionism (1450- early 1800s)