Learning Objectives
•	Understand framework for studying world regional geography
•	Examine varied aspects of globalization 
–	Economic, cultural, geopolitical, environmental, social
•	Understand the following models and terms
–	Demographic transition
–	Measures of population growth and change
–	Indicators of social development
–	Measures of economic development
–	State, nation, and nation-state
–	Culture
–	Core-periphery model
Diversity Amid Globalization
•	Globalization: the increasing interconnectedness of people and places through the converging processes of economic, political, and cultural change
•	Converging Currents of Globalization
–	Communications and transportation
–	Economic transformation
»	Multinational corporations, financial institutions
»	Global free-trade agreements
»	Market economies and privatization
»	Global markets
»	Globalization of labor

•	Global Consumer Culture
•	May erode local diversity
•	Tension between traditional cultures and external globalizing influences
–	Examples:  clothing, food, movies
–	Many global goods and services originate in  North America
•	Hybridization or syncretism: sometimes occurs when forms of American popular culture spread abroad then are melded with local cultural traditions

•	The Geopolitical Component
•	United Nations provides representation to all countries 
•	International agreements promote global trade and cultural exchange 

•	Environmental Concerns
•	Globalized economy, transnational corporations create environmental problems, disrupts local ecosystems
•	Native peoples may lose resource base
•	Globalization aggravates world environmental problems (climate change, air & water pollution, deforestation)
•	International treaties may help 

•	Social Dimensions
•	Increased international migration
•	Criminal element to globalization
–	Terrorism (discussed later in the chapter)
–	Drugs
–	Pornography and prostitution
–	Gambling

•	Advocates and Critics of Globalization
–	The Proglobalization Stance (Advantages)
•	Globalization is logical expression of capitalism
•	Removing trade barriers will increase efficiency, spread new technology and ideas
•	Free flow of capital will enhance global economic wealth
•	The world’s poorer countries will catch up through globalization
–	Critics of Globalization (Disadvantages)
•	Today’s core, developed countries did not use globalization’s free-market economic model to foster their own development
•	Globalization creates greater inequalities
•	It Promotes free-market, export-oriented economies, at the expense of local, indigenous economies
•	Spreads undesirable things (diseases, crime, harmful flora and fauna)

•	A Middle Position?
•	Globalization is probably unavoidable, but can (and should) be managed
•	Even anti-globalization forces use the global reach of the internet to oppose globalization
•	Strong & efficient governments, international organizations, and watchdog groups can help manage globalization
•	Diversity in a Globalizing World
•	The world is still a diverse place
–	Language, religion, politics, economics
–	Foods, architecture, urban form
•	Ethnic and cultural differences are contributing to separatist political movements

Themes and Issues in World Regional Geography
•	Geography describes Earth and explains spatial patterns
•	Themes and Issues in World Regional Geography
•	Environmental geography
•	Population and settlement
•	Cultural coherence and diversity
•	Geopolitical framework
•	Economic and social development

•	More than 6.5 billion people on earth
–	About 137 million born each year (16,000 each hour)
–	90% of population growth in developing regions (Africa, Latin America, South Asia, East Asia)
•	Several important population issues
•	Population growth rates vary from region to region
•	Countries have different approaches to family planning
•	Migration is an important part of globalization
•	The greatest international migration in human history is occurring NOW
World Population (Fig. 1.12)

–	Population Growth and Change
•	Important terms
–	Rate of Natural Increase (RNI): annual growth rate for a country or region as a percentage increase; world RNI is 1.2% per year
»	Crude Birth Rate (CBR):  total number of births divided by the total population; world CBR is 21 per 1,000
»	Crude Death Rate (CDR):  total number of deaths divided by the total population; world CDR is 9 per 1,000
–	Total Fertility Rate (TFR):  the average number of children born by a statistically average woman (world average is 2.7; for Europe it’s 1.4; for Africa it’s 5.1)
–	Life expectancy: Average length of life; world average is 67; for Africa it’s 52; for Japan it’s 82

•	Migration Patterns
–	Today, about 3% of total world population are migrants
–	Linked to global economy
•	Push factors:  negative conditions that drive people from a location
–	Examples: cultural oppression, war, unemployment, natural disasters (famine, destruction like Hurricane Katrina)
•	Pull factors:  favorable conditions at a destination that attract people 
–	Examples: economic opportunity (jobs), freedom, good climate
•	Most migration involves both push and pull factors 
–	Networks of families, friends, and sometimes labor contractors connect migrants from their origins to their destinations

•	An Urban World
–	Cities are the focal points of the modern globalizing world
–	Mexico City and Sao Paolo (Brazil) 
–	More than 20 million residents; add 10,000 each week; expected to double in the next 15 years
•	Urbanized population:  percentage of a country’s people who live in cities
–	On average, 48% of world’s population lives in cities
–	Developed areas more than 75% urbanized
–	Developing may be much lower than 50%
•	Squatter settlements: Illegal developments of makeshift housing
•	Overurbanization:  urban population grows faster than provision of infrastructure
Growth of World Cities
(2000 – 2015) (Fig. 1.18)

•	Cultural Coherence and Diversity: Geography of Tradition and Change
•	Culture is LEARNED  (not innate), is shared (not individual) behavior, and includes both abstract (language, religion) and material elements (architecture, technology)
•	When Cultures Collide
•	Cultural imperialism:  active promotion of one’s cultural system over another 
•	Cultural nationalism: the process of defending a cultural system against offensive cultural expression while at the same time actively promoting local or national values
•	Cultural syncretism or hybridization: the blending of elements of culture to form a new culture

•	Language and Culture in Global Context
•	Language and culture are closely tied
–	Language is often the characteristic that best defines cultural groups
•	Dialect:  a distinctive form of a language associated with a specific region (e.g., American and British English)
•	Lingua franca:  a third language that is adopted by people from different cultural groups within a country who cannot speak each other’s language (e.g., Swahili in Africa, or English in India)

Geopolitical Framework: Fragmentation & Unity
•	Global Terrorism
•	9/11 terrorist attacks not attached to a nationalist or regional geopolitical aspiration to achieve independence or autonomy
•	Global terrorism is a product and an expression of globalization
–	Asymmetrical warfare: the differences between a superpower’s military technology and strategy and the lower level technology and decentralized guerilla tactics used by Al Qaeda and the Taliban

Geopolitical Framework: Fragmentation & Unity
•	Geopolitics:  term that describes the close link between geography and political activity
–	Focuses on the interaction between power, territory, and space at all scales
–	State:  a political unit with territorial boundaries recognized by other countries and internally governed by an organizational structure
•	Nation:  a large group of people who share many cultural elements (e.g.: language, religion, cultural identity) and view themselves as a single political community
•	Nation-state:  a relatively homogenous cultural group with its own fully independent political territory (e.g.: Japan, France); Kurds are a nation without a state

Centrifugal and Centripetal Forces
	Centrifugal forces:  Cultural and political forces acting to weaken or divide an existing state
		- Examples: linguistic minority status, ethnic separatism, territorial 	autonomy, disparities in income and well-being
	Centripetal forces:  Forces that promote political unity and reinforce the state structure
		- Examples: shared sense of history, need for military security, 	overarching economic structure
•	Colonialism and Decolonialization
•	Colonialism: formal establishment of rule over a foreign population 
•	Decolonialization: the process of a colony’s gaining (or regaining) control over its territory and establishing a separate independent government

Economic and Social Development: The Geography of Wealth and Poverty
•	Economic development brings increased prosperity to individuals, regions, and nation-states
•	More- and Less-Developed Countries
•	Core-periphery model: U.S., Canada, western Europe, and Japan make up the economic core in the northern hemisphere, while most areas to the south make up a less-developed periphery
•	Indicators of Economic Development
•	Development:  qualitative and quantitative measures indicating structural changes (getting “better”)
•	Growth:  increase in the size of a system (getting bigger) 

•	Measuring Economic Wealth
•	Gross National Income (GNI): the value of all final goods and services produced within a country plus net income from abroad
–	GNI per capita – obtained by dividing the GNI by a country’s population

•	Indicators of Social Development
•	Mortality rate under 5 years: number of children who die per 1,000 persons; related to availability of food, basic healthcare
•	Adult literacy rates:  percentage of a society’s males and females who can read; related to economic development, birthrates
Development Indicators

•	Conclusion
•	Globalization is driving a fundamental reorganization of economies and cultures through trade agreements, supranational organizations, military alliances, and cultural exchanges
•	Discussion of each region includes 5 themes: 
–	Environmental Geography
–	Population and Settlement
–	Cultural Coherence and Diversity
–	Geopolitical Framework
–	Economic and Social Development Geographies

End of chapter 1: Diversity and Globalization