This next unit is all about Population Migration Patterns & Processes. I've also added a good practice quiz for Unit 1 (https://www.albert.io/learn/ap-human-geography/11-introduction-to-maps/map-projections)
As always, the information gathered below is from AP class videos & further internet research I did.
Here we go with Unit 2!
The Seven Continents: Europe, South America, North America (including Central America & the Caribbean), Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Antarctica.
Crude Population Density - is the number of people per unit of area.
Physiological Density - is the number of people per square unit of arable (farmable) area.
Agricultural Density - the number of farmers per unit of arable area.
Mercator Projection - if Greenland is large or larger than Africa, then it is a Mercator Projection.
Urban sprawl refers to the expansion of cities and urban areas into surrounding rural or undeveloped land. It is characterized by low-density development, with a proliferation of single-family homes, strip malls, and other automobile-oriented development.
A mashup is a map that overlays data from one source on top of a map from a mapping service (such as Google Maps or Google Earth). Real World Example: A mashup map can show the locations of nearby pizza restaurants, locations of stores, and traffic conditions by typing in words like ‘nearby pizza restaurants/location of stores/etc’ into Google maps or earth.
East Asia is made up of Japan, China, North & South Korea, Mongolia, and Taiwan.
Sub-Saharan Africa is the poorest region in the world.
Oceania consists of Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and 22 small island nations (a world region surrounded by the ocean).
The extent to which a cartographer minimizes distortion on a map determines the class of the map. These classes are then sub-divided further into projections which also try to minimize distortion.
Planar maps: Maps that show true direction and examine the Earth from one point, usually from a pole or a polar direction (e.g., any azimuthal map). They show the earth as a flat projection along a plane (typically from either the north or south pole).
Azimuthal Map - show true direction and look at the Earth from a singular point, often one of the poles. Longitude lines are straight and converge at the poles and latitude lines appear as concentric circles. It distorts shape and size more toward the outer edges, and the lines of longitude and latitude don’t intersect as 90 degree angles.
Thematic Maps - include choropleth & dot/distribution maps.
Cylindrical Maps - are rectangles, but can be rolled up and their edges mapped in a tube, or cylinder shape (hence the name).
Conic Maps - show meridians (the vertical longitude lines) as straight lines, and parallels as arcs of circles.
Cultural Divergence - the clashing of different cultures in a shared area.
Cultural Convergence - the process through which cultures become more alike/similar usually through increased interaction.
Pidgin Languages - a grammatically simplified means of communication that develops between two or more groups of people that do not have a language in common: typically, its vocabulary and grammar are limited and often drawn from several languages.
Lingua Franca - when two languages are combined, usually for trade purposes; language used as a means of communication between populations speaking vernaculars that are not mutually intelligible (ex. The current lingua franca of the world is English).
Dispersed Settlement Pattern: A pattern of rural settlement signaled by isolated farms instead of clustered villages, in this way this pattern shows places within a place that are scattered. Historical dispersed patterns are typically characteristics in Europe and the colonial Americas. This pattern is the opposite of a more definite, organized pattern such as a grid/linear pattern.
Map Scale - the distance on a map relative to the actual distance on Earth expressed in a fraction. Larger scaled maps have representative fractions (ex. 1 inch in a textbook equals 600 miles) that are relatively larger than smaller-scaled maps (ex. 1 inch in a textbook equals 5 miles).
Hearth Area - an area from which an innovation originates (where the phenomena was first invented or began).
Spatial Understanding involves observing the objects on Earth’s surface and understanding the relationships between them.
Space is the physical gap between two or more objects on Earth’s surface
Hinterland - Surrounding area served by an urban center. That center is the focus of goods and services produced for its hinterland and it is the dominant urban influence as well.
Mercator Projection - has lines of longitude and latitude that intersect at 90 degree angles, minimal shape and direction distortion, and major distance and size distortion.
Robinson Projection - maintains overall shapes and relative positions without extreme distortions but all lines of longitude and latitude don’t intersect at 90 degree angles.
Gall-Peters Projection - has lines of longitude and latitude that intersect at 90 degree angles, but the shapes are highly distorted (bad for navigation).
Goode Projection - an interrupted map, lines of latitude & longitude don’t consistently intersect at 90 degree angles, and major distance distortion because of the areas of oceans being cut out.
Population Distribution
Ecumene - when one would rather live here instead of there; the proportion of permanent settlement areas by humans on the Earth’s surface; habitable land which includes land with adequate water sources, relatively flat terrain, and available human food sources. As time has progressed, ecumene has increased slightly due to various factors, the two primary ones being overpopulation (encourages people to seek new areas) and technological innovation (allowed other parts of the world to become suitable for human inhabitance).
Physical Factors that influence where people live:
Climate - weather patterns over time since people tend to live in moderate temperatures rather than cold ones. People also tend to live in lower latitude areas (closer to the equator) because of the abundance of rainfall.
Landforms - People tend to live in areas where they can grow crops or where there are sustainable natural resources that can sustain human life.
Water Bodies - where can one access fresh water for humans and plants?
Human Factors - other huge influences on where people migrate and settle:
Culture - people tend to live among their cultural groups ('my people') or due to cultural/spiritual beliefs of a place.
Economics - where and how can people make money (where can people trade)?
History - events of the past (wars, history with neighboring people, etc).
Political - types of government/levels of freedom.
Density - the number of people in a space.
Arithmetic/Crude Population (in general) Density - the number of people per square mile or kilometer.
Calculate by: taking the total population of an area and dividing it by the surface/land area.
Physiological Density - taking the number of people per unit of arable land (land that’s suitable for agriculture).
Calculate by: taking the total population of an area and divide it by the amount of arable land.
Agricultural Density - the number of farmers per unit of arable land
Calculate by: taking the total number of farmers of an area and divide it by the amount of arable land.
Distribution - the spatial spread of people in a place
Areas that used to have very small population densities or physiological densities are now starting to see expansive growth due to rural to urban migration.
Population Density allows geographers to describe the Human-Environment Interaction by looking at the distribution of people and their impact on resources.
Geographers study where population is distributed and then turn their attention to explaining why populations are located where they are and at what rate they are growing or shrinking.
This is important because:
Earth has never had nearly 8 billion people alive at one time.
Almost all population growth is currently concentrated in developing countries and this has social, economic, and political impacts.
The late twentieth century saw the highest rate in population growth in history.
Demographers - people who study population and consider how people are spread out by age, health, gender, occupation, fertility, etc.
Population distribution has political, social, and economic consequences.
Cultural Landscapes - The idea of “cultural landscapes” is most closely associated with the twentieth century environmental geographer Carl Sauer. Sauer argued that all geographic regions, even those which might appear to be unaffected by mankind’s influence, have been impacted by the growth of the human population. His work was important for spreading the significance of environmental studies in the field of geography.
George Perkins Marsh & The Fertile Crescent - The Fertile Crescent is a region of land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the Middle East (much of modern day Iraq, Syria, and Jordan). It is often referred to as the “cradle of civilization” because it was in these fertile floodplains that the first agricultural communities and later civilizations began to appear. In the thousands of years since then, the region (according to Marsh) has been ruined by overuse by humans. What was once a flourishing floodplain is now mostly an arid desert. Marsh uses the example of the Fertile Crescent to support his theory that mankind negatively impacts the environment, especially as population grows. George Perkins Marsh is one of the most well-regarded geographers and environmentalists of the nineteenth century. In his seminal work Man and Nature (1864), Perkins argued that mankind has a destructive influence on the condition of the environment. His ideas were initially on the fringe of accepted geographic theory, but over the years Marsh has come to be revered as a visionary.
Population Concentrations - Around the world, population is not distributed evenly–there are four major population clusters around the world (the majority of the world’s population is concentrated in Asia).
The European Cluster
The South Asian Cluster
The East Asian Cluster
The Southeast Asian Cluster
There is also a smaller cluster in the Northeastern part of the U.S. but it doesn’t really compare to the other clusters
Other smaller clusters: on the east coast of the U.S., the coastlines of South America, in Egypt people are clustered very closely along the Nile River
What is the impact of population concentration and distribution on the environment and resources?
Carrying Capacity - the relationship between a population size and the amount of resources (related to overpopulation)/the maximum number of people an area can sustain/keep alive. In other words, can the land and water support human life? Carrying Capacity is different based on human actions (ex. changes in farming techniques to focus on more sustainable ways of farming) and the characteristics of the land people are living on (desert vs lush green land). If this particular isolated area has enough food to support four thousand people, enough water to support three thousand, and enough shelter to support seven thousand only the lowest number should be considered (3,000 is the carrying capacity for that area). The “carrying capacity” can be pretty hard to calculate because it's very variable and most areas don't only sustain themselves and exchange sustaining products with other areas.
Below carrying capacity is considered a sustainable lifestyle
At carrying capacity (just enough)
Over carrying capacity is considered not a sustainable way to live
Geographers study population concentration and density because not only do they provide information and statistics on places, but they also explain strange and interesting phenomena.
For example as shown in some pictures, Mongolia (which is right next to China) has very wide open spaces with very low population density while China is packed with houses and has very high population density–geographers are interested in understanding the why behind all of this.
Population distribution & concentration (population factors) have many impacts including political impacts, and geographers tend to ask:
Is the political system equipped to handle a growing or shrinking population?
How does one make sure that the needs of the population are represented in the government?
What strain does the population put on the government to provide for basic needs?
There are also economic impacts, and here are the questions countries have to face:
Are there enough jobs for working-age people?
Are there enough people to fill available jobs?
Are there enough jobs in the places where people need work?
Social Impacts:
Are there enough hospitals to care for the health needs of the population?
If the population is young/producing a lot of young people, are there enough schools?
If the population is aging/has a lot of elderly, are there resources for pensions (similar to retirement payment when you can no longer work) and elder-care?
Explain some likely outcome scenarios:
There is a growing young population in cities with growing needs for employment…
There is a growing cluster of people living along the coastline due to internal migration…
There is a government that is struggling to cope with an aging population due to population decline
Where people are located also has environmental consequences which are analyzed by looking at the three types of densities and the carrying capacity of a place:
Population Composition - what’s behind the numbers?
Patterns of age structure - used to help create population pyramids & gives geographers a good bird’s eye view of the dynamics of a population
Age structure - the proportion of the total population in each age group. Age structure can vary based on the age (as well as ethnicity & socioeconomic status) distribution of individuals in a population
Sex ratios - the number of males per 100 females in a population (calculate by multiplying the number of male births by 100 and then dividing the product by the number of female births)
Ratio < 100 →more female births
Ratio = 100 → equal amount of births
Ratio > 100 →more male births
The standard biological level consistent around the world is 105 male births : 100 female births
Sex ratios tend to be higher at younger ages; as populations grow older in age those ratio differences start to decrease and often flip by middle age.
This is due to many factors including sex selective practices (sex selective abortions, female infanticide, female child abandonment, and more).
Geographers also look at variation in various subgroups of a population (such as by ethnicity), socioeconomic & economic status of a country→sex ratios vary by region
Population pyramids and their uses
Aka Age-Sex Structures
Are constructed by sex on the horizontal axis and by Age cohorts on the vertical axis
Age cohorts/groupings are usually done in 5 year increments until age 80 or 85
Allows geographers to get a snapshot of the demographics of a particular country or region and tells us the rate of population increase/decrease
If population pyramids have a wide base and narrow head then the population is growing rapidly (has a lot of children in the lower age cohorts→high birth rates)
If it has a more narrow base, yet is still bigger than the rest of the population pyramid, then there is still an increasing population but the crude birth rate is beginning to decline
Geographers can understand societies in a variety of ways by looking at population composition so they can inform governments, industry/business, and other sectors of societies.
Population Dynamics - the population of an area increases or decreases based on three major factors:
Fertility - how many babies are born in an area, measured in
The Crude Birth Rate (BCR) is the total number of live births in an area for every 1,000 people alive (number of live births/1,000 people)
The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) refers to the average number of children a woman will have in her childbearing years (average number of babies/woman)
Highly developed places typically have fewer children & less developed places typically have more children
Mortality - how many people die in an area, measured in
Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) refers to how many babies under one year of age die in each year compared to live births (deaths of infants under 1 year of age / 1,000 live births)
Crude Death Rate (CDR) is the total number of deaths in one year per 1,000 people (total number of deaths / 1,000 people)
When considering BOTH mortality & fertility…Rate of Natural Increase (RNI or NIR) is the percentage by which a population grows in a year. “Natural” refers to the fact that only births and deaths are considered in this number & not migration. A pattern that we see with RNI today is that the least developed areas tend to have the highest RNI.
Found by doing CBR-CDR
Population Doubling Time - the number of years needed to double a population. The NIR affects the doubling time–if the world NIR is 1.2% per year then the population doubling time would be 58 years. If the NIR of a place is negative because more people are dying than being born, then the population doubling time will be never.
Migration - how many people move in or out of an area; refers to the permanent movement of people from one area to another. Migration can contribute significantly to the amount of people living in an area, either by many people moving out/in.
Mortality, fertility, & migration are affected by the interplay of economic, environmental, cultural, and political factors
Social Factors - usually related to what are considered to be social services
Improvements in medical technology including immunizations & better healthcare have drastically reduced the traditional causes of death like curable illnesses
Improvements in education, especially for women, lead to a reduction in the Total Fertility Rate (TFR)
Cultural Factors - societies can oftentimes shift their attitudes in the way they think about things
When a society shifts its attitudes about the role of women in politics, the workforce, and family life, demographic changes often follow
Ex. if it becomes more common for women in an area to have a job and not be at home all the time, then this could lead to decreased TFR rates
A society may also see a cultural shift in values, for example, from family-based values to more work-based values (family is no longer center of cultural life and workplace is now center of social life–people may see more value in having a higher position at their job rather than having a higher number of children) causing people to have less children
Political Factors -
Pro & anti-natalist policies are government policies that can encourage or discourage citizens from producing more children. These policies are a government’s way of trying to control population, and can do so by providing incentives and/or punishments for people to have more or less children
Ex. China’s former one-child policy was an anti-natalist policy that discouraged people in China from having more than one child (did this through a combination of punishments & incentives)
Economic Factors
The Industrial Revolution produced wealth which allowed for improvements that made communities healthier places to live & the long-term impact was an expansion in population
When societies shift the way in which they obtain their food and resources (less working by hand, more using machines→ex. From families having their own gardens/farms and producing food only for their family to societies where there are large commercial farms which need less children to help on farms) they have fewer children
When there is a population shift to cities for work from a rural area, children become a liability instead of an asset (very expensive to raise children in a city in comparison to places like a farm where they could help out more) which leads to less children being produced
Environmental Factors refers to carrying capacity
The Demographic Transition Model - the Demographic Transition allows for us to see the transition or evolution of a population over time. When observing the demographic transition, one must observe and subtract the Crude Birth & Death Rates to find the Natural Increase Rate (NIR). Although a model & not perfect, the Demographic Transition Model allows geographers to see changes in a country’s Crude Death & Birth Rates over time.
Stage 1: Low Growth - countries in this stage have:
extremely high crude birth rates (CBR) due to cultural preferences & lack of contraceptives.
Countries in Stage 1 also have a high rate of infant mortality, and tend to be more hunter-gatherer & agrarian and so there is a need to have more kids to help bring in the harvest
Extremely high crude death rates (CDR) due to lack of sanitation/medicine, animal attacks, war, & famine
Thus very low Natural Increase Rate (NIR)
Stage 2: High Growth - countries in this stage have:
Extremely high crude birth rates due to the Industrial Revolution leading to food security
Falling crude death rates due to increased sanitation/medicine (advancements in medicine such as antibiotics), increased life expectancy, & falling infant mortality rates
Thus very high natural increase rate
Stage 3: Moderate Growth - countries in this stage have:
Falling crude birth rates due to more women entering the workforce, more women seeking educational opportunities, improved economics lessening the need for more children as does rising urbanization which causes less space for large families
Falling crude death rates due to further advances in medicine, increased life expectancy, and lowered infant mortality rates
Thus moderate natural increase rate
Stage 4: Low Growth - countries in this stage have:
Very low birth rates due to women delaying marriage or not choosing to marry, women seeking further career & educational opportunities, increased contraceptive use, and family planning
Low crude death rates due to higher incomes leading to better health outcomes (there is more disposable income to spend on preventative medicine)
Thus little to No natural increase rate = zero population growth or falling
Ex. China is in Stage 4 thanks to its One-Child Policy, which wasn’t necessarily a law but a strong social recommendation, this policy led to China having a skewed sex ratio (114:100) (meaning that there are hundreds of men who can potentially never find their mate) leading to lower Crude Birth Rates & adding to the so-called “Chinese Women’s Revolution” as many Chinese women became comfortable not having children at all (where Chinese women decided to delay getting married, further their education and their career). As a manufacturing & commercial center, China can devote more wealth to maintain health thus lowering its Crude Death Rates
Stage 5: Negative Growth - (fairly new to the Demographic Transition Model) countries in this stage have:
Very low birth rates due to couples choosing not to have kids or choosing to get married and/or have children later in life, birth rates falling below death rates
Rising crude death rates (over birth rates) due to deaths rising because of increased urbanization leading to more people together which introduces many infectious diseases including antibiotic-resistant bacteria
Thus negative population growth
The Epidemiological Transition Model allows geographers to observe how populations evolve over time by describing the changes in population based on mortality
Stage 1: Pestilence & Famine - infectious and parasitic diseases (such as those associated with contact between humans and animal waste), crop failure (due to climatic events, locust infestations, etc), and animal attacks
Endemic: stays in a local area
Epidemic: spreads throughout the region & starts to infect the neighboring region
Pandemic: spreads across regions
In this stage there are High Crude Death Rates (ex. the Bubonic Plague)
Stage 2: Receding Pandemics - related to improved sanitation, better nutrition that’s coupled with food security by way of improved agricultural practices, & advances in medicine
Pandemics are still a slight issue
Increased life expectancy
Stage 3: Degenerative Diseases - fewer infectious disease deaths with increased antibiotic use & sanitation
Rise in diseases/death from aging: cancer, strokes, heart disease
Yet longer life expectancy and lower death rates
Some of the largest Population growth
Stage 4: Delayed Degenerative & Lifestyle Diseases - some of the best medical advances in human history which extend life expectancy to its highest
Better diets often attributed to better economies & incomes (especially disposable incomes for their citizens) and the reduced use of tobacco
One problem that is the product of higher income & at the same time the commercialization of agriculture: the consumption of junk food & sedentary lifestyles
Stage 5: Reemergence of Infectious Diseases - Infectious and parasitic diseases make a return
The overuse of antibiotics leads to disease mutation and disease resistance to antibiotics
Rising urbanization leads to greater contact among populations which, in turn, leads to a greater potential of infectious spread
(slight) Lowering of life expectancy
Malthusian Theory - Thomas Malthus’ Theory on the principles of population (growth & decline)
Thomas Malthus
Lived from 1766-1834
British economist
First person credited with raising the alarm about population growth and the problems with outpacing food production
Malthus warned that population would outpace food supply because population grows geometrically while food supply grows arithmetically→when population outpaces food supply, that is a point of crisis (starvation, chaos ensues because the entire population can no longer be taken care of) - he was trying to raise the alarm that in time there would not be enough food for the people of Britain
Malthus made his predictions after Britain entered stage 2 in the demographic transition model (very high natural increase rate→explosive population growth where the death rate drops and the birth rate remains high)
But Malthus had a lot of critics at his time who thought he was crazy/conspiracy theorist so he was mocked at home and abroad, but he also had supporters too
During his time, only a few countries were in stage 2 of the DTM while many were still in stage 1 (low natural increase rate). As a result, many people & religious groups perceived him as an alarmist and anti-family
At this time encouraging people to produce less children may have been seen as anti-patriotic / anti-religious groups (you’re not producing children for your country/religious group)
‘Depopulation & Repopulation in France’ was a famous book that debunked Malthus’ theory in 1895
Malthusian Theory can help us understand the challenges of population growth and food production. He was unable to predict the advancements humans would make in food production and the slowing of population growth as countries move through the demographic transition model. Therefore, his theory has value today but is limited by his historical perspective.
Malthus’ ideas remain influential today, particularly because of the dramatic increase (exponential growth) in the world’s population in the 20th century
Neo-Malthusians (Those who still believe in Malthus’ ideas - ‘new’ Malthusians) point to the dramatic loss in Earth’s natural resources coupled with unprecedented population growth as an indicator that Malthus’ ideas are still relevant today & that we are still able to hit that crisis point if we are not able to reduce population / increase food production
How is Malthus right in the world today? (AP responses:https://secure-media.collegeboard.org/apc/ap11_human_geo_q2.pdf)
Some geographers today believe Malthus’ theory can be used to predict future population issues because as a whole, population and food production are increasing as Malthus predicted.
The world’s population in the 20th century has grown exponentially while food production typically grows arithmetically.
In fact, there is limited use of contraception in some places around the world and political/cultural/economic policies/ideas that promote population growth (some places still highly value having large families).
Plus, some countries are still in stage 2 & 3 of the demographic transition model and thus they are still experiencing high population growth.
Food supply has increased but hasn’t kept up with population growth
Failure to adopt agricultural innovation, owing to political policies, economic decisions, cultural beliefs.
Conversion of farmland for urban use.
Environmental degradation such as desertification, overgrazing, clear cutting, soil erosion, unavailability of fresh water.
Conversion of life-supporting crops to cash crops (tobacco, sugar, cotton, tea, coffee).
Rising fuel costs will slow down growth of food production and distribution.
Climate change will decrease production.
There are other limiting factors on the population in addition to food
Because of resource overuse and/or environmental degradation, we are in danger of exceeding the carrying capacity (clean air, fossil fuel, water, and other resources).
How is Malthus wrong in the world today?
Population and food production are not growing everywhere as Malthus predicted (lots of variety).
For example, there is a widespread use of contraceptives in more developed countries resulting in a drastically reduced total fertility rate.
Also, in places such as these, there are political/cultural/economic policies/ideas that reduce population growth/discourage people from having more children (a very successful one was the one-child policy in China & South Korea that dramatically reduced birth rates).
Moreover, some countries are still in stage 4 or 5 of the demographic transition model (little to No natural increase rate or negative population growth).
Plus, there is environmental degradation and soil loss that contribute to the food production problems that Malthus predicted. But, there are new farming techniques that allow us to produce more food than ever before.
Food supply has grown faster than predicted by Malthus / Carrying capacity has expanded.
New technologies, such as: mechanization, factory farming, industrial agriculture, agribusiness, use of chemicals, irrigation, GPS.
Greater efficiencies such as: larger farms, consolidation farms, mechanization, multicropping
Green Revolution, genetically modified crops, multicropping, improved seeds, high-yielding cultivars
Expansion of agricultural lands
Human ability to create new techniques
Humans’ ability to preserve food and/or distribute food to areas of need is much greater than Malthus’ time
Improvements in any and all methods of transportation (highways, containerization, refrigerated trucks).
Improvements in food preservation (refrigeration, packing, processed food).
Population Policies
Natal - relates to the time and place of one’s birth. Governments at various scales can cultivate policies to facilitate changes in birth rates.
Natalist policies have lasting effects on a country’s economy, culture, and politics
Pro-natalist - policies to promote births
Anti-natalist - policies to restrict births, can also make connections to Malthus when thinking about family planning
Example at the national scale: the government of Finland: pro-natalist
In the early 2000s a baby alarm was sounded
A Baby Box (including mattress, baby clothes, diapers, and other supplies to help a newborn’s family get their start), was sent to every newborn
Both parents would get 7 months of PAID parental leave
Labor and delivery costs subsidized by the government
Single moms receiving the benefits of two parents (14 months of paid parental leave and simultaneously has social and emotional support provided by the government)
In the U.S. a newborn would cost upwards of $14,000-20,000+ (especially without insurance), but in Finland the cost for delivery and labor for a newborn is ~$375
Example at the city scale: the city of Lestijärvellä in Finland
In 2012, crude birth rate dropped very low (there was only one child born that year) which sounded an alarm all across the city
There was a fear of loss of population, business, & schools
Mothers who give birth and reside in the town are paid 10,000 euros over 10 years
Parent and child must live continuously in the city if not money stops
Other pronatalist countries
Sweden - 16 months of parental leave
Norway - some of the most robust parental leave in the world
Germany - incentives for fathers to stay home
Estonia - monthly payments to parents (~300 euros per family)
Japan - ad campaigns and subsidies to citizens to improve their birth rates (since they have a declining and aging population)
Example of Anti-natalist policies: China’s One-Child Policy (one of the most famous)
China has not always been an anti-natalist country.
They’ve wavered back and forth from the 1950s post-WW2 where they lost a lot of their male population due to the war which is why they were pro-natalist then.
In the mid-1950s they became anti-natalist as their urban population rapidly swelled.
In the late 1950s, they flipped again and became pro-natalist.
In the 1960s, China became an anti-natalist country as Malthusians concerns and the concept of it being one’s socialist duty to have fewer and fewer children (related to communist chinese revolution by Mao)
By the mid-1970s the concept of wan xi shao (later longer fewer) became an ubiquitous slogan
In 1978, President Deng Xiao Peng linked economic development with keeping the population at a certain level. The One-Child Policy started out as an encouragement or a strong suggestion mainly to communist party members and other government officials. This policy is based on a system of approvals/employer monitoring (this can range from getting permission from your employer and also from a local neighborhood committee). If out of compliance, you’re ordered to pay a “Social Maintenance” fee (for many Chinese million/billionaires, they simply chose to pay the fee)
Some exceptions:
Minority groups are permitted to three children as long as their population remains under 10 million
If the first child dies or is disabled, you’re allowed to have a second child
If births are spaced out between 3-5 years
If both parents are only children
If the first child is adopted
Overseas chinese living outside the country
Rural families under “daughter hardship” - rural families tend to be more agrarian so boys are seen as an economic benefit over girls
Effects of one-child policy
Led to severe Sex imbalance (related to sex ratios: son preference (are seen as the economic movers of the family and can prolong the family name)
This has led to China’s “Lost Girls” - through sex-elective abortions/sterilizations/procedures, female infanticide, and female abandonment, with a simultaneous rise in violence against females
This has led to a concept many geographers call 4-2-1 where you have four grandparents, two parents, and one child which has led to increased pressure on that one child to get good grades, go to a great university, and get a great job since they have to support themselves, their parents, and in turn their grandparents
This has also led to China having an aging population without support due to the fewer and fewer children (there are not enough workers to put money into the system to take care of their senior citizens)
Another unintended consequence of this anti-natalist policy was a projected shortage of working-age people to care for the rising elderly population has resulted in an increase in the cost of living for older people (since China doesn’t have nursing homes)
So, China instituted its ‘two-child’ policy in 2015, but many people used to the one-child policy have remain dedicated to it
In addition, there has been a ‘women’s revolution’ where women are deciding not to get married and or delaying marriage until later in life after they’ve secured higher educational attainment & career aspirations
Other anti-natalist examples
India - paid reproductive surgeries like vasectomies
Nigeria - government-issued/sponsored birth control
Women & Demographic Change
Changes in population have long & short term effects on a place’s economy, culture, and politics, and women play a role in this.
When women are educated…
They are able to take better care of their children (less babies are born when they’re confident the children they already have will survive)
They will often have children later in life because they are continuing their education
They often want to utilize their education for work so they may choose to have less children to dedicate themselves more to that
When women are employed…
They are able to bring more income into their household to better provide for their children’s health and education
They are able to play more roles in society and this helps advance a country economically when more working-age adults are contributing to the GDP (gross domestic product). For example, women can contribute by doing anything from teaching (formal economy job, tertiary sector job) to roasting and processing coffee beans (informal economy job, secondary sector job)
When women have access to healthcare (women face unique health risks, particularly because of childbearing, and this risks can affect the size and structure of the population)
More women dying due to childbirth/other reasons→less children being born
Countries look at the maternal mortality rate (the annual number of female deaths per 100,000 live births from any cause related to pregnancy) to assess the health of women. The lower this rate is, the better the healthcare system of the place is/better access to doctors & healthcare facilities.
More developed countries have typically lower maternal mortality rates
When more Women have access to contraception/birth control, birth rates drop, and access can allow women to stay at school & their jobs for longer (don’t have to worry about becoming pregnant and managing work with growing a family). As a result to reliable access, a shift in social dynamics/expectations may occur as less women are at home caring for their (large) families
Ravenstein’s Laws of Migration
Ravenstein developed a theory that notes distinct demographic patterns (including gender and family status) related to migration
His first law relates to Gender Patterns
Women are more likely to move internally within a country (most international migrants are young males)
This trend was more applicable when males were the primary income earners for their families, but as more women enter the workforce we also see more female migrants (ex. The gulf states in the Persian gulf where there is significant growth/construction and there are many migrants who come to those areas–this has a huge impact on these areas’ demographics)
His second law related to Youth & Migration
Most migrants are young adults that are seeking employment. This cohort is more mobile since they are often less established so they can move more easily to take advantage of opportunities everywhere
If migrants are older they are typically from more developed countries
His third law says that typically people only move as far as they need (Short Distances)
Most migrants only travel short distances
This is related to Distance Decay
His fourth law related to Step Migration
When migrants travel far distances they typically do so in steps
Ex. a migrant moving from rural China to a town, then a medium-sized city, and finally a big one like Beijing (from town to large city is a huge change in lifestyle)
The next concept he discussed was Counter Migration
Each migration flow in one direction would produce a counter flow in the opposite direction
Ex. a flow of young workers from Spain moving to England for work while a flow of older English people move to Spain to retire
This is not always the case in reality
Next is Rural to Urban Migration
Most migration historically (and still today) is from rural areas to urban areas
The most common cause for this economic (people moving to cities in search for work). However, in some places there is a trend of urban to suburban and rural migration
In the last few years, we have seen the first global shift to having more people living in cities than in rural areas
Urban Areas
Cities are places of opportunity especially economic in the form of jobs
Migrants that move large distances will typically go to large urban areas because they feel these places will have more opportunities than towns or smaller cities
Another law is the Gravity Model
The hypothesis that more people will be attracted to large cities even if they are far away (the larger the urban area, the greater the “pull” it will have on migrants) (like New York & London, which is why so many people wish to go there/have the most tourists & visitors)
Aging Populations
Population Aging Determinants:
Crude Birth Rates
Infant Mortality
Total Fertility Rates
Crude Death Rates
Life Expectancy - the average number of years a person is expected to live in their lifetime. Some factors that influence life expectancy are…
Socioeconomic status-does a country’s population have enough disposable income to take care of their health needs or enjoy recreational activities that give them peace of mind
Diet and physical activity-a country with low fat and low sugar diets along with a high level of activity leads to higher life expectancy–a great example is Japan.
Addictive behaviors (drugs, tobacco, & alcohol)
Disease-HIV, AIDS, cholera, and dysentery
War-countries with histories of war, particularly in parts of Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America lead to low life expectancies
Food security-particularly dealing with things such as climate change and other issues
Psychological stress-the National Institute of Health lists psychological stress as one of the leading causes of decline in life expectancy in developing nations, due to job loss & from the strains of political or religious persecution.
Consequences of an Aging Population
Economic Consequences:
Dependency Ratio - the number of people who are under 15 and over 65 (this range is typically a country’s working population). It is from taxation from their wages and other means that the country is able to support those too young/old to be in the workforce.
As populations begin aging, a shrinking tax/worker base occurs and simultaneously a loss in tax revenue. In addition, governments need to increase the funding for the care of senior citizens (ex. Medicare in the U.S.)
Then there comes the question of: Should there be cuts to other programs as governments try to balance their budgets?
At the same time, a positive is that there is an increased market for goods and services of seniors (ex. Gyms & spas dedicated solely to seniors such as the SilverSneakers Program)
Social Consequences:
Family dynamics–who’s taking care of grandparents? Senior care is one of the fastest growing segments of the service industries
Social services for seniors include mental healthcare & dedicated medical specializations
A positive consequence is Senior Agglomerations/the Snowbird Effect-when there is a pooling of services dedicated to senior citizens (ex. Senior home or apartment complex dedicated solely to senior citizens with other nearby services such as grocery stores dedicated to seniors). Seniors also tend to move from colder to warmer climates during the winter months in places such as Arizona, Texas, and Nevada
Political Consequences
Natal policies are incorporated to address the decline in birth rates (countries such as China, Japan, & Denmark have sounded the alarm for this)
This also leads to a decline in potential soldiers for a country’s military apparatuses so there are greater military needs
Oftentimes economic growth becomes stagnant and starts to lessen
Seniors as a voting bloc (tend to vote for senior issues & have less common interest with younger individuals–ex. A school board wants to raise a bond election, and many of the seniors (who may be childless or have adult children) may see that a bond election goes against their interests)
Examples of life expectancies
Afghanistan: 64 - due to a lack of balanced diet in rural Afghanistan, and a history of war with the U.S., the Soviet Union, & others
Nigeria: 54 - AIDS, HIV, war, terrorism, and more
Peru: 77
Finland: 82
Japan: 84
Aging at the State Scale: the U.S.
The U.S. with its aging population is a huge issue in politics, economics, and social issues.
In 1960, there was a baby boom, but in 2060 it’s predicted that the U.S. will have a declining population
Arizona: attracts many senior citizens due to its low taxation and sunny days (200+) so that seniors can enjoy various days of recreation-golfing, relaxing at the pool, hiking, etc. Also has an increasing amount of housing availability, especially that dedicated to seniors, and Arizona is a prime example of senior agglomeration in Sun City (City Scale)
The U.S. Census Bureau calls places like Sun City (actually in Maricopa County) a census designated place aka unincorporated areas outside of a county’s jurisdiction
a planned senior community dedicated to those over 55 (over 75% are 65+ years old), adults only, no sales taxes on groceries, and it is so attractive that it expanded into Sun City West & other attractions. Initially when Sun City was created, there was a huge fight with Maricopa county residents as Sun City residents needed services from Maricopa County
Causes of Migration-use ESPN to elaborate on your FRQ answers
Push & Pull Factors-can be economic, social, political, or environmental (ESPN)
Push Factor-negative situations, events, or conditions in a place where a person currently lives that causes them to want to leave
Pull Factor-positive situations, events or conditions in a place that draw people to a new destination
Economic Factors-Most common reason people migrate is because they’re in search of employment
Push
Unemployment in current location
Workplace shutting down (ex. A factory shutting down due to manufacturing leaving a region)
Transition to Mechanization leading to reduced need for human labor
High personal or business taxes
Pull
Jobs available in a new location
Factories moving to a new location because there’s cheaper land/labor available there
Low tax rates in new location
Social/Cultural Factors-related to religion, race, gender, sexual orientation, health, education, or ethnicity
Push
Religious persecution
Discrimination based on gender or ethnicity
Lack of school or educational opportunities
Lack of available healthcare
Pull
freedom of religion
Acceptance of different ways of life in a new place
Educational opportunities
Access to healthcare
Political Factors-relating to government/politics
Push
Political persecution
Discrimination based on political views
Harsh government policies
Poor or cruel leadership
Warfare or threat of warfare
Political instability
Pull
Political freedom
Safety to voice dissenting political views
Stable government
Fair laws
More trusted leadership or political system
Environmental Factors-related to the natural world
Push
Drought
Natural disaster (hurricane, flood, etc)
Human damage to the environment (ex. such as radioactive waste from a damaged power plant in a local area)
Pull
Farmable land available
Safety from natural disasters (ex. High ground, away from the coast, etc)
Healthy, safe environment
Intervening Obstacles & Opportunities-can also be ESPN
Intervening Obstacles-negative circumstances/features that hinder migration
Intervening Opportunities-positive circumstances/features that hinder migration
Economic Factors-financial
Intervening Obstacles
Migrant runs out of money to complete the journey
Migrant faces prohibitive costs to complete the journey
Intervening Opportunities
Jobs available in a closer location
Economic situation improving at or near the place of origin
Social/Cultural Factors
Intervening obstacles
Quotas on immigration from certain places
Migrants face discriminatory practices that prohibit migration due to their race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, etc
Intervening opportunities
Healthcare or education being made available closer to home
Laws being passed so it is safer to stay closer to home
Political Factors-the most common obstacles migrants face are political
Intervening obstacles
Lost or missing paperwork
Inability to get passport or visa
Quotas or limitations placed on migration from receiving country
War or other kinds of political instability
Intervening opportunities
Asylum offered in a closer location
Political situation in original destination calms down before migrant has a chance to make final step of their journey
Environmental Factors-historically speaking, these are the most common type of intervening obstacles
Intervening obstacles
Ocean crossing
River to ford (cross)
Large mountain range
Intervening opportunities
More favorable land available closer to place of origin
Forced & Voluntary Migration
Forced Migrations-where people have no choice but to leave
Immigrants-people entering a country/political subdivision
Emigrants-people living a country/political subdivision
Types to focus on:
Slavery-the process of detaining a human against their will including under threat of violence
Includes the trafficking of humans across the globe (such as sex trafficking or trafficking workers from a lower developed country to a more developed country)
According to the US State Department there are 4 types of slavery:
Bonded Labor or Debt Bondage-a person owes a debt, this can be in the form of a want ad asking people to go to US where jobs are located but as soon as the worker gets to the US there may be a job but no wages handed over to the migrant because they still are in “debt” to the person who transported them
Domestic Servitude-in many countries, domestic servants such as maids, butlers, and other servants, are held in bondage through the use of holding their passports
Forced Child Labor-children are often forced into working in working camps or other conditions sometimes by their family members to work off a debt or make a little money to support their family
Child Soldiers-children often under the age of 18 who are forced to fight in civil wars and other means
Refugees/Asylum Seekers-people forced to emigrate based on…
Political factors-religious or political persecution, or violation of Human Rights
War-civil war or against foreign states
Environmental factors-drought, famine, disease, severe weather (hurricanes and tornadoes), tectonic events (volcanoes and earthquakes)
Asylum Seekers-refugees who seek protection from another country (often from violence or due to economic event)
Internally Displaced Persons-(IDP) Someone who has been forced to migrate for similar political reasons to a refugee (due to conflict, violence, human rights violations, natural hazards, or other crises within the borders of their country) but has not migrated across an international border.
Voluntary Migrations
Types to focus on
Transnational-when a migrant leaves their country of origin and enters another country
migrants often maintain a strong connection to their country of origin
Often settle in areas of similar migrants
Leave their mark on the cultural landscape
Example: a woman moves from Germany to take residence in Finland
Transhumance-migration where livestock are led to highland areas in the summer months and lowland areas in the winter months
A cyclical movement
Migration routes are also connected to trade routes
Example: a camel herder who moves his herd from the highland areas of the Atlas Mountains to the lowland areas of Morocco
Internal-permanent move within a country
Economics: job relocation/opportunity
Culture: people want to live near others who share similar cultural traits
Interregional migration: from one region to another
Intraregional migration: movement within a region
Chain-migration where there is some type of relationship with a previous migrant
Often familial
Can ease the burden of migration
Example: a daughter gains citizenship in US and petitions for her parents or spouse to gain citizenship
Step-where there is a series of starts and stops
Can involve intervening obstacles/opportunities
Example: a migrant from Senegal stops in Casablanca, Morocco, flies to Barcelona, Spain and finally land in Berlin, Germany
Guest workers and remittances-temporary migrants who often have legal permission to migrate for work or education-related reasons
Often work in fields such as medicine, education, construction, and finance
Can often send money back to their country of origin in the form of Remittances
Example: a nurse from the Philippines in the US on a work visa who sends a portion of her salary back home to her family
Rural-to-urban-movement of people from rural areas to cities
Often drawn by economics, housing, and services
Example: a person in Mabank, Texas, moves to Dallas due to Dallas having a better job market
Effects of Migration
Historical and contemporary geographic effects of migration
Political effects of migration
Historically:
Consequences can even be seen today in where Native Americans are living & the reservation-system (historical acts still have present-day consequences)
Current: when migrants seek political safety in another country they are considered asylum seekers (may need to apply and may not be accepted into another country for that asylum status)
A refugee is forced to migrate because of a negative situation like a war, natural disaster, violence, or persecution→flee to a different country
On the other hand an IDP is…
Another political effect of migration are border disputes
Migration, largely unauthorized migration, can cause many border disputes between countries based on several issues with questions such as:
Should local or national law enforcement enforce border security?
How do immigrants affect workplaces with regards to the jobs they perform?
How does immigration enforcement support or infringe on civil rights?
How should, if they should, a country enforce border security?
Economic effects of migration-migrants often fill important jobs that the native population cannot or chooses not to do
If they are unable to migrate permanently, they may migrate temporarily or seasonally
These migrants often send home a portion of their wages (remittances) to support family and friends
In some cases, migrants with higher levels of training or education, like doctors, scientists, and computer programmers, may migrate internationally in order to make more money in a different country. This phenomenon is referred to as “brain drain”
Cultural effects of migration-some countries place quotas, or limits, on the number of immigrants admitted from certain countries
The US created a diversity lottery for people coming from countries that historically sent people to US
These policies have an impact on the cultural diversity of the US
In some cases migration issues can become cultural issues and migrants may be blamed for social ills and face persecution because of their nationality/ethnicity
Anti-immigrant sentiment often comes from fear that migrants will change cultural (religious, lingual, culinary, etc) traditions
Congrats on getting through this JAM-PACKED Unit 2 summary, up next there's Unit 3: Cultural Patterns & Processes!
so fascinating!!! you go so in depth, this is super interesting