Globalization Week 5 Notes

GGR111 Class Notes Week 5 Notes Population Geographies ● One of the major factors affecting the globalization of languages mentioned in the last section was the movement of people. ○ Migration – both within a country and between countries – falls into the sub-field of Population Geography, which focuses on spatial processes related to birth, death, and migration ● Throughout much of humanity's history, world population was small, and it grew slowly. ● Although fertility rates (which express the average number of children born to a woman over her reproductive years) were high, unpredictable food supplies, short life expectancies, famine, war, and disease meant that the population grew slowly, and the global population remained small. GGR111 Class Notes These rapid changes raise a number of critical questions: How did the world's population grow so quickly and in such a comparatively short period of time? How is the global population distributed? What are the implications of a large and growing population? ● Beginning in the mid-1600s, the era of slow and stable population growth ended. ● Near the start of the Industrial Revolution in Europe, death rates started to fall, and life expectancy slowly increased with improvements in commerce, food security and production, and nutrition. ● This difference between birth and death rates allowed the population to grow, such that by 1800 the world's population was approximately 1 billion, growing to 2 billion by 1930 GGR111 Class Notes ● Population growth patterns and rates are not the same across the globe, meaning that there is a clear geography to the world's population growth both historically and in modern times How Population Growth Patterns Intertwine with The Industrial Revolution? ● The industrial revolution had profound effects on population growth, with improved living conditions, increased life expectancy, and urbanization contributing to a demographic shift. Fertility and Mortality Rates Category Definition Example Mortality Rate The number of deaths in a given population during a specific time period, usually per 1,000 individuals per year. Example: A mortality rate of 7.5 per 1,000 people means that 7.5 individuals out of 1,000 die in a year. Fertility Rate The average number of children born to a woman during her reproductive years, often expressed per 1,000 women. Example: A fertility rate of 2.1 indicates that, on average, each woman is expected to have 2.1 children during her reproductive years, maintaining population replacement levels. Types of Fertility Rates ● Pre-transition: High birth rates and high death rates, resulting in slow population growth. ● Transition: A period of declining death rates due to improved healthcare, sanitation, and living conditions, leading to rapid population growth. GGR111 Class Notes ● Post-transition: Birth rates decline, and the population stabilizes or grows slowly. The Replacement Rate ● The replacement rate, in the context of demographics and population studies, refers to the fertility rate needed to maintain a stable population size over time, assuming all other factors remain constant. What Factors Influence These Rates? (Trends in Migration) ● Access to Healthcare: The availability and accessibility of healthcare services significantly impact death rates. ● Urbanization: Urban areas may have better healthcare facilities but can also face challenges like pollution and crowded living conditions. ● Extreme Weather Events: Changes in climate patterns can lead to more frequent and severe weather events (such as heatwaves, hurricanes, or droughts), affecting mortality rates ● Age Structure: The age distribution of a population can influence death rates. ● Colonialism: It is also tightly woven with processes of industrialization and migration Demographic Transition Theory The Demographic Transition Theory is a journey of a society through four distinct stages Stage 1 (High Births, High Deaths): ● In the first stage, birth and death rates are both high. ● Families have many children to compensate for high mortality, creating a population with slow or stagnant growth. Stage 2 (High Births, Falling Deaths): ● Improvements in healthcare, sanitation, and living conditions lead to a decrease in death rates. GGR111 Class Notes ● Birth rates remain high, resulting in a rapid increase in population. Stage 3 (Falling Births, Falling Deaths): ● Birth rates start to decline as societies undergo economic and social changes. ● Education and urbanization contribute to smaller family sizes. ● The population continues to grow, but at a slower pace. Stage 4 (Low Births, Low Deaths): ● Both birth and death rates are low. The society has achieved demographic stability. Family sizes are smaller, and the population growth is minimal or stabilized. Social Policies China's One-Child Policy: ● A population control policy implemented in China from 1979 to 2015. ● Families were generally restricted to having only one child ● Originally introduced to relieve population growth, the economy and environment ● Successful in slowing down population growth but criticized for ethical concerns, gender imbalances, and enforcement issues. India's Two-Child Norm: ● A proposed policy in India suggesting benefits and incentives for couples to only have two children max ● It encouraged families to have a maximum of two children through incentives like education and employment opportunities. ● It was aimed at controlling population growth and promoting family planning. ● Critics say it may be coercive and impact individual reproductive rights GGR111 Class Notes Economic optimists "Economic optimists" refers to individuals or groups who hold positive and optimistic views about the future state and trajectory of the economy. These individuals typically believe that economic conditions will improve or remain favorable over time. Distributionists advocate for equitable wealth distribution through policies like fair wages and government intervention, while economic optimists believe in the efficiency of free markets and the trickle-down effect of wealth creation for overall societal prosperity. Who was Thomas Malthus? ● Thomas Malthus was the first person to give proper consideration to the reasoning behind population growth. ● He put forward his theory as a response to the view that society was always improving, which was prevalent in Europe in the 18th century. Thomas Malthus's “Essay on the Principle of Population” has long shaped the discussion around population growth and food security. In his essay, Malthus argued that food supply would increase in a linear fashion (1, 2, 3 ...) and that population would increase geometrically (2, 4, 8 , 16...). In his scenario, population would ultimately exceed agricultural output unless population growth was “checked” by famine, plague, or war, which would ultimately decrease the population  GGR111 Class Notes Countries that are economically powerful and stable have more dominance and ownership of objects in the orbital space because satellite projects take resources and funding; less powerful countries don’t have that privilege (zoom answer) Countries with strong economic power can afford to put their satellites into that geostationary orbit. Almost dominating that area. Thus flexing their powers. (zoom answer)  access to the internet/gps/phones (zoom answer) Countries like Russia… America is watching from geostationary orbit (zoom answer) weather forecasting (zoom answer)  Cultural particularism emphasizes the unique qualities and characteristics of individual cultures without trying to generalize or fit them into a universal framework. (zoom answer) Example: Anthropologist Franz Boas is associated with cultural particularism. He advocated for studying each culture in its specific context, appreciating its nuances and resisting the tendency to impose external standards. This approach has influenced modern cultural anthropology. (zoom answer)