Transcript EuropeandRussiaChapterNotes.ppt

Europe and the
Russian Core
Chapter Notes
NORTHERN EUROPE
Physical Geography of Northern Europe
Landforms
•
Northern Europe is made up of five countries:
Norway and Sweden on the Scandinavian
Peninsula, Denmark on the Jutland Peninsula,
Finland in the eastern part of the region, and
the island country of Iceland in the North
Atlantic Ocean.
•
Glaciation is the primary process by which the
landforms of Northern Europe came to be as
they are today.
•
During the last ice age, ice filled the valleys and
carved out fjords that are now filled with
seawater, creating steep, rugged mountains.
Physical Geography of Northern Europe
Water Systems
•
Glaciation left hundreds of thousands of lakes in
Northern Europe.
•
Iceland’s rivers consist of glacial debris, making
them cloudy.
•
Many of the rivers on the Scandinavian
Peninsula contain falls and rapids that hamper
transportation between cities.
•
The countries of Northern Europe harness the
power of these falls and rapids to run
hydroelectric power plants.
Physical Geography of Northern Europe
Climate, Biomes, and Resources
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The climate patterns and biomes of Northern
Europe are affected by latitude, landforms, wind
patterns, ocean currents, and distance from
water.
•
Natural vegetation varies from forests to tundra
plants.
•
While the area has oil and natural gas
resources, the countries of the region are
leaders in developing renewable energy.
Human Geography of Northern Europe
History and Government
•Northern Europe, also referred to as the Nordic
countries, has been shaped by years of invasions,
migrations, and trade.
•Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Iceland have
similar structures of societies and cultural traits.
•Industrialization brought an influx of new social
classes, which changed the political culture.
•Following World War II, the Nordic countries
developed democracies.
Human Geography of Northern Europe
Population Patterns
•
Migration and ethnicity have influenced where
people have settled.
•
The Sami are descendants of nomadic peoples
who lived in Scandinavia for thousands of
years.
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The Nordic countries have lower population
densities than most other countries in Europe.
•
Populations concentrate in areas near the sea
and in metropolitan areas.
Human Geography of Northern Europe
Society and Culture Today
• While Protestant religions dominate in every
Nordic country, society is very secular.
• Northern Europe is filled with the world's most
educated population, with literacy rates at nearly
100 percent throughout the region.
• The governments function as welfare states,
providing social services but levying large taxes.
• Women are achieving equal status in Nordic
society, nearing the same status as men in the
workplace.
Human Geography of Northern Europe
Economic Activities
•
All of the Nordic countries are small, open
economies that rely on foreign trade.
•
Nordic countries rapidly evolved from
agrarian-based economies into modern,
industrialized countries.
•
Commercial fishing, mining, forestry, and
energy are the main resources in the area.
•
The Nordic model emphasizes labor force
participation and promotes gender equality
and fiscal expansion.
People and Their Environment: Northern Europe
Managing Resources
•
Natural factors and human activity are causing
environmental problems.
•
The Baltic Sea has a unique ecology because
of its isolation from the open ocean.
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Increased shipping has brought a number of
invasive species, non-native organisms that
threaten local habitats.
•
Industrialization has damaged many wetlands.
People and Their Environment: Northern Europe
Human Impact
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Climate change, acid rain, and pollution are
affecting Northern Europe.
•
Scandinavian scientists were among the first to
understand the environmental effects of acid
rain.
•
The high latitudes and steep mountain valleys
make climate change more noticeable in
Northern Europe.
People and Their Environment: Northern Europe
Addressing the Issues
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Governments and civic groups are taking steps
to address environmental problems.
•
Environmental management focuses on
sustainability and long-term planning.
•
Conservation has been an important issue for
the Nordic countries for over 100 years.
•
The region supports ecotourism, a way to
encourage tourism that limits damage to the
unique lands of Northern Europe.
NORTHWESTERN EUROPE
Physical Geography of Northwestern Europe
Landforms
• Northwestern Europe consists of plains
interrupted by mountains.
• Filled with fertile soil and many rivers, the Great
European Plain is an important area for farming.
• The southern edge of the plains is covered in
loess, a fine, rich soil left by glaciers.
• The Alps, a tall, jagged mountain range, runs
across the southern part of the region.
Physical Geography of Northwestern Europe
Water Systems
•
Water plays a critical role in the lives and
economies of Northwestern Europe.
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Most cities are within 300 miles of a sea or
ocean coast.
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The lakes in the Alps are an important water
source.
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With nearly 25 percent of the Netherlands below
sea level, the Dutch have built a series of dikes,
banks of earth or stone, to hold back water.
Physical Geography of Northwestern Europe
Climate, Biomes, and Resources
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The North Atlantic Current brings warm water
up from the Caribbean, contributing to mild
winters, cool summers, and abundant rainfall.
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Local winds can cause changes to the normal
weather pattern, like the foehn, dry winter
winds that can cause avalanches, the
destructive masses of snow and ice that slide
down mountainsides.
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The area’s abundant supply of coal and iron ore
fueled industrial development.
Human Geography of Northwestern Europe
History and Government
•Northwestern Europe was profoundly influenced
by Christianity and the Roman Empire.
•The Crusades opened up trade routes to the
eastern Mediterranean.
•During the Enlightenment, people began to
embrace reason and to question tradition.
•The European Union was formed in the 1990s as
an alliance that works toward European economic
and political unity.
Human Geography of Northwestern Europe
Population Patterns
•Internal and external migration have shaped this
area of Europe.
•After World War II, guest workers, or foreign
laborers working temporarily in industrialized
countries, helped encourage economic growth in
the postwar period.
•Low birthrates have resulted in decreasing
populations in some countries.
•Cities along navigable rivers like the Seine and
Thames are key trading centers.
Human Geography of Northwestern Europe
Society and Culture Today
•Many people speak more than one language in
most of the countries located in Northwestern
Europe.
•Christianity is the primary religion in the region,
although many do not actively practice their faith.
•Women in this region achieved suffrage, or the
right to vote, before women in the United States
and many other areas of the world.
•Many influential artistic movements began here,
such as Romanticism, Realism, and
Impressionism.
Human Geography of Northwestern Europe
Economic Activities
•Northwestern Europe is the birthplace of the
Industrial Revolution.
•Over 70 percent of workers are employed in
service industries.
•Agribusiness, or large-scale corporate farming,
arose to address the increasing demand for food
as the number of farmers shrank.
•The EU has achieved high volumes of trade by
eliminating tariffs and trade barriers among
member nations.
People and Their Environment: Northwestern Europe
Europe
Managing Resources
•As a highly developed and industrialized
economy, Northwestern Europe consumes large
amounts of natural resources and generates large
amounts of waste products.
•Countries that border the Mediterranean Sea
sometimes use it for waste disposal.
•Overfishing has been a problem in the subregion.
•Fragmentation of the landscape is causing some
animal populations to become isolated.
People and Their Environment: Northwestern Europe
Human Impact
•Manufacturing and heavy auto use has increased
air pollution.
•Polluted clouds drift from the industrial belt and
cause acid deposition, wet or dry acid pollution
that falls to the ground.
•This acid pollution withers forests, reduces
oxygen for fish in rivers and lakes, and even
damages buildings.
People and Their Environment: Northwestern Europe
Addressing the Issues
•Countries in the EU can face legal action if they
do not respect environmental protection laws.
•Many factories now burn natural gas instead of
coal, or are powered by alternative energy
sources.
•All the countries in Northwestern Europe have
ratified the Kyoto Protocol, part of a treaty on
climate change.
•Many nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are
working to protect ecosystems.
SOUTHERN EUROPE
Physical Geography of Southern Europe
Landforms
•Southern Europe is made up of three peninsulas:
Spain and Portugal on the Iberian Peninsula, Italy
on the Italian Peninsula, and Greece on the
southernmost part of the Balkan Peninsula.
•Andorra, San Marino, and Vatican City are smaller
countries in the interior, while the island nations of
Malta and Cyprus serve important functions in the
Mediterranean Sea.
•Mountain ranges like the Pyrenees and the Alps
form a natural border with Northwestern Europe.
Physical Geography of Southern Europe
Water Systems
•Although important to the ecology of the region,
Southern Europe’s shallow rivers are not viable
transportation or trade routes.
•The Ebro River in Spain provides hydroelectric
power and water for agriculture.
•The drainage from the Po River in Italy feeds the
country’s most fertile plain.
•Italy’s Tiber River is the primary water source for
the capital city of Rome.
Physical Geography of Southern Europe
Climate, Biomes, and Resources
•The Alps block Atlantic winds from the north,
causing the warm, dry summers and mild, rainy
winters of this Mediterranean climate.
•The subregion is well suited for growing grapes,
olives, shrub herbs, and raising livestock.
•Tungsten, one of Spain’s many natural
resources, is essential to the high-tech industry.
•Italy has few mineral resources, while Portugal
has large deposits of copper.
Human Geography of Southern Europe
History and Government
•The civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome laid
the foundation for Western civilization.
•The Renaissance marked a period of cultural
revival and enlightenment.
•Spain and Portugal became leaders in the Age of
Exploration, establishing new empires.
•Nationalism and unification in the 1800s and
1900s brought political stability to the area.
•Recent economic challenges include high
unemployment rates and credit problems.
Human Geography of Southern Europe
Population Patterns
•Southern Europe is one of the most populated
regions of the world.
•As the populations of Greece, Italy, and Spain
age and the birthrates fall, care for the elderly is
straining the social welfare systems.
•Demand for labor is being met by migrants within
the European Union.
•Economic migration throughout the EU has
resulted in a growing diversity of cultures.
Human Geography of Southern Europe
Society and Culture Today
•Education in Southern Europe is mandatory for all
children.
•The cultures of Greece, Spain, and Italy are
centered on the family and are influenced by the
Roman Catholic religion.
•Women have achieved a high level of gender
equality in higher education and business, though
their success in politics has been slower to
develop.
•The Greeks and Romans developed many
important elements of art and architecture.
Human Geography of Southern Europe
Economic Activities
•The global recession of 2008 hit Southern Europe
hard.
•Spain and Italy continue to face challenges.
•As one of the least developed in the area,
Greece’s economy remains weak as it grapples
with high public spending, low productivity, and
tax evasion.
•The EU is facing its first test of economic stability
with Southern Europe suffering from record
national debt and high unemployment.
People and Their Environment: Southern Europe
People and Their Environment: Southern Europe
Human Impact
•The decline of fish stocks has adversely affected
the overall health of the marine biome.
•Manufacturing and tourism cause pollution that is
a major threat to surrounding seas and
agricultural resources.
•Pollutants and other human impacts have led to
pollution hot spots, the extreme damage or
even death of the local ecosystem.
People and Their Environment: Southern Europe
Addressing the Issues
•The EU created the European Environmental
Agency to effectively deal with environmental
issues.
•Many nongovernmental organizations (NGOs),
such as Earthwatch, are working on solutions to
environmental problems.
•Certification is a way to combat deforestation and
to ensure that forest resources are being used
responsibly.
EASTERN EUROPE
Physical Geography of Eastern Europe
Landforms
•The area is characterized by several mountain
ranges that are extensions of the Swiss Alps.
•Lowlands within this region have a karst
topography, areas of barren and rocky ground.
•The Balkan Peninsula’s rugged landscape makes
traveling over land difficult, thereby increasing the
importance of waterways for transportation.
•The Balkan Mountains provide a climate barrier
between the Danube River valley and the
transitional climate south of the mountains.
Physical Geography of Eastern Europe
Water Systems
•Large rivers and seas act as natural borders
between countries and are important to economic
activities in the region.
•The Danube is the second largest river in Europe,
passing through nine countries and emptying into
the Black Sea.
•The Vistula River in Poland serves many major
cities and industrial centers, including Warsaw.
•Other waterways, such as the Oder River, branch
out from the main rivers to provide access inland.
Physical Geography of Eastern Europe
Climate, Biomes, and Resources
•Much of Eastern Europe has a humid continental
climate.
•The Carpathian and Balkan Mountains, along with
the Hungarian Plain, make up the Danube region.
•Some coastal regions along the Black Sea have
micro-biomes.
•The Carpathian Mountains contain large energy
reserves, while areas around the Baltic Mountains
rely on water as a natural resource.
Human Geography of Eastern Europe
History and Government
•Eastern Europe is a shatter belt, or region of
great political instability, that drove the area’s
Balkanization, or the division of the region into
smaller hostile regions.
•Yugoslavia attempted to reverse this process,
since it combined smaller regions into one
country, but it fell apart with the collapse of the
Soviet Union.
•Power struggles led to civil war and ethnic
cleansing, or the genocide of an ethnic group,
and Balkanization has continued with countries
declaring independence.
Human Geography of Eastern Europe
Population Patterns
•The Slavs are an ethnic group that includes
Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, and Macedonians.
•The Roma are of Indo-European origin and are
the largest minority population in Europe.
•The majority of people live in urban areas,
although there are large populations along the
Danube and Vistula Rivers.
•Eastern Europe experienced large migrations
during and after World War II with people leaving
to escape war and poor conditions.
Human Geography of Eastern Europe
Society and Culture Today
•Countries have faced economic challenges in the
transition to democratic governments.
•The area is marked by many different religious
and ethnic groups.
•The family is the basic social unit and serves to
reinforce social values.
•The long history of folk and classical music makes
it an important art form among peoples of the
region.
Human Geography of Eastern Europe
Economic Activities
•Over the past 20 years, Eastern Europe has
transitioned to a market economy.
•The region is known for low-cost, high quality
electronic and automotive manufacturing, but still
maintains its agricultural roots.
•As political stability has improved, the region has
become increasingly linked to Western Europe
through trade and, more recently, by joining the
European Union.
People and Their Environment: Eastern Europe
Managing Resources
•Rapid and intense industrialization without regard
to the effects on the environment have damaged
water quality.
•Illegal logging and the burning of those logs
generates air pollution that has led to great losses
in the area’s biodiversity.
•Interest in reforestation, or renewing forest
cover, has increased, but countries continue to
struggle with protecting the environment while
providing opportunity for economic growth.
People and Their Environment: Eastern Europe
Human Impact
•Eastern Europe’s high concentration of industry
and excessive reliance on coal have had a
devastating impact on the environment.
•Waterways have been affected by acid rain and
meltwater, the result of melting snow and ice
that have carried pollution into lakes and rivers.
•As Eastern European countries have joined the
EU, environmental protection standards and strict
emission controls are helping to address these
problems.
People and Their Environment: Eastern Europe
Addressing the Issues
•Serious efforts have been made to help clean up
the environment, but directing and funding
cleanup is difficult because the process involves
many countries.
•For countries not yet admitted to the EU, gaining
membership provides an important incentive to
manage resources and minimize environmental
impacts.
•Cooperation among Balkan countries is needed to
ensure effective resource management.
RUSSIAN CORE
Physical Geography of the Russian Core
Landforms
•The Ural Mountains form a natural barrier
between European Russia and Siberian Russia.
•The majority of the Russian population lives in the
southern part of the Northern European Plain
where there are waterways and fertile soil.
•Ukraine, the second largest European country,
has vast stretches of plains and plateaus.
•Belarus, the smallest of the three Slavic republics
that were once part of the Soviet Union, is a
landlocked country with many lakes.
Physical Geography of the Russian Core
Water Systems
•The longest river in Europe, the Volga, along with
its tributaries, is an important commercial,
transportation, and hydroelectric resource in
Russia.
•The Dnieper River in Ukraine creates hydroelectric
power, enables commerce, and provides fresh
water.
•Lake Baikal in Siberia, the world’s oldest and
deepest lake, is home to many unusual freshwater
marine species.
Physical Geography of the Russian Core
Climate, Biomes, and Resources
•Russia’s vast expanse of land lies at a high
latitude, resulting in cold, snowy winters.
•The interior of the country experiences
continentality, or the effect of extreme variation
in temperature and very little precipitation.
•Much of Russia’s abundant natural resources are
in remote and climatically unfavorable areas,
making them difficult to utilize.
Human Geography of the Russian Core
History and Government
•Unrest during World War I triggered, or set off,
the Russian Revolution of 1917, signaling the
demise of Europe’s last absolute monarchy.
•The Communist-controlled Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics (USSR) emerged and engaged
in a political and ideological war with the West.
•The collapse of the Soviet Union led to the
independence of 15 different countries in the
region, including Belarus and Ukraine.
Human Geography of the Russian Core
Population Patterns
•About 80 percent of Russians live west of the Ural
Mountains where there is rich soil, waterways, and
a milder climate.
•After the fall of the Soviet Union, people were
free to migrate, and many settled in cities, such as
the capital city of Moscow.
•The region is facing a population decline, with
death rates increasing while birth rates are falling,
resulting in a smaller, but older population.
Human Geography of the Russian Core
Society and Culture Today
•The Soviet government promoted atheism and
discriminated against different ethnic groups.
•In the late 1980s the government began to
loosen its restrictions on religion and the arts,
leading people to rediscover both.
•Russian women have a long history of working,
first in industry and now in all sectors; financial
necessity is increasing their numbers in the
workforce, contributing to a lower birth rate.
Human Geography of the Russian Core
Economic Activities
•With the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia
experienced a rocky transition from a command
economy to a market economy.
•Natural resources account for most of Russia’s
exports, such as crude oil, minerals, and lumber.
•Although a key trading partner with Russia,
Ukraine remains wary of Russia’s former power
and is considering joining the European Union.
•Belarus remains industrially integrated and
closely allied with Russia.
People and Their Environment: The Russian Core
Managing Resources
•Russia’s rapid expansion in the oil and gas sectors
has led to conflicts with organizations seeking to
protect the environment.
•Drilling inside the Arctic Circle and pipelines
travelling through protected areas generate
billions of dollars, but these also threaten the
surrounding environment.
•The use of supertrawlers with huge trawl nets has
led to the unnecessary death of millions of fish
and marine animals.
People and Their Environment: The Russian Core
Human Impact
•Soviet-era industrialization has damaged Russia’s
water, air, soil, and forests.
•Nuclear wastes, the by-products of producing
nuclear power and nuclear weapons, pose a
devastating impact on the environment.
•The Chernobyl disaster, toxic waste dumping, and
overuse of pesticides have polluted the air and
water, resulting in health problems and sometimes
even deaths.
People and Their Environment: The Russian Core
Addressing the Issues
•Environmental groups have come together to
demand an improvement in environmental
standards.
•International regulation has encouraged steps to
prevent further contamination.
•Conservation efforts continue to help Russia
better manage its resources.