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IB geography paper 2 core unit 3 global resource consumption and security SL/HL
Absolute poverty
Poverty in relation to the amount of money necessary to meet basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter
Relative poverty
Poverty in relation to the economic status of other members of the society: people are poor if they fall below the given standard of living in a given societal context
How is relative poverty calculated?
Half the median income of the population
Extreme poverty
The world bank defines extreme poverty as living on less that $1.90 per day
Thomas Malthus
An economist who believed that population would increase at a faster rate than its means of subsistence unless constrained by war/famine/disease/etc inevitably resulting in disaster.
Ester Boserup
A Danish economist whose theory was that population increase results in changes in agriculture → necessity is the mother of invention
When human population comes close to exceeding food supply, there will be new innovations to find a way of creating food more intensely
Anti-Malthusianism
The school of thought that disagrees with Malthus’s pessimism and align’s with Boserup’s opinion that humans will always find solutions to food shortages.
Give some example stats for progress in poverty reduction
Somebody escapes extreme poverty every 1.2 seconds
Absolute poverty rates have fallen faster in the most recent 30 years than ever before
In 1800, 85% of the population were in extreme poverty. In 1970 it was 50%. In 2015 it was only 12%!
Why has sub-Saharan Africa not made the same progress in poverty reduction as China and India
Total number of people has massively increased since 1990 even though fraction of poor people has decreased
Lack of infrastructure, services and transportation
Resource strain due to population growth
Reasons for increasingly rapid resource consumption
More consumers creating more demand
Growing global middle class
Capitalism and consumer culture
TNCs
Economic growth policy
What is embedded water (ie. virtual water)?
Water used in the manufacturing of clothes, food, and other products
How is the global distribution of water uneven?
The places with the most water are Russia, Scandinavia, Canada, Northern South America and central Africa (>10,000 cubic metres per person per year)
Western Europe has 4000-10,000
Much of Northern Africa and Australia has less than 4000
Give statistics for rising obesity rates in an HIC
Obesity rates in the USA are 2.5x today what they were in 1980
Over 10% of US healthcare expenditure is obesity-related
Nutrition transition
The changes in diet/caloric intake transitioning away from traditional local and seasonal produce to a more varied diet including meat, dairy and fast food.
Give an example of how globalised food production has affected a community
How much of the world’s water is freshwater?
2.5%, and 2/3 of this is locked in glaciers
What are the main sources of demand for water?
Agriculture especially flood irrigation
Production of energy (including extraction, cooling in thermal processes, powering turbines)
Embedded water in production of food, garments, other products
Human consumption (drinking, sanitation, drainage)
Which new technologies are being used to overcome water insecurity?
Metering systems and advanced sensors to reduce the amount of water that is lost by leaks
Desalination of seawater
Drip irrigation
How will climate change impact water availability?
Changes in rainfall distribution
Glacier and snow melt
Changes to soil moisture and river/ groundwater flows
Blue water
Surface water including groundwater, lakes and rivers
Green water
Rainfall stored in the topsoil
Changing importance of nuclear power
Safety concerns around potential accidents (ie a repeat of Fukushima) have shut down nuclear power plants in Japan
There are also issues with the storage of plutonium waste
However in many countries such as France nuclear power is preferred because of its low GHG emissions and concerns about energy security
China has built the world’s first Thorium reactor completed in 2021
The UK’s low carbon economy
In 2008 the UK promised an 80% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2050 (legally bound)
Largest offshore wind capacity in the world
Advanced marine energy
New electric vehicles are being manufactured
What is a nexus
A connection or series of connections liking things; like a network (for example water, food and energy security are linked)
How is food and energy security related to water security?
Crops rely on irrigation
HEP and tidal energy rely directly on water
Coal and nuclear reactors require water to cool them down
What are the two named examples for climate change impacting the environment nexus and resource security?
India (Hindu Kush Himalayan Region), and South Africa
What four ecosystem services does the Hindu Kush Himalayan Region provide?
Provisioning (of freshwater and minerals)
Regulating (climate, water and precipitation)
Supporting (soil formation and recharging groundwater)
Cultural importance (tradition, knowledge/practice of conservation, agro-biodiversity)
Why is the Hindu Kush Hindu Himalayan Region’s resource nexus threatened?
Growing human population with dietary preferences changing towards meat, more groundwater is required for increased food production
What are the consequences of the Hindu Kush Himalayan Region’s resource nexus being threatened?
Agricultural production must increase by 70%, energy production by 40% and water 57% in South Asia by 2050 to meet the demands of the growing population
How is climate change impacting South Africa’s food security?
Higher CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere favor weeds over agricultural crops
Temperatures above crops’ thresholds for growth can cause them to die
Rainfall, soil moisture, temperature and radiation are changing
Increased prices of some goods and changing infrastructure
How is climate change impacting South Africa’s water security?
Higher precipitation in the East of the country and less in the far West
Overall decrease in rainfall with longer dry periods between rainfall events
Increased likelihoods of floods and droughts
Rising evapotranspiration rates can reduce available green water
How is climate change impacting South Africa’s energy security?
Changing winds, rainfall and cloud cover
HEP is vulnerable to a dry-climate future
Less water available for cooling power plants
Hotter temps will increase demand for AC which leads to a spiral
How is South Africa attempting to increase food security?
Changing from flood to sprinkler irrigation
Cattle are put in already-arid areas
Attempting to increase chemical use
Growing more crops with yields that could potentially increase such as rice, groundnuts and sugarcane
What are the seven rungs of the hierarchy of waste management from best to worst?
Remove (eliminate demand)
Reduce (use less)
Re-source (change materials/sources)
Reuse
Recycle
Recover (recapture some value)
Return (dispose of in an environmentally-benign way)
What is meant by “designed for the dump?“
Some companies (especially tech companies) deliberately design their products to be difficult or costly to repair so that people will continue buying the product or updated versions of the product
Define resource stewardship
Resource stewardship focuses on the sustainable use of renewable resources so that future generations can benefit from them: through conservation, preservation, and government policies.
Indigenous economies
Economies based on ancient knowledge from interactions with the local land, social and economic equity, and respect for the environment maintaining habitat, land use and animal husbandry.
What is meant by the “tragedy of the commons?“
When there is an open source (shared) resource such as the high seas, people will exploit it past its carrying capacity causing in the resource deteriorating
What is the circular economy?
An economy which preserves natural capacity, optimises resource use and reduces loss through managing finite stores and renewable flows. It restores and regenerates resources.
What are the key principles of the circular economy?
Preserve/enhance natural capacity by controlling finite stocks and balancing renewable resource flows
Optimize resource yield by circulating products, materials and components
Eliminate negative externalities ie. pollution, climate change
How have governments’ national targets helped a shift towards applying circular economy principles?
France and Italy have outlawed supermarkets throwing away unsold food. Instead it must be composted, donated or turned into animal feed.
Example: how has global governance helped a shift towards applying circular economy principles?
The EU has committed to halving food waste by 2030 according to the SDGs.
The 2003 Waste Electrical+Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive led to collection schemes whereby WEEE such as fridges can be returned to manufacturers for proper disposal at no extra cost.
Example: how have local initiatives helped a shift towards applying circular economy principles?
Suzhou New District, China, hosts 4000 manufacturers, many of which have become interdependent. Circuit board manufacturers recover copper from other companies instead of using virgin mined copper.
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