Studied by 7 people
Emerging markets
Countries with low to middle per capita income that have undertaken economic development and begun to “emerge” as significant players in the global economy
International poverty line
Monetary threshold under which an individual is considered to be living in poverty
Poverty
The state of not having enough material possessions or income for a person’s basic needs
Purchasing power parities
Exchange rates that account for relative price differences across countries
Scale
places identified at a variety of geographic scales, from local territories to the national or state levels. e.g. Climate change affects the world at a planetary level
Poverty reduction
main success of MDGs (Millennium Development Goals) was the global reduction of extreme poverty
number of people living in poverty in LICs went from 1.9 billion in 1990 to 836 million in 2015
MDGs
Millennium Development Goals
Middle class
People who have approximately 33% of their income left over after paying for essentials
Middle class consists of…
non-manual workers
middle management
small business owners
Why does middle class grow
as mean global income increases and absolute poverty falls, the balance between rich and poor shifts, growing the global middle class
Increase in average incomes and fall of poverty caused:
Increase in the proportion of the world’s population that is neither rich nor poor
Finds itself in the middle of the income distribution
Disposable Income
Household disposable income measures the income of households (wages, salaries, social benefits, etc.) after taking into account the payment of taxes and social contributions. The money you have left to spend or save.
Socio-economic impacts of a growing middle class
Will help to increase sales of goods such as electrical goods, mobile phones, cars, etc.
people will have better access to educational and medical services
Environmental impact of a growing middle class
Increased disposable income, more vacations which results in increase of ecological footprints
Resource consumption increases
Ecological footprint
The area of land and water required to support a given human population at a particular standard of living. Can be measured in global hectares or in number of Earths
Biocapacity
The Earth’s bioproductive land and sea (includes forests, croplands, pastures, etc.). This is not only to provide food, but also to absorb water
Demand
The amount of bioproductive land we need to provide our resources and space for infrastructure and to absorb the waste that we produce
Carbon footprint
total amount of greenhouse gases that are generated by our actions
Water footprint
total volume of fresh water used to produce the goods and services consumed by individuals, communities and businesses
Factors that increase ecological footprint
relying heavily on fossil fuels
meat-rich diets
high level of imported resources
large per capita consumption of food
Ecological overshoot
when human demand exceeds the regenerative capacity of a natural ecosystem
How countries can reduce ecological footprint
Stricter caps on carbon use for companies
Encouraging environmentally friendly choices by offering benefits
Limiting imports of tropical fruits and other products
Campaigns and initiatives to protect animals and plants (ecoduct)
Increasing demand for food due to
Rising population
Growth in middle class (diet change)
Increasing urbanisation (fast-food higher demand)
Increased levels of wealth (minimum wage)
Under-nourishment
Food intake not containing enough energy, calories, etc.
Malnutrition
Food intake lacking essential nutrients
Issues limiting availability of food for LEDCs
Exports limit left over supply
Crops generated for cash, not food
Demands for bio-fuel crops; “loss” of fertile farmland
Corrupt governments
Low levels of technology
Issues limiting availability of food for both M/LEDCs
Natural hazards - floods, forest fires & droughts
Climate change - droughts & global warming
Dietary change - more people meat dependent
Energy grid
Interconnected network for electricity delivery from producers to consumers
Fossil fuels
Hydrocarbons, primarily coal, fuel oil or natural gas, formed from the remains of dead plants and animals
Low carbon power
Electricity produced with substantially lower greenhouse gas emissions than conventional fossil fuel power generation
Modern energy
Access to electricity and to clean cooking facilities
Global energy
Major consumers are the HICs. Demand for and use of energy sources by NICs has been rapidly increasing
Fossil fuel advantages
relatively cheap
very efficient
technology already available
can be delivered over long distances by pipelines
Fossil fuel disadvantages
unsustainable/non-renewable
difficult & dangerous to extract
contributes to climate change
high risks building nuclear power plants
coal mining → degraded land
may run out
Renewable energy advantages
green energy
no combustion of greenhouse gases
sustainable; will not run out
Renewable energy disadvantages
costly
not as efficient as fossil fuels
can disrupt ecosystems
unpredictable
can displace people
Desalination
process that takes away mineral components from saline water
Energy pathways
flows of energy from producer to consumer
Energy security
a country’s ability to secure all its energy needs
Food security
when all its people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life
Water security
continuing access to safe drinking water and sanitation
Geopolitics
the struggle over control of geographical entities with an international and global dimension, and the use of such geographical entities for political advantage
Water, food, energy nexus
the interrelationship, interdependence and interactions between water, food and energy. Refers to the very close links between the three and the ways in which changes in one have an impact on the others
Water, food, energy nexus diagram
Goal of nexus
Achieve water, food and energy security objectives and sustain efficient use of available resources
How does climate change affect the nexus
Droughts → dry land/no precipitation leads to less water availability and destroyed crops = no food. Also limits the water needed for hydropower
Solid domestic waste
A waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public (garden, kitchen. household, etc.)
Prevention (method of waste disposable)
eliminate demand altogether (changing lifestyles)
Recovery (method of waste disposable)
capture some value by converting it into something else
Disposal (method of waste disposable)
discard of waste in landfill sites
Recycled waste
recovery operation by which waste materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances
Incinerated waste
the process of burning hazardous materials at temperatures high enough to destroy contaminants
E-waste
the disposal of electronics
Why is waste relocated to LEDCs
weaker environment controls and laws
cheaper land
lower labour costs & more relaxed labour laws
more relaxed health and safety laws
Divergent thinking
process of creating multiple, unique ideas or solutions to a problem that you are trying to solve
Optimistic
hopeful and confident about the future
Pessimistic
tending to see the worst aspect of things or believe that the worst will happen
Stewardship
the conducting, supervising or managing of something, especially: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care
Malthus theory
if the population would grow at an exponential rate, the food production would reach a certain “point of crisis”
Boserup’s theory
increase in population will increase the demand for food and will result in new agricultural methods to produce more food and to keep up with the demand
Neo-Malthusian
food production and population growth would grow at an exponential rate, but technological advances only at a constant rate
Resource stewardship
concept suggesting that humans can use resources in such a way that they will be available to future generations
Global commons
areas that lie outside the political reach of any nation state (the high seas, Antarctica, the atmosphere and outer space)
Anthropocene Epoch
the most recent period in Earth's history when human activity started to have a significant impact on the planet's climate and ecosystems.
Tragedy of the commons
a situation in a shared-resource system where individual users act independently according to their own self-interest, usually resulting in a negative impact on the whole system
Systems approach
based on the generalisation that everything is interrelated and interdependent
Linear economy
a system in which people buy a product, use it, and then throw it away. Has a start and end
Reuse economy
by taking, but not reprocessing, previously used items – helps save time, money, energy and resources.
Circular economy
a system where materials never become waste and nature is regenerated.
Key principles of circular economy
preserve and enhance natural capital by controlling finite stocks and balancing renewable resource flows
optimise resource yields by circulating products, materials and components
develop system effectiveness by eliminating negative externalities (polluted oceans, climate change, etc.)
Virtual/Embedded water
water that is hidden in the products, processes and services people buy/use everyday
Blue water
Fresh surface and groundwater, the water in freshwater lakes, rivers, aquifers, ice caps and glaciers (3% of Earth’s water)
Grey water
polluted water, domestic wastewater generated in households (e.g. toilets, sinks, showers, etc.)
Green water
water found in soil, precipitation on land that doesn’t run off/recharge the ground water but is stored in/on top of the soil
Virtual water imports/trades
Useful for LEDCs because they can import water-intensive products for the public and save their domestic water
Importance of measuring the virtual water trade
allows more water rich countries to benefit from their abundant resources by producing and exporting items with a high-water demand
Note 
Flashcard (31)