Geog1003 midterm

anthropocentrism

• Human life holds intrinsic value

• Natural resources should be used for economic gain and advancement

ecocentrism

• humans are just part of a whole

• Humans are equal to all living organisms

• Nature and environment deserve specific consideration

social constructivism

• nature = a mental construct of humanity

• Nature is not separate from humanity

environmentalism

concern surrounding human impacts on environment

Ecological footprint

Human impacts on natural environment

• quantified by the amount of land or sea required to produce human resources

Carrying capacity

Maximum population size Earth can sustain without depletion

I=PAT

total impact= population, affluence, technology

Development

the improvement of living standards in society

Sustainable development

development that meets our needs without compromising the needs of future generations

Sustainability

use of resources that maintains enough for the future

• equitable

• Bearable

• Viable

Hydropsphere

Water in all its forms (precipitation, ocean, lakes, etc.)

Atmosphere

Gas layer

Litosphere/geosphere

Earth layer

Biosphere

all living organisms

Systems that shape biosphere:

• axial tilt (seasons)

• Glacial and interglacial tilts

• Greenhouse effect

• Biophysical systems (water cycle, carbon cycle, etc.)

Topography

natural and artificial features of an area

Relief

variations of shape and height of earth’s surface

slope

change in elevation between 2 points

Aspect

Direction slope is facing

Transpiration

moisture leaving vegetation

Evapotranspiration

moisture from the soil

Carbon source

puts out more carbon than it takes in

• humans

• Cows

carbon sinks

takes in more carbon than it puts out

• trees

• Coral reefs

Biome

plant and animal communities with distinct characteristics that cover large areas

Disturbance

short-term problems

• fire

• Extreme storm

succession

predictable, step-by-step change in the ecosystem

disruption

Disturbance with long term impacts

environmental history

study of human-environment relationships over time

paleoecology and paleoclimate

Study of long-term ecological change

Key periods in human history

1. Paleolithic and Neolithic

2. Ancient period

3. Middle Ages

4. Early modern era

5. Modern era

6. Industrial revolutions 1760-1840 and 1870-1914

Transnationalism

connections beyond political borders- culture, money, people, goods, etc.

Globalization

interdependence and integration with other nations for goods 

“The designed Earth”

the theory that God/a higher power designed Earth

ecology

study of relations between organisms and the environment in the non-human world

policitical ecology

interdisciplinary study of humans and the environment that interpreters notes of power, specifically by looking at grassroots perspectives

cultural ecology

interdisciplinary study of how humans interact with their environment, specifically by starting at the grassroots perspectives

dependency theory

underdeveloped nations being exploited by countries with more power

world systems theory

distinguishes between core (developed), periphery (developing) and semi-periphery

post-structuralism

rejects universalizing of some theories in political ecology

• the reason why we have environmental issues is due to power and colonialism 

Prisoner’s dilemma

cooperations and incentive in pressure environment

• 1. If two nations both cooperate, then they both achieve good outcome

• 2.  if one defects then it gets the biggest individual benefit without reaping reprecussions

• 3. If they both defect, then they end up in a worse outcome than if they had cooperated

Mary Douglass

anthropologist associated with cultural geography 

• individual perception heavily influenced by culture

Gilbert White

Ecologist who argued that we should accept trends of nature and human-environment interconnectedness