Human Geography Final

Lecture 8: Urban Geography

Key Terms:

  1. Urbanization: The process by which cities grow or areas become more urban.

  2. Global Cities: Urban centers that serve as nodes in global economic networks (e.g., New York, Tokyo).

  3. Redlining: A discriminatory practice where banks and insurers deny services to residents of certain areas based on racial or economic factors.

  4. Urban Renewal: The redevelopment of areas within a city, often leading to displacement of lower-income residents.

  5. Suburbanization: The movement of populations from urban centers to suburban areas, often fueled by government policies and economic incentives.

  6. Gentrification: Reinvestment in urban areas that increases property values, often displacing existing, lower-income residents.

  7. New Urbanism: A planning approach promoting walkable, mixed-use communities, often critiqued for its role in gentrification.

Processes:

  • Post-WWII urbanization, suburbanization, and the rise of car-centric development.

  • The interplay of "push" and "pull" factors in shaping urban demographics and geographies.

Lecture 9: States and Nations

Key Terms:

  1. Nation-State: A political unit where the boundaries of a nation (shared identity) align with a state (governance).

  2. Imagined Communities: Concept by Benedict Anderson describing nations as socially constructed communities imagined by people who perceive themselves as part of the group.

  3. Citizenship: Membership in a nation-state, conferring rights and responsibilities.

  4. Geopolitical Boundaries: The political borders between states, often contested and fluid.

  5. Brexit: The United Kingdom's exit from the European Union, highlighting tensions around sovereignty and borders.

Historical Context:

  • Colonial and post-colonial struggles, such as the partition of Ireland, The Troubles, and the Good Friday Agreement.

  • Political and cultural dimensions of boundary-making and conflict resolution.

Lecture 10: Geographies of Migration

Key Terms:

  1. Migration: Movement of people from one place to another with the intention of settling temporarily or permanently.

  2. Push Factors: Conditions that drive people to leave their homeland (e.g., violence, environmental degradation).

  3. Pull Factors: Conditions that attract people to a new location (e.g., economic opportunities, safety).

  4. Voluntary vs. Forced Migration: Migration driven by choice (e.g., economic opportunities) versus coercion (e.g., conflict, natural disasters).

  5. Guestworker Programs: Policies allowing temporary labor migration, such as the Bracero Program.

  6. Gentrification: A cause of displacement within urban areas due to rising living costs.

Historical Waves of Migration:

  • 1st Wave: Westward expansion in the U.S. (19th century).

  • 2nd Wave: Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to northern cities (1900-1970s).

  • 3rd Wave: Migration from Frostbelt to Sunbelt and return to cities (1950s onward).

Lecture 11: Globalization

Key Terms:

  1. Globalization: Interconnectedness of people, places, and economies across the world.

  2. Time-Space Compression: Technological advancements reducing the relative distance between places.

  3. De/Territorialization: The separation of cultural practices from a specific location, with re-localization in new contexts.

  4. Cultural Imperialism: The dominance of one culture over others through globalization, often critiqued for oversimplification.

  5. Supply Chain: The network of processes involved in the production and distribution of goods (e.g., sourcing, manufacturing, shipping).

Perspectives:

  • Homogenization vs. Heterogenization: The debate over whether globalization creates uniform cultures or diverse, localized adaptations.

  • Economic Drivers: Capital accumulation, trade, and technological advances shaping global interactions.