Geography, History, and Contemporary Issues of Middle and South America

Definition and Geographical Scope of Middle and South America

• Regional Designation: The region is frequently referred to by the term "Latin America."
• Essential Question (EQ): How would you respond to someone who suggested that Middle and South America were helped toward development and modernization by the experience of European colonization?
• Territorial Extent:   - Covers the area from the northern border of Mexico to the southern tip of South America at Tierra del Fuego.   - Northern Border: Shared with the United States.   - Southern Tip: Tierra del Fuego consists of islands at the southern extremity of South America.   - Caribbean Islands: This region includes all the islands located in the Caribbean Sea.

Physical Landforms and Geologic Structure

• Highland Features:   - A massive mountain chain stretches along the western edge of the American continents for more than $10,000\,\text{miles}$. This is part of the same system as the Rockies in North America.   - Nomenclature: The middle portion of this chain is known as the Sierra Madre in Mexico and the Andes in South America.   - Tectonic Formation: These mountains were formed by a lengthy subduction zone where two oceanic plates plunge beneath three continental plates.   - Sierra Madre Subdivisions: Includes the Sierra Madre Occidental, Sierra Madre Oriental, and Sierra Madre del Sur.   - The Andes: Despite being difficult to cross, these mountains were the historical home of the Inca civilization in Peru.
• Lowland Features (Plains):   - Lowlands extend over the majority of the land situated to the east of the western mountain ranges.   - Llanos: Grassy, mostly treeless areas located in Colombia and Venezuela, utilized for livestock ranching and some agricultural farming.   - Pampas: Located in Argentina and Uruguay; these areas feature rich soil used for cattle ranching and wheat production. The region maintains a ranching culture similar to parts of Texas.

Significant Hydrographic Features and Maritime Infrastructure

• The Amazon River:   - Originates in the Andes Mountains and flows eastward to the Atlantic Ocean.   - Volume: Carries more water than any other river in the world, exceeding the volume of the next seven largest rivers combined.   - Biodiversity Basin: The Amazon Basin contains the largest remaining tract of tropical rainforest and serves as a critical reservoir of global biodiversity.
• The Panama Canal:   - Known as the "Bridge to the Americas."   - A $48\,\text{mile}$ ship canal that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.   - It traverses the Isthmus of Panama and serves as a vital conduit for international maritime trade.

The Caribbean Archipelago

• Geologic Origin: Formed by a subduction boundary and subsequent volcanic activity. It remains an extremely tectonically active region.
• Island Divisions:   - Bahamas: A group of smaller islands located off the coast of Florida.   - Greater Antilles: Composed of the larger islands of Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (divided into Haiti and the Dominican Republic), and Puerto Rico.   - Lesser Antilles: Composed of the smaller islands located to the southeast of Puerto Rico.

Climate Dynamics and Vertical Zonation

• Temperature Factors: The wide range of temperatures in the region is caused by the great distance the landmass spans and the tremendous variation in altitude.
• Precipitation Patterns: Influenced by local topography (land shape) and global patterns of wind and ocean currents.
• Temperature-Altitude Zones (Vertical Zonation):   - Tierra caliente: Elevation from $0$ to $3,000\,\text{feet}$ ($0$ to $1,000\,\text{meters}$). Characterized by swamps and dry/wet forests. Crops include bananas, cacao, coffee, sugarcane, and tobacco.   - Tierra templada: Elevation from $3,000$ to $6,500\,\text{feet}$ ($1,000$ to $2,000\,\text{meters}$). Characterized by wet and cloud forests. Crops include cotton, corn, beans, squash, and coffee.   - Tierra fria: Elevation from $6,500$ to $12,000\,\text{feet}$ ($2,000$ to $3,600\,\text{meters}$). Characterized by wet forests and elfin forests. Crops include potatoes and wheat.   - Tierra helada: Elevation from $12,000$ to $15,000\,\text{feet}$ ($3,600$ to $4,600\,\text{meters}$). Characterized by elfin forests and grasses.   - Snow line: Occurs at approximately $15,000\,\text{feet}$ ($4,600\,\text{meters}$).
• Oceanic and Atmospheric Influences:   - Peru Current: Brings cold surface waters and very dry air to the west coast of South America.   - Rain Shadow Effect: The Andes block winds from the Atlantic, creating dry conditions in some areas. Conversely, the mountains also block rains coming from the west.   - El Niño ("The Christ Child"): A phenomenon named by Peruvian fishermen where the Peru Current changes direction every few years. Warm water flows from the western Pacific, bringing heavy rains to parts of South America's west coast while leaving other Pacific regions drier than usual.

Natural Resource Wealth

• Minerals: South America historically provided much of the world's supply of gold, silver, iron, copper, tin, lead, and nickel.
• Fossil Fuels:   - Oil: Extensive reserves in Venezuela, Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil.   - Natural Gas: Significant deposits in Bolivia and Brazil.
• Exploration Spending by Region (Comparison):   - South America: $29\%$   - Canada: $16.7\%$   - Australia: $16.5\%$   - USA: $10.9\%$   - Africa: $10.8\%$   - Pacific & SE Asia: $9.1\%$

Pre-Columbian Civilizations

• Definition: "Pre-Columbian" refers to the period before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in $1492$.
• Aztecs:   - Ruled most of Mexico by the time the Spanish arrived in $1519$.   - Tenochtitlan: Their capital city with a population of $200,000$. It was built on a lake using canals for transport and floating gardens. It is the site of modern-day Mexico City.
• Maya:   - Spread from Mexico to El Salvador.   - Advanced society noted for achievements in astronomy, mathematics, and medicine.
• Inca:   - Based high in the Andes Mountains.   - The largest empire in pre-Columbian Latin America.

Colonization and Independence

• Colonization Period: One country controls the people and resources of another. Most of the region was under European rule from the $1500\text{s}$ to the $1800\text{s}$.
• Treaty of Tordesillas (1494): An agreement dividing the colonial world between Spain and Portugal.
• Mercantilism: A policy where European rulers managed production, transport, and commerce in colonies to maximize the wealth and power of their own realms.
• Mexico:   - Won independence from Spain in $1821$.   - Mexican Revolution (1910–1917): Peasants fought against dictator Porfirio Diaz, who sold land to U.S. businessmen. The revolution led to successful land reform.
• South America: Most countries gained independence between $1804$ and $1824$.   - Simon Bolivar: Venezuelan leader of many independence wars; his goal of a united South America continues to influence politics.
• The Caribbean (Haiti):   - In the $1700\text{s}$, Haiti was a French colony with a population of mostly enslaved Africans harvesting sugar cane.   - Toussaint L'Ouverture: Led a rebellion making Haiti the first free Black republic in the Western Hemisphere in $1804$.   - Economic Legacy: Haiti was forced to pay France for "lost property" (slaves) to avoid economic isolation. The debt took over $100\,\text{years}$ to repay, crippling the national economy.

Lasting Colonial Influences

• Language:   - Spanish is dominant, but $62$ indigenous languages survive in Mexico (e.g., Nahuatl, Maya, Zapotec).   - Portuguese is the primary language in Brazil.   - Creole, French, and English are prevalent in the Caribbean.
• Religion: Roman Catholicism remains the dominant faith.
• Mestizo: A term for people of mixed European (Spanish), Indian, and African heritage.
• Caribbean Culture: A unique blend of African, Spanish, French, British, and Dutch influences.
• Economics: Many exploitative economic relationships established during the colonial era persist today.

Contemporary Socio-Economic Issues

• Income Disparity: Colonial profits were never evenly dispersed.   - Barriers: Land ownership is restricted; elite groups monopolize economic opportunities and favor raw material exports (often referred to as "banana republics").   - Economic Perspective: Poverty limits purchasing power and prevents the population from obtaining skills training.   - Political Perspective: Inequality fosters instability, discontent, and rebellion, which are often met with repression by elites.
• Maquiladoras (Maquilas):   - Established in the $1960\text{s}$ as foreign-owned, tax-exempt factories along the U.S.-Mexico border.   - Characterized by assembly lines with few regulations, low wages, dangerous conditions, and pollution.
• NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement):   - Created in $1994$ to reduce trade barriers.   - Extended the maquiladora concept throughout Mexico and removed protective tariffs.   - Impacts: Mexican unemployment increased due to competition with U.S. agribusiness; wages dropped; many farmers moved to cities, fueling immigration to the U.S.
• Mercosur ("Common Market of the South"):   - An agreement between Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay (currently suspended) to allow free movement of goods and people.   - Goal: To unify South America into an economic bloc; Brazil is the region's largest economy.

Urbanization and the Primate City

• Primate City: A city and its suburbs that is vastly larger than any other in the country, concentrating economic and political power (e.g., Mexico City contains $21\%$ of Mexico's population).
• Negative Impacts:   - Uneven spatial development favors urban areas over rural regions.   - Distant rural areas struggle for investment and services.   - Brain Drain: Educated youth leave rural areas for the primate city.
• Urban Sprawl and Slums:   - Affluent areas coexist directly beside unplanned communities of poor migrants.   - Favelas: The specific name for unplanned communities/slums in Brazil.   - Other terms include shantytowns, colonias, barrios, or barriadas.

Environmental Challenges and Climate Change

• Deforestation: Forests are cleared primarily for cattle ranching and soy crops (e.g., in Brazil and Chiapas, Mexico).
• Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Burning cleared trees releases stored carbon as $CO_2$. Brazil is the world's fourth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases.
• Extractive Impacts: Logging of hardwoods and mining for minerals, oil, gas, and stones contribute to forest loss. Access roads (like those connecting to the Trans-Amazon Highway) further accelerate deforestation by allowing migrant access.
• Environmental Protection vs. Development:   - Historical Argument: Governments claimed they could not afford environmental regulations because economic development was too desperately needed.   - Ecotourism: The fastest-growing segment of global tourism, designed to encourage appreciation of ecosystems and sustainable resource use while providing local livelihoods.   - Ecotourism Downsides: Risk of environmental damage if mismanaged; profits may be too low to significantly raise local living standards.