2.2- Introduction to Geography and Globalization

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What do Geographers Study

Everything! Most students think that geography is memorizing the names and locations of countries, cities, capitals, rivers, etc. But Geography is so much more than that. In a nutshell, Geography answers the question “What is where and why?” Just as historians explore change over time, Geographers explore change over space. There are Geographers studying history, agriculture, biology, economics etc. What makes them Geographers and not Historians or Biologists is this interest in where what they study occurs, why that phenomenon is located where it is, how this changes through time. 

Geographers are true generalists and by definition, have learned about many fields of study and how they intersect. Geography is interdisciplinary, pulling together many different fields of study and looking for patterns and interrelationships.

Major Divisions in Geography

Geography is generally divided into two distinctive foci: Human Geography and Physical Geography. The reality is that these divisions are somewhat artificial and given the interdisciplinary nature of Geography, Geographers often incorporate elements of both in their studies That said, Geographers do frequently focus on either Physical or Human Geography.

Human or Cultural Geography includes: language, religion, different economic and governmental structures, art, music, and other cultural aspects that explain how and/or why people function as they do in the areas in which they live. Globalization (Links to an external site.) is also becoming increasingly important to the field of human geography as it is allowing these specific aspects of culture to travel across the globe easily.

Regional Geography

Regional Geography is a sub-discipline of Geography.  Most sub-fields of Geography focus on the distribution of certain characteristics, such as landforms, climate, vegetation, and human activities, around the world.  Instead, Regional Geography looks into the relationships these phenomena have within different regions. Physical and Cultural Geographers describe the patterns the phenomena which they study display over the entire globe and work to explain the rules that  govern these patterns. Regional Geography focuses on how physical and cultural phenomena interact across regions. Regional Geography tries to pull it all together using regions as the framework.

World Regional Geography studies various world regions as they compare with the rest of the world. Factors for comparison include both the physical and the cultural landscape. The main questions are, Who lives there? What are their lives like? What do they do for a living? Physical factors of significance can include location, climate type, and terrain. Human factors include cultural traditions, ethnicity, language, religion, economics, and politics.

Globalization

One of the major themes running through Regional Geography is globalization. Globalization is the increasing interconnectedness of people and places. Places around the World that were relatively isolated are now linked to the rest of the World by business, communication (the internet, twitter, cell phones, movies, TV) and travel. Globalization is perhaps the most fundamental social change happening globally since the Industrial Revolution.

Globalization is often primarily thought of in the context of business and transnational conglomerates. What is a transnational conglomerate? A conglomerate owns controlling interests in many smaller companies in entirely different industries under one corporate group (parent company + subsidiaries). Some examples include: Berkshire Hathaway, Johnson&Johnson, the Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (the world's largest), JP Morgan Chase, Amazon, Exxon, Nestle, Unilever etc. TNCs are a key driver of globalization because they have been re-locating manufacturing to countries with relatively lower labor costs in order to increase profits and returns for shareholders.

There are many arguments pro and con about the impacts of globalization. Some believe the impact has been positive, providing employment and economic opportunities as well as country wealth. Often described as a strategy  "that will raise all boats in poor and rich countries alike".  Others cite the damage Globalization has done to local economies, small business, employee protections, the environment. Its a complex issue. Here's one take on the pros and cons of  globalization.

Culture has not been immune to the globalization debate. Traditional economies (eg.the Inuit in Greenland, farmers in Haiti) are at risk as globalization brings mono-crop industrial farms and tourism. Fast food is a part of every culture. In many places this role as been filled by street vendors. Its traditionally been a way for the poor to  have a business and rise economically. Street vendors also reinforce culture. American fast food can completely undermine this part of an economy. There are many, many examples of both pros and cons. In the Discussion Activity - Globalization, you will think about this and share your thoughts.

Instructor's Video Links to an external site.

There has been a global backlash to globalization. There have been winners and losers with globalization and the perceived losers are angry. The US has not been immune. Nationalism is on the rise around the world - a desire to put your own country first, even if that means your country, to some degree, tries to isolate from  other countries around the world.   Countries are seeking to keep what they have and prevent an erosion of their prosperity. The middle class in Europe and the US have not benefited from globalization. Brexit, the election of Donald Trump, and growing nationalist political parties throughout Europe all reflect this backlash against globalization.