Capstone Project Summary
Unit 7
Israel/Palestine
• 1. What are the main reasons for the conflict between the Israeli
and Palestinian people?
• Palestinian want sovereignty / independent state from Israel
• Access to Jerusalem which is a holy city to both Judaism and Islam
• Cultural differences
• Palestinians use of terrorism and rockets into Israel and civilian
deaths
• Israeli response to rocket attacks and Palestinian civilian deaths
• Israel’s building of settlements on Palestinian land.
• Palestinian’s alliance with Iran sworn enemies of Israel.
• Israel building of the Gaza Wall as a way to restrict travel around
the country
Israel/Palestine
• 2. What cultural differences play into the conflict?
• Israel is a Jewish state. There people speak Hebrew and
eat kosher foods.
• Palestinian people are predominantly Muslim. They
speak Palestinian Arabic.
• There have been religious and cultural tensions
between these two groups for centuries.
• Both see this land as where their religions began, and
so both see cities like Jerusalem as holy and the region
appears in both the Torah and the Koran.
Israel/Palestine
• 3. Who are allied with the Palestinians and who is
allied with the Israeli’s and why?
• Palestinians are allied with neighboring Islamic
countries like, Jordan, Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and Iran
• Israel is allied with the US, Britain, and other
European countries. This is because the US and
other European countries help create the nation
of Israel following WWII.
Israel/Palestine
• 4. What are the possible solutions to the problem?
• Two state solution with Israel controlling Jerusalem
(Palestine is sovereign controlling the Gaza Strip and the
West Bank, Israel controls everything else)
• Continue Israeli dominance (Palestinians live under Israeli
control)
• Two state solution with Palestine controlling Jerusalem
(Palestine is sovereign controlling the Gaza Strip and the
West Bank, Israel controls everything else)
• Two state solution with Jerusalem becoming an open and
free city (Palestine is sovereign controlling the Gaza Strip
and the West Bank, Israel controls everything else)
Environmental Concerns
• 5. How will the growth of population impact
the lives of citizens in the near future?
• Impact food production and availability –
world may not be able to sustain a large
population
Environmental Concerns
• 6. What are the problems which are caused by
overconsumption?
• Overpopulation causes overuse of resources and
goods, in turn, producing more land, water and
air pollution.
• Effects of overconsumption:
• Global economy suffers because there are not
enough resources to meet growing population
demands.
• - Social and political instability, leading to
security issues
Environmental Concerns
• 7. Why is there controversy over the existence of
Global Warming?
• Some believe that global warming is caused by
the carbon emissions released when burning
fossil fuels that build up in the atmosphere and
warm the earth
• On the other hand some argue that there is not
enough evidence to support that warming of the
earth and that the greenhouse effect is a natural
event that we cannot prevent
Environmental Concerns
• 8. Why and where has the volume of pollution
increased?
• Greenhouse gases, industrialization, burning of
fossil fuels, household and farming chemicals all
contribute to the growth of pollution
• Top 5 countries with the worst pollution = 1.
China 2. US 3. Russia 4. India 5. Japan
• Water = faces oil pollution problems, Land = faces
deforestation, mining, pesticides, Air = pollution
from car emissions and industrial emissions.
Terrorism
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9. Define and explain the terms “terrorism”, “Islamic fundamentalism”, and “state sponsored
terrorism”.
Provide at least 2 examples of terrorism.
Terrorism - premeditated, politically motivated violence against innocent (noncombatant) targets
by subnational groups or underground agents, usually intended to influence an audience. Used for
political motives.
Islamic fundamentalism /terrorism –
Islamic fundamentalists distort the teachings of Islam to define a common enemy. That enemy is
portrayed as the Western culture of democracy (scorned as un-Islamic by Islamic terrorists),
capitalism (denounced as Imperialist exploitation), and individualism (opposed by Islamists who
believe in Islamic Law to lead the community of Muslims worldwide.
State sponsored terrorism - terrorism practiced by a government against its own people or in
support of international terrorism.
Examples:
The gassing of individuals who did not comply with a governments demands (state sponsored)
The holding of threats over citizens’ heads by a government, forcing them to act as the state wishes
(state sponsored)
Authorization of the assassination of a government leader by a militant group (state sponsored)
Attack on a military installation when a country is not a war
Use of biological or chemical weapons against citizens of the U.S.
Terrorism
• 10. Why has the United States been a target for terrorism?
• Revolts against the elite/ruling classes were often
suppressed with the support of the U.S. who wanted to
protect its “national interests” in the region
• During the Cold War America sided with repressive regimes
that exploited the poor and working
classes
• U.S. undermined the pan-Arab movement (unification of
the people in the Arab world) and helped
Israel
develop into a military and nuclear powerhouse
• Al Qaeda - Blame rests with America, repressive regimes,
and nuclear armed Israel
Terrorism
• 11. What are the objectives of terrorists?
• Objectives:
• 1. Attract public attention to the group’s grievances
2. Encourage empathy for their unfair/unjust situation and sympathy for
the cause
3. Demonstrate the inability of the state to provide security
4. Demonstrate the illegitimacy of the state’s institutions
5. Polarize the public to simplify the debates and arguments
6. Coerce the public into pressuring the state into compromise solutions
7. Force the state into repressive reactions that discredit the government
8. Force the state into repressive reactions that serve to recruit new
members and supporters
9. Demonstrate the economic consequences of continued violence
10. Highlight the potential political consequences of continued conflict
11. Attract international attention and encourage intervention
12. Provoke widespread civil uprising to change the government, or form a
separate state
Terrorism
• 12. Describe Al-Qaeda (leadership, structure, purpose).
• Leadership = Established by Usama Bin Ladin (UBL) circa 1990, Al Qaeda
aims to coordinate a transnational mujahideen network .
• Structure = Al Qaeda provides financial, manpower, transportation, and
training support to extremists worldwide
• Al Qaeda serves as the core of a loose umbrella organization that includes
members of many Sunni Islamic extremist groups, including factions of the
Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ), the Gama'at al-Islamiyya (IG), and the Harakat
ul-Mujahidin (HUM).
• Purpose = Al-Qaeda - stated goal is to "reestablish the Muslim State"
throughout the world via the overthrow of corrupt regimes in the Islamic
world and the removal of foreign presence - primarily American and Israeli
- from the Middle East – directly targets the U.S.
• Says it is the duty of all Muslims to kill U.S. citizens, civilian or military, and
their allies.
Africa
• 13. How are “ethnic conflicts” and “genocide” similar? What
distinguishes them from one another?
• They are both demonstrations of hate based on dissimilarities in
religion, ethnicity, culture, etc.
• An “ethnic conflict” tends to be an isolated event, while genocide is
a systematic elimination of a prescribed group of people, often with
government approval. The “conflict” may exist outside of the realm
of the government (between tribes, extended families, towns, etc.)
but genocide is typically government sanctioned.
• The UN defines genocide as “any of the following acts committed
with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial
or religious group … " – killing, causing physical/mental harm,
inflicting conditions of life meant to bring about the demise of the
group, imposing measures to prevent births, forcibly transferring
children from one group to another.
Africa
• 14. What was the role of religion in the events
that occurred in the Darfur region of Sudan?
• The Sudanese government is controlled primarily
by Muslims; they used non-government Muslim
militias (called the Janjaweed) to terrorize
Christian villages in the Darfur region. The
purpose was to gain control of the land (and, in
turn, a significant amount of oil and oil pipelines).
Religious intolerance was used to create conflict
between the groups. Focus could also be ethnic
(government run by Arab Muslims vs. Africans)
Africa
• 15. Why are child soldiers used in the Congolese
conflicts?
• Most child soldiers start as the victims of kidnapping
(often after towns are raided/destroyed).
• They are easy to control, primarily due to their fear of
their kidnappers (due to appearance of authority,
physical size and stature, presence of weapons,
threats).
• Over time, a form of Stockholm Syndrome emerges in
which the child soldier feels as if they have no option
but to follow along, even after reaching the age of 18
(legal adulthood)
Africa
• 16. When will the United Nations intervene in the events that are
occurring in sovereign nations?
• In 2005, the UN adopted the “Responsibility to Protect” (R2P) doctrine,
published by the Office of the Special Advisor on the Prevention of
Genocide:
• The State carries the primary responsibility for protecting populations
from genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing,
and their incitement;
• The international community has a responsibility to encourage and assist
States in fulfilling this responsibility;
• The international community has a responsibility to use appropriate
diplomatic, humanitarian and other means to protect populations from
these crimes. If a State is manifestly failing to protect its populations, the
international community must be prepared to take collective action to
protect populations, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.
China
• 17. What is China doing to promote its economic
growth?
• Investing in resources to modernize the country –
cash to build factories, roads and apartment
towers, and millions of people have received jobs
making iPads, clothing, and cars
• China has shifted to a market based economy
• Challenges from this rapid growth include =
inequality, rapid urbanization, environmental
sustainability. China’s 12th Five Year Plan is
addressing these issues (2011-2015)
China
• 18. How has China tried to solve their population
growth issues?
• Since 1978, China has implemented a one-child policy
that restricts the number of children married urban
couples are allowed to have to alleviate social,
economic, and environmental problems. As a result,
there is less pressure on worldwide food supplies and
less pollution in major Chinese cities.
• A special provision allows millions of couples to have
two children legally. If a couple is composed of two
people without siblings, then they may have two
children of their own.
China
• 19. Describe human rights violations.
• Human rights are recognized as rights that every
human is born with and they are entitled to these
rights just for being a human.
• Violations include = abuse, racial injustice, suppression
of speech, suppression of religion, suppression of
press, women are a large target of human rights
violations
• Human rights violations in China include = censorship
of the government, religious persecution, abuse of
women, abuse of Chinese prisoners, sweatshop
laborers
China
• 20. What is China’s relationship with the West?
• The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has democratic relations with 171
countries
• Sweden was the first country to establish diplomatic relations in 1950
• In 1971, PRC became one of the 5 permanent members of the United
Nations Security Council
• China’s Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence has led China to support
states such as Zimbabwe, North Korea, Iran (countries that western
nations label as dangerous).
• Relations with many western nations suffered after the military crackdown
in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
• China has improved its economic relationship with Russia
• China has increased its trading with African nations
• China has strengthened its ties with South American economies – Brazil is
its largest trading partner, and strategic ties with Argentina.
India
• 21. Explain how the growing population in
India is impacting its citizens.
• Positive = allows for labor resources to keep
up with the booming economy
• Negative = leads to overpopulation, low-rate
literacy (fewer people being able to read),
widening gap between the rich and poor,
impacting the role of women in society in a
negative manner, strain on resources
India
• 22. Explain the social class divisions in India and how this contributes to
poverty.
• The Caste system = “Rooted in religion and based on a division of labor,
the caste system, among other things, dictates the type of occupations a
person can pursue and the social interactions that she may have. Castes
are an aspect of Hindu religion. Other religions in India do not follow this
system.”
• There are 4 social classes = Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra
• The problem with this system is that there is no way for the lowest class,
the Shudra, to climb economically – meaning that the Shudra will remain
in greatest poverty in society, holding inskilled labor jobs
• Castes rarely intermarry, and are definitely not changeable. You cannot be
discriminated against in urban India for belonging to a particular caste,
however, since there is a wide economic gap between the Brahmin and
Shudra, it is obvious these two different castes live very different life
styles.
India
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23. What conflicts exist between Hindus and Muslims? How does this relate to the
country’s history?
Islam and Hinduism are the main religions in India – followers of Islam – Muslims,
followers of Hinduism – Hindus.
After the British left in 1947, India split into Muslim Pakistan, and a majority-Hindu
India
Since their split, India and Pakistan have fought in three wars with each other India and Pakistan have fought at least three wars over Kashmir, including
the Indo-Pakistani Wars of 1947, 1965 and 1999.
In 1998, both India and Pakistan successfully test-exploded nuclear devices,
leading many to fear a new arms race.
In January 2013, officials in India warned residents in India-controlled Kashmir to
build a bomb shelter and store food in the threat of a nuclear war
Kashmir Conflict
– Kashmir as a whole is quite diverse, the southern region mostly Hindu, the northeast
Buddhist. But for six decades this province with a land mass the size of Idaho has been bitterly
fought over by India and Pakistan.
– It all dates back to 1947, when the departing British decided to partition the newly
independent India. Muslim majority areas were to form the new republic of Pakistan. But
Kashmir had a Hindu ruler, and he opted under pressure to join India.
– That set off the first of three major wars between India and Pakistan, ending in a ceasefire
with India controlling about two-thirds of Kashmir.
– The so-called “line of control” that divided Kashmir has served as an international border for
65 years, but Kashmir has festered as a sore point between the Islamic republic of Pakistan
and mostly Hindu India.
India
• 24. Describe three environmental issues in India.
• Deforestation – the demand for timber has led to a loss of natural
resources in India - Forest protected areas are no longer being
protected, thus allowing companies that are forest-based to take
more natural resources. – The demand for Palm Oil is a cause of this
deforestation
• Pollution of water = competition between agriculture, industry,
domestic, and drinking has become a huge problem throughout
India. The waterways of India are over polluted – bathing, drinking,
industrial waste all feed from and into the same rivers
• Wildlife – animals are in danger as India continues its economic
boom. For example, the Bengal Tiger is no longer the king of the
jungle. Its iconic image is withering as wildlife is struggling to
compete with the industrial giant.