By Vivian Righter, Asaada Hatcher, and Justyne R
What is one of the first things you think about when moving to
another area? Do you think about how the people will treat you there, or
how different it will be living there? How about the climate, vegetation,
and physical features there? This is an important factor as to how
people live in certain places. Where you live definitely affects how you
live.
One interesting place that is an example is Brazil, South America. This
country has a unique climate, vegetation, and important physical
features. In Brazil, the climate is a mostly tropical or semitropical with
temperate zone in the south, and is wet and warm all year. The
vegetation of Brazil is fitted to its climate. The Amazon Basin and the
areas of heavy rainfall along the Atlantic coast have tropical rain forest
composed of broadleaf evergreen trees. There are dense forests in the
northern regions including the Amazon Basin. It is semiarid along
northeast coast with midwestern savannahs. It also has the world's
largest wetland area and coastal lowland. The physical features are also
something one would consider if they lived in Brazil or were moving
there. Mountains, hills, and rolling plains are in the southwest part of
Brazil. Brazil has one of the world's most extensive river systems, with
eight major drainage basins, all of which drain into the Atlantic Ocean.
Two of these basins--the Amazon and Tocantins-Araguaia--account for
more than half the total drainage area. The largest river system in Brazil
is the Amazon, which originates in the Andes. Through the Amazon
Basin flows one-fifth of the world's fresh water. Another interesting
place that can be used as an example is Chad, North-Central Africa.
Chad’s climate is quite different compared to Brazil’s climate. Most of
North Africa, including Chad, is very dry. Some places in the Sahara can
go for six or seven years without rain. Chad has a hot and tropical
climate, though temperatures do vary depending on area. The southern
rainy season runs May-October, and the central rains from JuneSeptember. The north has very little rain all year. The dry season is
often windy, and cooler during the evenings. The vegetation is also very
different. The vegetation ranges from grass/shrub steppe to thorny,
open savanna. There are also some deciduous forests. Desert and desert
scrub cover most of Chad. Few plants grow in the desert. Small trees,
bushes, and other plants adapted to a dry climate make up desert scrub.
The captivating physical features of Chad shape. The Sahara is the main
physical feature in North Africa. It is the world’s largest desert. The
Sahara has sand dunes, bare rock, gravel plains, and mountains. The
Ennedi Plateau and the Ouaddai highlands in the east complete the
image of a gradually sloping basin, which descends toward Lake Chad.
Lake Chad is the second-largest lake in West Africa and is one of the
most important wetlands on the continent.
These three things that shape each of these countries’ terrains
affect the people living there in many ways. In Brazil, the climate affects
the people there by changing the clothes worn, how the houses are
made, and the food that grows there. In Brazil Some of the products they
produce are oranges, sugarcane, bananas, mangos, and pineapples.
Many people also have jobs selling these foods and some of them only
grow in that climate. Many Brazilians who are native live in houses
suited to their environment. Brazil also has 1,000 to 1,500 millimeters
of rain a year on average, so the people may get rain everyday. This
means that adaption is crucial. Since the weather in Brazil is most of the
time warm, youth prefer to wear casual, informal and comfortable
clothes. Most Brazilians wear jeans and T-shirts during the day, though
they tend dress up more at night. Young men are likely seen in nice
jeans and shirts, and girls in heels, dresses and nice tops. For formal
occasions, like receptions or more luxurious parties, men mostly wear
the classical suit and tie, and women wear an appropriate formal dress.
Vegetation in Brazil is very important to the lives of the people, due to
the fact that at least half of Brazil is covered in the rainforest.
Sustainable use of non-timber forest products (such as rubber, Brazil
nuts, fruits, seeds, oils, and vines) help people still have jobs and make
money without hurting the forest. . Many people had jobs in the forestry
industry though, and native people use natural materials to create their
houses. Use of Brazil’s Rainforest has been a large topic of debate. Many
people use the forest’s wood for houses, and to make money. Physical
features are also a factor into the living conditions of Brazil. The
Amazon River is used for fishing, transport, and sometimes even
tourism. Chad’s climate affects how people live. Due to the desert
climate, many of the people in Chad work with animals and nomadic
herding. Like Brazil, in the southern, more tropical part of Chad,
subsistence and commercial farming operate more. Chad’s vegetation
plays a role in people who live there’s lives too. The lack of trees in the
northern part of Chad has people bringing water with them everywhere
they go and shaded spots are few. With a more tropical climate in the
south, water is not a problem and waterproof clothes are suggested if
you are going to travel there. Most likely one of the biggest impacts on
the people of Chad’s lives is the physical features there. Lake Chad is the
second-largest lake in West Africa and is one of the most important
wetlands on the continent. Home to hundreds of species of fish and
birds, the lake has shrunk dramatically in the last 4 decades due to
increased water use by small-scale subsistence farming, herding, and
fishing. It is a main water source for most of Chad. Unlike Brazil, water is
an issue in not just Chad but most of Africa.
Chad and Brazil are two great examples of countries that have
such different climates, vegetations, and physical features that living in
either would be much different than here in the United States. When
moving to a different country, one of the first things to look up would be
home much different it is from here and how where you live affects how
you live.