Economic Geography:
An Introduction
Lecture 1
Based on Stutz – Chap 1
Envs 342
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Objectives
 Define
Geography
– Focusing on Human Geography
 What
do Geographers do
– Discuss application of Geography to
the World
 Subfield
of Economic Geography
– Discuss major Paradigms for
understanding our world
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Definition of Human Geography
Simple definition:
Geography is a discipline concerned with:
Why things are located
where they are.
Stutz and Warf
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Expansion on this
Is a science that deals with:
• PATTERNS -- Where things are and
are arranged
• PROCESSES -- Why/How things
have come to be at a location
• IMPACT -- on and between the
environment and societies
Across the LANDSCAPE
James Rubenstein
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Key Concepts or main bullet
points for building a definition
Where & Why
 Pattern, Process, & Impact
 Emphasizes Space
 Science
 Relationships between Humans and
Environment
 Relationships Human to Human

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Five Fundamental themes of
Human Geography
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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The Five Fundamental Themes of Human
Geography identify the core of geography as
a discipline.
1-LOCATION : Position on the Earth's Surface.
2-PLACE : Physical and Human Characteristics
3-RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN PLACES : Humans
and Environment.
4-MOVEMENT (relationships between places):
Humans Interacting on the Earth.
5-REGIONS : How they form and Change.
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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1. Location : Position on the
Earth's Surface.
 Absolute
– usually based on
coordinate systems
– Example: Bellingham is at ____ lat
____ long
 Relative
– relative to other entities
– Adjacent to resources
– On a network with other places
 Example
– Bellingham is located between
the Cities of Vancouver and Seattle
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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2. PLACE : Physical and Human
Characteristics of/at a location
SITE
 Give
Meaning and distinction
 Physical characteristics derive
from the geological, hydrological,
atmospheric, and biological
processes that produce land forms,
water bodies, climate, soils, natural
vegetation, and animal life
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2. PLACE

-- Bellingham Some Physical
Characteristics
Example
– Geological – in the Fraser Lowland & Chuckanut
Highlands
– Hydrological – drained by Whatcom Creek and fed
by Lake Whatcom
– Water bodies – between Lake Whatcom (east) &
Bellingham Bay (west)
– Climate - mild, maritime climate with
temperatures ranging from 45 to 60 degrees in
spring and fall, 30 to 50 degrees in winter…
– Etc…
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2. PLACE : Physical and Human
Characteristics
 Human
Characteristics
– Places differ in their population size and
density, settlement patterns,
architecture, kinds of economic and
recreational activities, transportation,
communication networks, culture,
language, ideology, philosophy…
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2. PLACE

-- Bellingham Some Human
Characteristics
Example
–
–
–
–
Population – 71289 (est 2003)
Largest Employer – Western Washington University
“City of subdued excitement”
Etc…
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2. PLACE

-Bellingham
Some
Example
Human Demographic
Characteristics
Metropolitan Area Residents
1980: 107,000
1990: 127,780
2000: 166,814
Percent change, 1990–2000: 30.5%
U.S. rank in 2000: 185th
City Residents
1980: 45,794
1990: 52,179
2000: 67,171
2003 estimate: 71,289
Percent change, 1990–2000: 28.7%
U.S. rank in 1980: 466th
U.S. rank in 1990: 477th (State rank: 9th)
U.S. rank in 2000: 461st (State rank: 10th)
Density: 2,619.3 people per square mile (2000)
Racial and ethnic characteristics (2000)
White: 59,031
Black or African American: 655
American Indian and Alaska Native: 997
Asian: 2,853
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: 116
Hispanic or Latino (may be of any race): 3,111
Other: 1,450
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3a. RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN
PLACES : Humans and
Environment.
 All
places on earth have advantages
and disadvantages for human
settlement.
– Name some for the PacNW in regards to
the Environment
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3b. RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN
PLACES : Humans and
Environment.
Two views of
North Slope AK
 People
modify and adapt to natural
settings in ways that reveal their
cultural values, economic and
political circumstances, and
technological abilities.
– What happened with European arrival here
– What about the Hong Kongese in Vancouver in
15
the 1990s? Geography & Econ Geog Definition
Richmond BC
Is this China or Canada?
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3c. RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN
PLACES : Humans and
Environment.
 The
resulting human- environment
relationships have consequences for
people and for the environment
– Produce a worldwide mosaic of patterns
dependent upon culture and
environment.
– Each place has its distinctive patterns of
human- environment relationships.
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4-MOVEMENT/NETWORKS :
Humans Interacting on the Earth.
SITUATION
 Human
beings are unevenly
distributed across the face of the
earth.
 People interact with each other
through travel and communication
Map of international
phone-call traffic in
2005, from
Telegeography. The
map shows the
disproportionate
centrality of the USA in
international telephone
traffic.
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4-MOVEMENT/NETWORKS :
Humans Interacting on the Earth.
SITUATION
 The
most visible evidences of global
interdependence and the interaction
are trade, transportation and
communication systems that link the
world
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
World
at night
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Emma Maersk, Wal-Mart gets its stuff from
China with this ship
New Maersk Container Ship 18000 TEU Triple-E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apuxHiIeQuU&feature=related
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the largest container vessel in the world
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ2lOw1NWgc&feature=related
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EMMA MAERSK - WORLD'S BIGGEST CONTAINER
VESSEL @ OUR JEBELALI PORT,DUBAI.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huWi35cP4kg
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Jebel Ali Port, Dubai
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEv4fGDCliA&fe
ature=related
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Singapore Port - World's Busiest Port
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpRmF3iMq24&feature=rel
ated
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What can go wrong
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VkY17zzLEA
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5a. REGIONS : How they form
and Change.
 The
basic unit of geographic study is
the region.
 A region is any area that display
unity in terms of a selected criteria.
– Such as: political power, language,
religion, environment, agricultural
products, trade, perception…
– A region is the same within itself, but
different from surrounding area
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Regions
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Chinese Indurtrial Regions
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5b. REGIONS : How they form
and Change.
 Region
is an organizational concept
used to:
– examine,
– define,
– describe,
– explain,
– and analyze the human and natural
environments of the earth.
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5b. REGIONS : How they form
and Change.
 Economic
Region forms based on
favorable (1)Site and (2)Situation
conditions at a (3)given time and
(4)technology
 Regions change as the four above
conditions change
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Is Silicon Valley Migrating to
China?
NY Times
Friday, January 8, 2010
Asian Computer
Makers Move Into
Riskier Ventures
By ASHLEE VANCE
Companies that once built devices to Silicon
Valley’s specifications are now investing in
start-ups so they can compete with their
former customers.
Why might it
move? Solicit
class.
1. Lower labor
costs?
2. New
technological
breakthroughs
3. Better capital
markets
Click here to read more
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How much to ship Nike Shoes

1.
2.
3.
InClass Exercises
What is an average price of Nike
Shoes?
How much does it cost to ship these
shoes from China to Northern
Europe?
What percentage of the final cost
goes to transportation?
(U:\Geo312-2011\InClass Exercises)
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What do Geographers Do
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Geographers Study Space
1.
2.
3.
What is where
How it is used
How it is modified
All of this reflects spatial patterns and
processes
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Pattern and Process
 Pattern
– Where and What
– Organize the world into parts based on
 Location
 Place
Characteristics
 Boundaries between differences
– Look for regularities – describe what is
found
– Differentiate from irregularities
– Deffinition of pattern: a discernible coherent system
based on the intended interrelationship of component
parts http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pattern
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Patterns and Process
 Process
– Look for explanations to explain
patterns
– How and Why
 How
did something appear on the earth
 Why did it appear
 What is the relationship between the natural
environment and the built environment
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Pattern
 Emphasizes:
– Location
– Space characteristics
– Regions
1. For the red dots, what is the
pattern here?
2. What process might have
created it?
3. Are there regions?
4. What is this?
http://www.haggen.com/Locations.aspx
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Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Process
 Emphasizes
– Human-Environment Interactions
– Human-Human Interactions across
space
– Movement
– Spatial Interactions
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Chicken & Egg
 Where
something occurs effects How
it occurs
– Pattern is not independent of Process
 BUT
 How
something occurs is effected by
Where it occurs
– Process is dependent on pre-existing
spatial patterns
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Example
 Pattern
first
– New Road pattern create new processes
of spatial activity
– Process follows pattern
 Process
first
– Congestion creates demand for new
roads
– Pattern follows process
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Geographer’s Job
 Link
Spatial Patterns to Social,
Economic, Cultural, and
Environmental Processes
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Geographer’s Job
Understanding that:
 Human Geographic Landscape is a
Social Creation influenced by and
influencing the Natural Environment
 Human—Environment interactions
are key to understanding our world
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Economic Geography
 Five
Schools of thought
 Note although these are introduced,
– Stutz (and much of this course) only
emphasizes the first school
– In contrast Dr. Rossiter utilizes many of
the alternative schools in his classes
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Economic Geography
Schools of Thought
 “Scientific” or Location Theory
 Behavioral
 Humanistic
 Structuralists
 Post Structuralists
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Location Theorists
 Rely
on Quantitative data
 Scientific Method
 Neo Classical Economics
 Hypothesize -- Individual as a
Maximizer (homo economicus)
 Majority of work falls into this area
(including most of our textbook)
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Behavioralists
 Imperfect
Information
 Uncertainty
 Sub Optimal behavior
 Individual is seen as an Optimizer
not Maximizer
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Optimizer vs Maximizer

Traditional Societies
– Plant corn, beans, and squash all in same “hill”
 Although
they compete for nutrients and can “stunt”
one another’s growth you optimize your efforts in that
at least one might survive if others fail

American Farmers
– Plant monoculture – one field one crop
 Although
failure can wipe them out, on
average their economic return is maximum
over time
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Humanistic
Humanistic Geography
According to humanists, science
should focus on creative, imaginative
human beings, particularly the
ordinary folk.
 Whereas “spatial science” has a lack
of interest in, and does not possess
methods for understanding,
individuals

Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Humanistic
The reliance on ‘homo economicus’ (a
model that assumes rational
decision-making based on economic
costs/benefits) is unethical.
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Humanistic
 Spatial
scientists tend to assume
that they can be and are ‘objective’
(i.e., politically and emotionally
neutral).
 Yet, just as with any individual, they
are motivated by a range of
subjective feelings and ideas.
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Humanistic
 Spatial
scientists, therefore, tend to
promote an illusionary view from
nowhere, or Gods-eye view of the
world.
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Humanistic
In Contrast
 Humanists believe that an
assessment of one’s own
presuppositions leads to a more
realistic appraisal of others.
 Many philosophers have talked about
and tried to explain Humanistic
geography and most seem to be
French.
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Humanistic
Leading American Humanist
Geographer is Yi-Fu Tuan
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Structuralists



In a nutshell believe
the “rules” the
structures favor some
places over others
The world is unfair
because we make it
unfair.
Has proven to be
popular in the 3rd
World and with NeoMarxist scholars
Wallerstein leader in this field.
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Videos to accompany the
schools
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World Bank – very much part of
the neo-classical approach
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6ihEQtCSss
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Is Walmart Good for America?
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6281757350710695719&ei=UsBES5GbH6XOrAOg5rHJDg&q=walmart&hl=en#
Geography & Econ Geog Definition
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Crash Course -- Imperialism
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alJaltUmrGo
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