CGW4U World Issues
An Introduction to World Issues
• Imagine you are a first-class passenger on a
spaceship hurling through space at 100,000
km/h
• Poisonous gases are leaking into certain sections
of the craft and several passengers are dying
from the fumes.
• The water supply has been contaminated due to
a breakdown in the ship's waste expulsion
system.
• Food supplies are running out.
An Introduction to World Issues
• Many passengers crowded into the economy
section of the craft are seriously ill, and only
a few of them are getting proper medical
attention.
• The spaceship has an overall destruct system
and increasing numbers of technologists some mentally unstable - have gained access
to the controls of the destruct system.
• What would you do?
An Introduction to World Issues
•
List your 5 top priorities in order of importance
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why Study Geography?
• You need to study more geography to offset those
who think…
– Andes is an after- dinner mint.
– The Balkans are an alien people on Star Trek.
– The English Channel is a TV sitcom about Charles
and Camilla.
– The United Kingdom is a cultural theme park.
– The Tropic of Cancer is a sunscreen lotion.
– The $100 000 pyramid is in Egypt.
Why Study Geography?
• You need to study more geography to offset those
who think…
– The Gaza Strip is a Middle Eastern folk dance.
– The Ring of Fire is the centre ring of Barnum and
Bailey’s Circus.
– The Bermuda Triangle is a percussion instrument
in a reggae band.
– The Cumberland Gap gives out a pair of clogs
with every pair of jeans sold.
– The International Dateline is a new digital TV
channel.
Why Study Geography?
• You need to study more geography to offset those
who think…
– The Continental Shelf is a specialty section in the
supermarket.
– A fault is what you find in other people.
– A fjord is a type of car.
– A mantle is what goes over your fireplace.
– Tide is a laundry detergent.
– You can do a research project to find out who
killed the Dead Sea.
Why Study Geography?
• “Nature is not only more complex than
we think, it is more complex than we
can think.”
Dr. David Suzuki
Topics To Open With
•
•
•
•
•
•
Media and Globalization
Conflict and Terrorism
Population Issues
Poverty
Biodiversity
Climate Change
ECONOMIC CENTER OF GRAVITY IN THE WORLD
Issues .vs. Problems
Difference
• Problems are often statements,
require further action, and has a high
degree of consensus as to its nature
and need for action.
• Issues are often questions, with
multiple viewpoints, and require
further investigation rather than a
clear-cut immediate response.
Global Village and Globalization
• Marshal McLuhan coined the phrase (the
‘Global Village’) prior to his death in 1980. It
referred to the fact the world would seem
smaller as the amount of technology
increased.
• Globalization simply refers to making an
issue a worldwide challenge. It usually has
long-term consequences for the future.
Sample Issue: Food?
• “Problem”:
– Many people in the world do not have access to
adequate food supplies (approx. 2,000 Cal/day)
• “Issue(s)”:
– How do we guarantee everyone in the world has
access to food?
– What is hindering the ability for everyone to gain
food security?
Food Security?
Quantity
Cost
Access
Political
Economic
G.A.T.T (Post WWII)
-
Seed Saving
Marketing
‘Trump’ Local Laws
W.T.O (1990s)
What’s Next? (aka The “Issue”)
Environmental
Local?
National?
Multi-National?