Course Description from Catalog

This course provides a basic topical introduction to human and cultural geography. It focuses on the diversity of human societies, their distribution, characteristics, and cultural impact on the landscape. Topics include the geography of population, migration, language, religion, economic development, urbanization, resources, and the political landscape.

Course Objectives from Syllabus

By the end of this course, students should be able to:
• understand the discipline of geography, including its tools, themes, and concepts,
• think critically about geographic problems at the global, national, and local scales,
• appreciate the diversity of global cultures, including their cultural and economic characteristics,
• understand how cultural landscapes are created and how they change over time,
• locate and name the world’s major countries, cities, mountains and water features, and
• develop life-long learning habits and an appreciation of geography in everyday life.

Sites and Maps of Interest

• Our World in Data
• Aerial photographs of apartheid’s urban legacy
• The Anthropocene Epoch is here
• Focus on geography
• Migration between California and Other States
• Spatial mapping of low birth weight babies in India
• 3D model of downtown Toronto
• Earth’s economic center of gravity
• Countries and the last nation they declared independence from
• Interactive Time zone map
• Most Interesting Minorities from the Balkans
• Jerusalem and UNESCO Resolution