In most countries Geography is a core subject in the curricula of all schools as well as in higher education. However, in the United States it found itself, until recently, as a minor subject within educational provision.
It is interesting to note that data from the National Center for Educational Statistics showed that undergraduate degrees in Geography at U.S. institutions of higher education have increased in recent years. It is an indication of increased public interest of the relevance of Geography in an age of increasing globalization and accelerating environmental change, as well as the explosion of interest in geo-spatial technologies and geographic information systems. The following extract is from an article by Alexander Murphy, Professor of Geography at the University of Oregon, entitled, ‘Rediscovering the Importance of Geography’ and offers some insight into the subject’s increased importance.
(World map with north at the ‘bottom’ of the map – somewhat unconventional, but, otherwise quite accurate).
As Americans struggle to understand their place in a world characterized by instant global communications, shifting geopolitical relationships, and growing evidence of environmental change, it is not surprising that the venerable discipline of Geography is experiencing a renaissance in the United States. More elementary and secondary schools now require courses in Geography, and the College Board is adding the subject to its Advanced Placement Program. In higher education, students are enrolling in Geography courses in unprecedented numbers. Not coincidentally, more businesses are looking for employees with expertise in geographical analysis, to help them analyze possible new markets or environmental issues.
Geography’s renaissance in the United States is due to the growing recognition that physical and human processes such as soil erosion and ethnic unrest are inextricably tied to their geographical context. To understand modern Iraq, it is not enough to know who is in power and how the political system functions. We also need to know something about the country’s ethnic groups and their settlement patterns, the different physical environments and resources within the country, and its ties to surrounding countries and trading partners. Those matters are sometimes addressed by practitioners of other disciplines, of course, but they are rarely central to the analysis. Instead generalizations are often made at the level of the state, and little attention is given to spatial patterns and practices that play out on local levels or across international boundaries. Such preoccupations help to explain why many scholars were caught off guard by the explosion of ethnic unrest in Eastern Europe following the fall of the Iron Curtain. Similarly, comprehending the dynamics of El Niño requires more than knowledge of the behavior of ocean and air currents: it is also important to understand how those currents are situated with respect to land masses and how they relate to other climatic patterns, some of which have been altered by the burning of fossil fuels and other human activities. And any attempt to understand the nature and extent of humans’ impact on the environment requires consideration of the relationship between human and physical contributions to environmental change. The factories and cars in a city produce smog, but surrounding mountains may trap it, increasing air pollution significantly.
Geographers work on issues ranging from climate change to ethnic conflict to urban sprawl. What unites their work is its focus on the shifting organization and character of the Earth’s surface. Geographers realms of interest reach far and wide and may include an examination of such things as the changing patterns of vegetation in Niger to study global warming; to analyze where ethnic groups live in Bosnia to help understand the pros and cons of competing administrative solutions to the Civil War; and to map AIDS cases in Botswana to learn how to reduce the spread of the disease. Indeed much of Geography’s power lies in the insights it sheds on the nature and meaning of the evolving spatial arrangements and landscapes that make up our world.
Last Updated June 8, 2022