Could this be the biggest environmental catastrophe of our life time?
May 4, 2010 — Mr MThe massive oil slick threatening the US could in the words of Barak Obama be a “potentially unprecedented” environmental disaster. Have a look here for maps and graphics which show what caused the slick and also to see the massive extent of the slick.
73 baths full of water to make a pair of jeans! (thats the same for really bad jeans)
April 19, 2010 — Mr M
Embedded water is the amount of water needed to make things. Its frightening how much water is needed to make some products and is something we all take for granted.
- 10 litres of water to make 1 piece of paper
- 70 litres of water to grow an apple
- 140 litres of water to produce a cup of coffee
- 440 litres of water to make a loaf of bread
- 3875 litres of water to produce 1 beef steak
- 10850 Litres of water to make 1 pair of jeans
Water is finite (there is only so much of it) and clearly this is an unsustainable way of using a very precious resource. Read on to find out more and think about your water consumption. Before you order another steak just think it took over 25 baths full of water to produce!
Machu Picchu to reopen
April 1, 2010 — Mr MAfter heavy rains washed away a railway line Machu Picchu will reopen. This means an extra $1,000,000 a day for the Peruvian economy. Year 11 read on to find out more about just how important this site is for Peru. Think carefully about the impact of the number of tourists on this ancient site.
Saving an endangered tribe
March 29, 2010 — Mr MTourism is threatening the very existence of a tribe of people known as the Jarawa. As recently as 20 years ago this tribe would kill any outsiders that they come into contact with but recently they have been exposed to tourists and settlers due to the building of a new road. This is a fascinating article which raises some big questions about what should happen to this tribe. There are currently only 320 Jarawas left in the world. The tribe are found in the Andaman Islands have a look here to find out where that is or here to find out why tourists want to go there.
Beijing turns orange!
March 22, 2010 — Mr MIt’s not only Bahrain that suffers from extreme dust storms; China’s capital is currently covered in orange dust. These apocalyptic storms are caused by environmental damage. Read on to find out more or have a look here to examine what causes these massive dust storms.
Internet in the Favelas
March 15, 2010 — Mr MDoes the internet bring universal benefits? Can the poor use the internet to get out of poverty? This is an article from an interesting series on the power of the internet. The internet has completely revolutionised our lives, yet its benefits are felt in different ways by different groups of people. Read on to find out more. This is especially relevant for IB Standard Level students.
What is the Geography of your surname?
March 2, 2010 — Mr MI have just discovered that most of my fellow Moncurs are living in Scotland, Dundee to be precise. I will be visiting Dundee as soon as I get chance to drop in on some of my namesakes. Find your own personal Geography on this web-site it really is fascinating. Haggis anyone?
At the moment it only has the UK in its data base but it will soon go global.
Handy GIS Web-Site
February 23, 2010 — Mr M 
This is a brilliant resource for all Geographers and an excellent example of GIS. You can use this to find a huge range of information about London. Easily create choropleth maps which tell you about patterns of migration, crime rates, house prices, health and much more or simply get a copy of the tube map. This really is a very useful resource. Click here to have a go. This is especially relevant for Year 10 GCSE, AS Level and IB students.
Three Gorges Dam: Year 13
February 17, 2010 — Mr MWatch this video clip which outlines some of the environmental issues associated with the 3 Gorges Dam.
This is a very controversial project and an excellent case study. There are many past questions where this case study would prove invaluable such as:
- Assess the potential risks associated with energy production.
- To what extent has a scheme to supply energy which you have studied been successful?
- Choose one scheme which exists to supply energy. Explain the attitudes of different groups to the scheme and any disagreements or conflicts of interest that have occurred.
- Assess the environmental impacts associated with renewable energy resources.
Toilet Museum
February 7, 2010 — Mr M
What is the serious message behind this clip? Why does India have a toilet museum and why is this often an issue of life or death? The map below shows access to basic sanitation as you can see a huge number of people are denied this basic human right, this has massive health implications. In the red countries over 50% of people don’t have access to sanitation, In India alone 600,000 people don’t have a toilet!
This WHO web-site gives more depth on the issue of access to sanitation and clean water: WHO site
Brazil: Massive dam one step closer
February 2, 2010 — Mr M
Brazil is one step closer to building the third largest dam in the world. The dam is being built to produce hydro electric power which in turn would reduce CO2 emissions. Why then are environmentalists (and Sting) opposed to the plan? When looking at this issue try to analyse both the advantages and disadvantages of the dam. Read on…
If you had the deciding vote on whether or not the dam should be built, what decision would you make?
Blood Oil
February 1, 2010 — Mr MWhy has Nigeria’s vast oil reserves not bought wealth and prosperity to the country. With a major pipeline being sabotaged this story tells us a lot about the issues behind the supply of oil. This is especially relevant for Year 13. The article here gives an alternative method for cutting down our oil consumption.
Responses to the Haiti earthquake
January 26, 2010 — Mr M
What is happening in the aftermath of the Haitian earthquake? Is aid getting through? How have communities responded to the earthquake and how effective has the national and international response been? Also why has Haiti’s debt which stands at $900,000,000 not been cancelled? Explore the extensive BBC coverage to find out more. This is of particular relevance to IB higher level students.
Tourists stranded on Machu Picchu (Year 11 Managing Tourism)
January 26, 2010 — Mr MIn February Year 11 will start the “managing tourism” unit (the last one!). This story is directly relevant to one of the case studies from the unit, the Inca Trail in Peru. Read on to find out how the tourists got stranded.
Try a virtual tour of Machu Picchu
Exxon Valdez, environmental consequences linger 21 years on
January 19, 2010 — Mr MPerfect timing for Year 13 students who are currently looking at the Alaskan oil case study. A group of scientists have just returned from Alaska and have revealed the frightening extent to which the effects of the Exxon Valdez oil spill still linger. Read on.
Catastrophe in Haiti
January 14, 2010 — Mr MA 7.0 Magnitude Earthquake has struck Haiti which is the poorest country in Western Hemisphere and is also prone to Hurricanes. The consequences of this earthquake were described as “Biblical” by Hilary Clinton. The image below shows the presidential palace before and after the earthquake. See the links below to find out more.
2010: The International Year of Biodiversity
January 11, 2010 — Mr MThis year has been designated the international year of biodiversity by the UN. But what does biodiversity mean? Also why is it so important that it gets its own year?
Have a look at the UN homepage here or for a brief summary try this BBC article.
Volcanic Eruption in Colombia
January 4, 2010 — Mr MThousands of Colombians have been forced to evacuate their homes due to the eruption of Mount Galeras. Watch.
Saving the Rainforest
December 15, 2009 — Mr MIn order to stop deforestation an economic value has to be put on protecting the rainforest. This UN backed scheme in Brazil does just that. Read and watch for an excellent case study of sustainable development.
Geography goes all intergalactic – Space Tourism surely the most extreme A Level Case Study!
December 8, 2009 — Mr MSir Richard Branson has unveiled his 2nd rocket plane that he will use to take tourists into space. Surely not, well he has 300 customers lined up each ready to fork out $200,000 for the privilege. To see the rocket and find out more click here
Monkey Geography 