Download Borders and Boundaries

Geographic Characteristics of States
A. Territory Size-micro vs macro
Does Size =Power?
No
Greater land area
may equal greater
resources
Could also lead to
problems with
regulating area
(communication and
transportation)
Vatican Map Micro State - Vatican Map
CIA Factbook. online
Size is not necessarily an
indicator for success
Russia
Land Area: 6,550.7
square miles
Purchasing Power
Parity $24,764 (2014)
United States
Land Area: 3,787.4
Purchasing Power
Parity $54,678 (2014)
CIA Factbook. online
B. Territory Shape
Fellmann 423
1. Compact State: (circle shape)
the distance from any
point of the country to its
center is about the same.
supposed to provide the
most geographic stability
e.g. Poland, Iceland,
Rwanda, Zimbabwe
2. Fragmented State
consisting of 2 or
more pieces
can make some
interactions within the
country more difficult
e.g. Philippines
Hello down there!
3. Elongated
Can create
separatist areas
due to distance
from center or core
Vietnam, Chile,
Norway
Prorupt States
An area that extends
from a compact area
Can create room for
factions
geographically
Southern Thailand
Perforated State
broken by another
country
1. exclaves: separated
from the state by
another state
e.g. Azerbaijan
(Fellmann 347)
2. enclaves:
surrounded by another
state
e.g. Christian Armenia
b. e.g. South AfricaLesotho
US question next slide
Practice Analysis of Shape
What US state is an
exclave?
The same state is
also a prorupt state.
What shape best
describes
California?
Big Theme
Territory size & shape can influence
political stability, but can not determine
social, political, or economic well being.
Boundaries
What is a boundary?
Boundary: a
vertical plane that
cuts through the
airspace and
ground to
determine
ownership
Problems Boundaries
Lack of knowledge of
underground
resources when
boundaries were
created
1990 Kuwait vs. Iraq:
Rumaylah oil reserves
created International
conflict (picture 349)
Who Controls Airspace?
When boundaries
were created there
was a lack of
knowledge of
importance of
airspace
a. airline traffic
b. satellite space?
How are Boundaries Created?
Defined - usually legally by
someone who is not directly
involved (written)
Delimitation - mapped
Demarcation - marked with
posts, walls, fences, etc.
(Fellman 430)
Types of Boundaries
Geometric boundary:
straight line boundary
totally unrelated to
physical features
e.g. United States
border with Canada
Types of Boundaries
Physical boundaries
which conform to
physical features
(mountains, desert, or
water)
e.g. United States
border with Mexico
along the Rio Grande
The boundary between Malawi (foreground) and Mozambique (background) runs through Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi
Electoral Geography
Boundaries separating legislative districts
within the U.S. and other countries are
redrawn periodically to ensure each has
about the same population.
• 435 districts of the U.S. House of
Representatives are redrawn every 10 years,
following the Census Bureau’s release of the
official population figures.
Process of redrawing legislative
boundaries for the purpose of benefits the
party in power is called gerrymandering.
U.S. Supreme
Court ruled
gerrymandering
illegal in 1985
but did not
require
dismantling of
existing oddly
shaped districts.
Types of Boundariesgenetic boundaries
A. antecedent boundary:
some boundaries were
defined and delimited
before humans settled
e.g. Malaysia
B. subsequent boundaries:
boundaries which
developed according to
the cultural landscape
e.g. Vietnam/ China
Types of Boundaries
Genetic continued
C. superimposed
boundaries: forcibly
drawn boundaries across
a culturally unified
landscape
e.g. Papau New Guinea/
Indonesia
d. relict boundary: border
that has ceased to
function imprints still
evident in cultural
landscape. N-S Vietnam
IV. Boundary Disputes
A. Territorial / Definitional
-Whose Land is it? Focus
on legal language of the
agreement
B. Positional / Locational =>
1991
1. focus on delimitation
and demarcation of the
border
2. the interpretation of the
definition is the dispute
3. Saudi Arabia vs. Yemen
(oil rich border not covered
in the treaty)
IV. Boundary Disputes
C. Functional / Operational
Border Dispute
1. way boundary should
function
2. how should each side
handle cross-border migration
D. Resources / Allocational
Border Dispute
1. dispute over boundary due
to location of resources
2. water supplies - Colorado
River
Boundary Disputes
D. Allocational Border
Dispute
1. dispute over
boundary due to
location of resources
2. water supplies Colorado River
nasa
Various boundary disputes - what type are they?
Botswana has built electric fences to stem the thousands of
Zimbabweans who flee to find work and escape political
persecution.
Functional
Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by 2002 Ethiopia-Eritrea
Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but
despite international intervention, mutual animosities, Territorial and
accusations, and armed posturing have prevented
Positional
demarcation; Ethiopia refuses to withdraw to the delimited
boundary until claimed technical errors made by the EEBC
that ignored "human geography" are addressed, including the
award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war.
All of the Spratly Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan, and
Vietnam; parts of them are claimed by Malaysia and the
Philippines; in March 2005, the national oil companies of
China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord to
conduct marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands.
Resource
Source: http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/fields/2070.html
Mari-time Boundaries
UN Convention on
Law of the Sea,
1982 (158 countries
signed)
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Zonmar-en.svg
Spratly Islands
Arctic Ocean Competing Claims
Why is this
a disputed
region of
the world?
Who cares
and why?
Source:
http://www.arcticportal.org/image
s/stories/News_Files/articskipting2.jpg
Changing political power in US
4 level analysis
Which regions of the
country are gaining /
losing
representation?
How will this
influence future
elections?
Who is gaining /
losing influence?