2010-59051
Geography 1 THW4
Alternative Paper
CHAPTER 1 – Geography Matters
Geography is an academic discipline that tries to understand and explain the diversity of people and places. It also gives attention to the spatial organization of human and humans’ interaction with the environment. The importance of geography as an academic discipline is becoming more widely recognized as globalization and advancement emerge in our competitive world.
Humans are all aware of the recent news report about the different catastrophic events that cause devastation to humanity. People refer to these catastrophes as natural disasters. But not all natural disasters are caused by nature alone. This statement brings us much closer to knowing the importance of Geography. This will give us an idea on how human activities play an important role in the processes that are happening on Earth.
Knowledge of Human Geography gives us an extent of knowledge about location, places and its influence to humanity. Different environment and places affects and influence the growth of people in different manner. For example, a person that lives in a location where vegetation is abundant will have a different diet with a person living in an urban area where instant foods are readily available in the market. In the same breath, a person growing up in a Christian family will have a different perspective about the world with a person growing up in a Muslim family. Culture, tradition, religion, nature and geography of a place have an effect in human lives.
Places are very important because they serve different functions and contribute to the country’s economy. Most places are interdependent on each other. We can take for example the scenario here in the Philippines. 27% of the country’s total electricity supply comes from geothermal power plant in the islands of Luzon, Mindanao and Leyte. Other regions in the Philippines draw rice from central Luzon. For fish and marine products, many regions get supplies from fish centers in Batangas, Palawan and Oriental Mindoro. This interdependence of places takes an advantage in the geographical differences of each region in the Philippines to suffice their necessity and commodity.
There is also interdependence between geographical scales. We can see here how global scales influence local scales and vice versa. One example is the use of contraceptive in the United States in response to the increase in population. It greatly influences the Philippines; several politicians persevere to adopt the use of contraceptives and are still pursuing to legalize the Reproductive Health Bill. On the other hand, local events also affect and influence the global scales. One good example here in the Philippines is the People Power Revolution in 1986 that restore Philippines’ democracy. The unity and courage that the Filipinos offered during that time encourage other countries like Indonesia, Romania, Nepal and Egypt to fight against corruption and communist dictatorship.
“Without Geography, you are nowhere”. This simply explains the importance of Geography in terms of location, direction and distance. Geography helps us to assess the space around us and to identify our position in relation to other things and places. Maps are geographer’s best colleague. They are the primary tools for spatial analysis. But maps also play an important role in our everyday lives. It made transportation faster and helps us to locate places easier. Other technologies used by geographers contribute a lot to our society like remote sensing and geographic information system.
Note: search for GIS in Philippines.
CHAPTER 2 – The Changing Global Context
Places and regions here in the Philippines undergo changes in its geography. Even before Spanish occupation up to the present times, we are still experiencing major changes in terms of agriculture, industry, political system and economy. Places and regions are interdependent; everyone has its own fair share in the country’s economic development. Even Philippines depends on different core countries like the United States of America,.
Philippines can be classified as a peripheral country because of being less developed in terms of quality of living, infrastructure, education and level of productivity. Philippines depend on other countries in terms of technological innovation. If we will go back to our history, we can see how different countries like USA, Spain and Japan exploited and dominated our country. Colonization somehow brought improvement to our country in terms of agriculture, infrastructure, education and political system but damage and exploitation to our country’s resources are more dominant.
Due to technological innovation, we have improved our agricultural system. Farming and harvesting of crops became easier and faster but our colonizers took advantage of our fertile lands. They forced us to convert our rice fields into plantation of “major cash crops” like coconut, sugarcane, abaca and tobacco. They made Philippines as their source of raw materials. 90% of the agricultural lands in the Philippines were allotted to “major cash crops” leaving only 10% for other crops including palay which is our staple food. We are forced to import rice from other countries because of the shortage brought to us by the conversion of our rice fields. This scenario merely explains the success of different core countries.
Globalization ..
CHAPTER 3 – Geographies of Population
Population geography focuses on the number, composition and distribution of human beings in relation to variations in the conditions of earth space. Sometime early in 2004, human birth raised Earth’s population to about 6.4 billion people. The Earth’s total population were affected by different basic factors like births, deaths, marriages and migration.
If we will put population geography into Philippine context, there have been different forms of migration that took place and contributed to the Filipino Diaspora. Long before age of colonialism, Filipinos migrate around Southeast Asia and Middle East. During Spanish colonization, many Filipino Illustrados migrate to Europe for their education. During the American imperialism most Filipinos migrated to America without restrictions until 1934 when the Tydings-McDuffie Act limits migration to 50 people per year.
Statistics show that there are 8,726,520 overseas Filipino workers with more than two million undocumented working in 194 countries and 7 oceans. There 11 million “global Filipinos” including overseas workers, residents and citizens of other countries. The top three destinations of OFWs are USA, Saudi Arabia and UAE. OFWs contribute to our country’s economy because of their remittances amounting to $14.6B annually. OFWs remittances accounts for the 13.5% to 14.5% of Philippines’ Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Migration is also affected by different factors known as the Push Factors and Pull Factors. Push factors are events and conditions that impel an individual to move away from a location. Some of the push factors here in the Philippines are the weakening of the economy of the Philippines, inadequate job opportunities with 8.9 million underemployed and wide social disparities between rich minority and poor majority. On the other hand, pull factors are forces of attraction that draw migrants to leave a place. Some of the pull factors in the Philippines are the high demand of educated workers in other countries and better salaries and incentives abroad.
CHAPTER 4 – Nature, Society and Technology
Filipinos’ perception on nature was greatly influenced by the Spanish colonizers who colonized our country for more than 300 years. As we embraced Christianity, our colonizers have embedded to our minds the Christian perspective on nature, that is, humans are the steward of nature.
Philippines is a country blessed with natural resources, diverse flora and fauna, extensive coastlines, and rich mineral deposits.. These assets of our country have attracted different invaders. Colonization has brought exploitation and degradation to our natural ecosystem that greatly affects the biodiversity in our country. Several species of animals and plants have been extinct because of different human activities that abused our natural resources.
According to the 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the Philippines has 42 critically endangered animals, 65 endangered species and 318 vulnerable animal species. Some of the endemic critically endangered species includes the Tamaraw (Bubalus Mindorensis) and the Tarsier (Haplorrhine Primates), which are well-known and attracts a lot of tourists every year. Most of the extinction of animal species are caused by human activities like destroying the natural habitat of certain species and killing animals for trade and for food.
The Philippines government has do some act regarding the exploitation of our natural resources before it is too late. Philippines might end up losing its entire animal and plant species if human activities like illegal logging and mining, deforestation and burning of the forests will not be eradicated.
Though we did not notice, all of our human actions generate chains of effect that reverberate through ecosystems and social systems. The Philippines has a tropical wet climate dominated by a rainy season and a dry season. Philippines is located along the typhoon belt, and it experiences dangerous storms from July through October. Floods and landslides are some of the common effects of typhoons. Recently, Philippines were bashed by the typhoon Ondoy which caused a lot of casualties and fatalities. This catastrophic event was made worse by abusive human actions. The rock slide-debris avalanche occurred on February 17, 2006 in Guinsaugon, Leyte was caused not only by torrential typhoon but also because of illegal logging and mining done in the area three decades ago.
Some of current environmental issues in the Philippines are the uncontrolled deforestation in watershed areas; soil erosion; air and water pollution in Manila; increasing pollution of coastal mangrove swamps which are important fish breeding grounds; severe water pollution that caused the death of one of the country's major rivers, though there are ongoing efforts at resuscitation.
Philippines is also involved with different international agreements which aims to preserve and protect the environment. Some of the agreements are about Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling. Signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification.
CHAPTER 5 – Mapping Cultural Identities
Philippines is a country rich with culture and traditions. We are known because of our rituals and practices, indigenous instruments, native costumes and native armors. We are also known for sacrificial offering like giving food to our dead ancestors and killing live chickens as sacrifice. This material and non-material culture serve as the identity of the Filipinos.
Philippines is home to different ethnic groups and minorities. (put examples). There are also different religions in the country. Christianity is the major religion of our country and Philippines is the only Christian country in the whole Asia. Other religions in the Philippines are Islam, Iglesia ni Cristo, Jehova's Witnesses, Mormons and Atheism. Over 90% of the Philippine population are Christians. About 5% Muslims and the rest either practice other religions or practice no religion at all.
The Indigenous peoples of the Philippines consist of a large number of Malay ethnic groups. They are the descendants of the original Austronesian inhabitants of the Philippines that settled in the islands thousands of years ago. In 1990, more than 100 highland tribes constituted approximately 3% of the Philippine population.
Philippines is also blessed with diverse but unified languages and dialects. Some eleven languages and eighty-seven dialects were spoken in the Philippines in the late 1980s. Eight of these--Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon, Bicolano, Waray-Waray, Pampangan, and Pangasinan--were native tongues for about 90 percent of the population. All eight belong to the Malay-Polynesian language family and are related to Indonesian and Malay, but no two are mutually comprehensible. Each has a number of dialects and all have impressive literary traditions, especially Tagalog, Cebuano, and Ilocano. Because of the influence of colonization, we also have pidgin here in the Philippines. One example of pidging language is the Tsabakano, it is a form of Spanish and Visayan language.
CHAPTER 6 – Interpreting Places and Landscapes
Human geography also explore the relationship among people, landscape and places and how they affect each other. It also explores the features and formation of landscapesd. Landscapes are the comprehensive products of natural and human actions to the envronment. Each landscape shows a repository of the society that shapes and contributes to the formation of that certain landscape.
Landscape of Despair
Payatas is a landfill also known as Smokey Mountain. For iver 35 years, this has been a stark and heart-tugging reminder of the desperate conditions of Filipino people. Last July 10, 2000, after a massive rain, a thrashslide occurred in this area killing over 200 lives of people that lives around the area. The tragic victims were the scavengers and sorters at the dump site and those living in the nearby shanties.
Pasig River was once a clean and beautiful river that is home to different species of marine animals. But the influx of population brought about by industrialization and urbanization of Mettro Manila transformed Pasig River into a sewage and industrial effluents depot. Pasig River today is nothing but a river with shimmering with oil slicks, unpleasant odor, dark colored water, hyacinth blooms, and floating garbage and feces.
Slum Areas. There are about 20 million people in the Philippines living in slum areas. These areas shows feeling of helplessness and hopelessness. You can see malnourished children, dying people because of hunger and diseases and all forms of poverty.
Derelict Landscapes
Bataan Nuclear Power Plant is completed but never fueled located at Napot Point in Morong, Bataan.It was the Philippines' only attempt at building a nuclear power plant. Because of 4000 defects that was observed from the said powerplant and the fact that it was built near a major fault line, it was never used since its completion.
Corregidor is located in Bataan. It is one of the major historical places of the Philippines. This is a national shrine and an island fortress which was nicknamed "The Rock". This historical site was the last bastion to succumb to the Japanese invasion in the year 1942. Today, this landscape was just composed of devastated buildings and ruins of the last war between Filipino and Japanese.
Sacred Spaces
Quiapo Church is officially known as Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene located in Quiapo, Manila. This is one of the most popular churches in the country for it houses the Black Nazarene. This is considered to be a sacred space because it was recognized by the Filipinos as a place of special religious activities and ceremonies. During the Feast of the Black Nazarene, many Filipinos go to this church because they believe that it has miraculous attributes.
Barasoain Church, also known as Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish was locates in Malolos City, Bulacan. It earned the title as the Cradle of Democracy in the East, the most important religious building in the Philippines. This church is also important because of its historical importance. This was also proclaimed as National Shrine by President Ferdinand E. Marcos.
Landscape of Power
Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue, formerly known as Highway 54 is the main circumferential road and highway of Metro Manila. This was considered as a landscape of power because of the purpose that it served during the People Power Revolution. This place was a living witness of the power and courage that Filipinos offered to fight against oppression and corruption in the government.
The Malacañan Palace is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the Philippines. This place was considered as a landscape of power because it houses the highest administrative body of the Philippines. The palace has been the residence of eighteen Spanish Governors-General, fourteen American Civil Governors and later all the President of the Philippines after independence, with the exception of Emilio Aguinaldo.
CHAPTER 7 – The Geography of Economic Development
The major economic sectors of the Philippines are agriculture, services and industry, chiefly food processing, textiles and garments, electronics and automobile parts. The country's major industries are mainly centered in the urban areas around the capital city Manila. With significant reserves of chromite, nickel, and copper, mining in the Philippines also has immense potential.
The agricultural sector in the Philippines, though substantial continues to decline having contributed only 14.2% of the country's GDP which is the lowest compared to the industrial and services sectors. Major agricultural products are rice, sugar, coconut products, corn, bananas, pineapple products, aquaculture, mangoes pork, and eggs. The agricultural sector is subject to low productivity, low economies-of-scale, and insufficient infrastructure. This is mainly because most of our rice fields ang arable land areas are converted into commercialized buildings and infrastructures. Also, the government pays a little attention in our agricultural sector which could have been our greatest assets today.
The industrial sector of the Philippines had accounted for 32.1% of the country GDP in the year 2006. The industrial sector is mainly concentrated in the processing and assembly operations of various consumer products. Some of these include food and beverages, rubber products, tobacco, textiles, clothing and footwear, pharmaceuticals, paints, plywood and veneer, paper and paper products, and electronics. The heavier industrial products comprise of cement, industrial chemicals, fertilizers, iron and steel, glass, and refined petroleum products.
Over the past years the services sector has shown sustained economic growth and accounted for 53.7% of the country's GDP making it the highest contributor compared to the industrial and agricultural sectors. The services sector also employs the highest percentage of the workforce of Philippines. In 2004, it employed 49% of the country's workforce which was way ahead of the other sectors.
The growth rate of our country's Gross Domestic Product from 1990-1995 is 2.4 based on GDP at constant factor. The Gross National Product per capita of the Philippines in constant 1987 US$ is 851 during 1997 (GNP per capita in current US$ divided by the corresponding US Consumer Price Index for that year). The Gross National Savings (percent of GNP) in the year 1998 was 22.0%. The Gross Domestic Investment (percent of GNP) in the year 1998 was 26.5%. The unemployment and underemployment rate of the Philippines during 2002 is 13.9 and 19.6 respectively.
References
Getis, Arthur, Judith Getis & Jerome D. Fellmann. “Introduction to Geography 10th Edition.” Boston: McGraw Hill Higher Education, 2006.
Rubenstein, James M. “An Introduction to Human Geography: The Cultural Landscape 9th Edition.” Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2008.
De Blij, Harm J. & Alexander B. Murphy. “Human Geography: Culture, Society, and Space.” New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1999
Nori Soriano. “Philippines Endangered & Extinct Animals.” Date Accessed: March 25, 2011. 11:04 AM
123IndependenceDay. “Economy of the Philippines”. Date Accessed: March 25, 2011
