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Why Geography Matters: Three Challenges Facing America: Climate Change, the Rise of China, and Global Terrorism | 
 enlarge | Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
Category: EBooks
List Price: $15.25
Buy New: $9.99
You Save: $5.26 (34%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  19 reviews
Sales Rank: 20034
Format: Kindle Book
Media: Kindle Edition
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 320
Dewey Decimal Number: 909.83
ASIN: B000YIUNLY
Publication Date: July 8, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Product Description
Over the next half century, the human population, divided by culture and economics and armed with weapons of mass destruction, will expand to nearly 9 billion people. Abrupt climate change may throw the global system into chaos; China will emerge as a superpower; and Islamic terrorism and insurgency will threaten vital American interests. How can we understand these and other global challenges? Harm de Blij has a simple answer: by improving our understanding of the world's geography.
De Blij demonstrates how geography's perspectives yield unique and penetrating insights into the interconnections that mark our shrinking world. Centuries ago a surge of climate change halted China's maritime plans; more recently, environmental calamity altered the course of geopolitical events in East Asia; today, terrorists look for failed and malfunctioning states to base their operations--and some of these are in our own hemisphere.
Preparing for climate change, averting a cold war with China, defeating terrorism: all of this requires geographic knowledge. In Why Geography Matters, de Blij makes an urgent call to restore geography to America's educational curriculum. He shows how and why the U.S. has become the world's most geographically illiterate society of consequence--and demonstrates that this geographic illiteracy is a direct risk to America's national security.
In this personal and engaging book, de Blij provides a geographer's perspective on the challenges of this new century. As he states, "We are crossing the threshold to a century that will witness massive environmental change, major population shifts, persistent civilizational conflicts [and] while geographic knowledge by itself cannot solve these problems, they will not be effectively approached without it."
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| Customer Reviews: Read 14 more reviews...
 Good read for anyone September 15, 2008
I teach AP Human Geography and every time I pick this book up I find a little more to share with my students. Of course, I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the world today.
 Geography Does Matter May 14, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Why Geography Matters is a well-researched and written book by an expert in the field, but the subtitle is a bit misleading. Sure, the book covers the three threats the author claims are confronting the United States, namely climate change, a growing China and global terrorism, but it also covers geology and the history of the world from the beginning of time. The author also spends considerable amounts of time with chapters on the European Union, Russia as well as Africa. While there are some insights and useful information contained in the book, the arguments tend to be articulated better in other sources. I wholeheartedly agree that geography is a critical discipline that does not often get the respect it deserves, but this book is not the final authority when it comes to geo-politics and the current state of the world.
 Occasionally insightful, but generally uninspired August 29, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I would describe this book as the rambling--but occasionally insightful--musings of a thoughtful scholar. Unfortunately, many, if not most, of Blij's arguments are not made from a geographic perspective. For instance, his chapter on the European Union rambles on for page after page about the history of the EU from the European Coal and Steel Community, to the European Economic Community, to the European Community, and, finally, to the European Union. That's not to say that's not and interesting and important history lesson for people who are unfamiliar with EU history, but its not geographic! I was hoping for a book of theories explaining human events using reasoning built on spatial orientations or location. Why Geography Matters had some of that, but Blij could have, in my view, omitted much of the voluminous background information. Doing some would have made his book more concise and allowing his genuine insights to be featured more prominently.
And for what its worth, the book could have used a better editor. For instance, on p.160 it refers to "South Ossetia" as a Russian Republic instead of North Ossetia. I noticed a couple errors like this.
Perhaps, I would be more positive about this book if its last chapter hadn't been the low point. The chapter on Africa had absolutely nothing original to say (AIDS is bad, we need to do more to stop it; colonization and slavery were bad too; Africa has been plagued by bad leadership; etc.).
Important book August 28, 2007
This is an exceptional and needed introduction to Geography and how it relates to world problems.
What we should have learned in school about the world... May 27, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is essential reading for anyone who should have a sound foundation of knowledge to back up one's social commentary, but doesn't. Geography can be understood and used to understand our world with great clarity. Everyone who watched Al Gore's movie should read this book if only to know that Harm de Blij has been explaining geographic issues for decades better than nearly anyone.
The US Department of Education needs to buy and issue a copy of this book to every teacher in America.
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