Unit 3 Latin America Physical Geography of Latin

Unit 3: Latin America

Physical Geography of Latin America ● Amazon Rainforest ● Sierra Madres Each Slide needs: ● Panama Canal ● Atacama Desert 1. Title 2. Image of Location ● Climate of Latin America 3. Brief ● Andes Mountains ● Ring of Fire ● Rainshadow Effect of Latin America Definition

Amazon Rainforest, large tropical rainforest occupying the drainage basin of the Amazon River and its tributaries in northern South America and covering an area of 2, 300, 000 square miles. Comprising about 40 percent of Brazil’s total area, it is bounded by the Guiana Highlands to the north, the Andes Mountains to the west, the Brazilian central plateau to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east.

The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through Northwestern and Western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California.

The Panama Canal is an artificial 51 mile waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit for maritime trade.

The Andes, running along South America's western side , is among the world's longest mountain ranges. Its varied terrain encompasses glaciers, volcanoes, grassland, desert, lakes and forest. The mountains shelter pre-Columbian archaeological sites and wildlife including chinchillas and condors. From Venezuela in the north, the range passes through Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile.

The Atacama Desert is a plateau in South America covering a 621 mile strip of land on the Pacific coast , west of the Andes mountains. It is one of the driest deserts in the world , as well as the only true desert to receive less precipitation than the polar deserts

The climate of Latin America ranges from the hot and humid Amazon River basin to the dry and desert-like conditions of northern Mexico and southern Chile. Rain forest, desert, and savanna are all found in the region. The vegetation varies from rain forests to grasslands and desert scrub.

The Ring of Fire is a major area in the basin of the Pacific Ocean where many earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur. In a large 25, 000 mi horseshoe shape, it is associated with a nearly continuous series of oceanic trenches, volcanic arcs, and volcanic belts and plate movements

The Rain Shadow Effect. . Less moisture reaches the eastern side of the mountains , creating a rain shadow with arid and dry conditions for the region called Patagonia in southern Argentina. The Andes are not as high in elevation in the south, which allows some precipitation to fall on the rain shadow side

Cultural and Population Geography ● Legacy of Colonization - language and religion ● Columbian Exchange - disease ● Religion - Catholicism ● Population - how people live within multigenerational homes ● Migration to Developed Countries (Push/Pull Factors) ● Slums/Favela ● Traditions - Dia de Los Muertos

■ ■ ■ Latin America was colonized by European countries. Spain colonized Mexico and most of Central America and South America. Portugal colonized Brazil. The English colonized Jamaica and Belize. The French colonized Haiti.

The Europeans converted the natives to Roman Catholicism and made them learn their languages. ■ The most wide spoken languages are Spanish and Portuguese. ■ The Europeans brought Africans to work on sugar plantations as slaves. ■

In absolute terms, Mexico has the world's second largest number of Catholics, surpassed only by Brazil. Mexicans are at least nominally Catholic, some combine or syncretize Catholic practices with native traditions.

Those consisting of more than two generations living under the same roof.

Pull Push ● Lack of Jobs/Poverty ● Higher standards of living ● Civil Strife/War/Political ● Higher wages ● Religious Persecution ● Political and Religious Freedom ● Environmental Problems ● Superior medical care ● Natural Disasters ● Weather Conditions ● Poor Medical Care ● Education Opportunity ● Political Fear ● Family links ● Corrupt Government ● Job opportunities ● No land ● Housing ● Government Assistance

● Slums/Favela Brazilian Portuguese for slum, is a low-income historically informal urban area in Brazil.

Dia de Los Muertos The Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday celebrated throughout Mexico , in particular the Central and South regions, and by people of Mexican heritage elsewhere

Political and Economic Geography 1. NAFTA & Maquiladoras - Relationship with USA - Outsourcing - Free Trade Zones 2. Tourist Economy (Caribbean) 3. Cuba - Dictatorship/Communism 4. Level of Development of various countries - economic activities 5. Drug Cartels

■ NAFTA (North Atlantic Free Trade Association) has a downside. Since NAFTA was signed many industries from the U. S. moved to Mexico because of the cheap labor. They set up factories across the border called Maquiladoras and export the products, such as textiles, back to the U. S.

Mexico $ 21, 333, 000 Dominican Republic $ 7, 178, 000 Brazil $ 5, 809, 000 Argentina $ 5, 060, 000 Columbia $ 4, 773, 000

■ 1. 2. 3. 4. Cash crops are crops that are grown primarily for export such as: Cocoa Coffee Sugar Palm Oil

● The pampas in Argentina has many cattle ranches. Argentine Cowboys are called gauchos. Brazil is also one of the leading exporters of beef in the world. Most of the cattle ranches in Brazil are located on the cerrados.

■ Ecuador, Venezuela, and Mexico all have large oil reserves. Venezuela is one of the leading exporters of oil to the United States. Venezuela is also a member of OPEC, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries that controls the price and production of oil.

Castro and Communism in Cuba ● Cuban communist revolutionary and politician ● Prime Minister from 1959 to 1976 ● President from 1976 to 2008 ● Failed to hold the free elections ● Put to death hundreds of his former political enemies ● Press was placed under strict censorship

Drug Cartels ● any criminal organization with the intention of supplying drug trafficking operations

Human Environmental Interaction ● Rain Forest - Slash & Burn ● Deforestation - impacts on country/world ● Pollution - slums ● Panama Canal - strategic location