List types found in LDCs (detail and characteristics to follow) shifting cultivation pastoral nomadism intensive wet rice dominant intensive wet rice not dominant plantation List types found in MDCs (details and characteristics to follow) mixed crop and livestock farming grain farming livestock ranching Mediterranean commercial gardening and fruit (Rubenstein p 329 – 335) What are some challenges being faced in both subsistence and commercial farming? Subsistence Farming Challenges Commercial Farming Challenges In what two ways has population growth lead to the changes in subsistence agriculture? 1. 2. (make sure you understand what the term “intensification” means, you do not need to detail all of the various levels of fallow). btw, do you know what fallow means? Define here. What problem is faced by governments in LDCs as they try to expand production? How are funds generated by LDCs in order to purchase agricultural improvements? How is labor divided in LDCs with reference to subsistence farming and growing crops for export? What dilemma is faced by LDCs? To what export crop (in general) have many subsistence farmers in LDCs turned because of its lucrative return? (de Blij p 393 - 394) What organizations have arisen in response to US government efforts to crackdown on drug trafficking? What effect have organizations had on areas under their control? How are commercial farmers victims of own success? (skip “Importance of Access to Markets”) What has caused overproduction? Why has demand not increased with falling prices due to overproduction? What three methods does the government use to address the problem of overproduction? 1. 2. 3. What is sustainable agriculture? Briefly summarize the principle practices of sustainable agriculture? 1. 2. 3. Now that we’ve learned the main differentiation between types of agriculture (subsistence vs. commercial) and the challenges faced by each in the modern world, let’s go back and learn about the history of the development of agriculture.
Third Agricultural Revolution or the Green Revolution Rubenstein p 336 – 337 What were the two main practices that led to increased agricultural production during the 1970s and 1980s? Who won the Peace Prize for his development of the “miracle wheat seed”? In order to take advantage of the new seeds, what are farmers required to use? Therefore, what must governments in LDCs do in order to keep up the momentum of the Green Revolution? Read Global Forces, Local Impacts p 332 What does “GM” (GMOs) stand for? How widespread is the use of GM within the United States? Why LDCs (like those in Africa) be resistant to the adoption of GM crops? 1. 2. 3. What types of corporations control the GM crops? de Blij p 377 – 378 (this is the better discussion of this topic) How far back and to where does the Green Rev. really begin? With what crop was the Green Rev. MOST effective in increasing yields in Asia? Since the Green Revolution has increased production, what has caused most famines? Because of its focus on rice, wheat and corn, where has the Green Revolution been less effective? Why? Rubenstein p 339 – 340: Case Revisited/Africa’s Food Supply Crisis How did reality compare to Malthus’ thesis about the relationship of population growth to the increase in food supply? What region is not growing its food supply as rapidly as its population? Give details. In what two African sub-regions is this problem especially severe? 1. 2. What factors have contributed to the food-shortage crisis in the region describes under #2? a. b. c. d. Criticisms of the Green Revolution (de Blij p 378 – 381) (Make sure to read/understand the criticisms of Vandana Shiva) What are growing concerns regarding the higher inputs of chemical associated with the Green Revolution? What are some economic concerns connected with the Green Rev.? According to de Blij, why do some people have a problem with GMOs? How has the Revolution, increase tensions within rural households in Sub-Saharan Africa? What type of agricultural society has been most threatened by the impacts of modernization?