Geography Courses |
Asian Geographies CoursesNUS250H0 This module is concerned with the changing roles of cities in an age of globalization. The first part examines cities as part of urban networks at the national, regional and international levels, and focuses on the implications arising from the rise of mega-cities and global cities. The second half of the module investigates the challenges facing cities on the ground, including issues of the revitalization and re-imaging of city cores, changing retail landscapes, and the impact of telecommunications on the location of urban activities and peoples’ mobility. The module is targeted at students with an interest in urban issues. (Co-listed as GE2204 National University of Singapore) NUS251H0 This module deals with a multi-disciplinary approach to understanding the regional geography of Southeast Asia. Students are expected not only to critically analyze their readings but also to be able to synthesize materials to provide a holistic understanding of the region. Specifically, it looks at the region through historical, cultural, social and political-economic perspectives. The module also discusses sustainable development issues. This is a module that is open to all students in the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, Engineering, Law, Science, School of Design & Environment and School of Business. (Co-listed as GE2226 National University of Singapore) NUS252H0 Southeast Asia has been, and still is comprised of predominantly rural and agrarian societies. This module seeks to develop an understanding of peasant life in the region. Topics to be studied include the village as a construct, the “moral economy” of the peasantry, land and man relations, economic output, and peasant beliefs, consciousness, and cultural expressions. With the peasants’ increasing involvement in the world market and the nation-state, it is also important to consider the penetration of capitalism into the rural economy, as well as the demand for supra-village identification and loyalties. Notions of “development” as they pertain to the peasants, and as postulated by the state, non-governmental organizations and the peasants themselves are also discussed. (Co-listed as SE3213 National University of Singapore) NUS253H0 This module examines relationships between economy and space through a focus on ‘development’. Through interrogating theories, strategies and trajectories of ‘development’, students will develop an understanding of the past and contemporary global political economy and its geographies. The course will emphasize the geopolitical and cultural backdrops to ‘development’ and attendant economic geographies amidst debates about ‘globalization’, international trade and investment. (Co-listed as SE2202 National University of Singapore) NUS254H0 This module explores debates in geography about social issues. It emphasizes the relationship between social identity and social space, and how different places reflect and shape diverse ways of life. The module examines the role of space in the interplay of different social groups (e.g. ethnic groups, men/women), and in relation to different aspects of daily life (e.g. housing, leisure). Its emphasis, however, is on how to think about these issues in different scales/contexts (streets, public spaces, global cities). The course is intended for geography majors, and students throughout NUS with an interest in the relationship between society and space. (Co-listed as SE2224 National University of Singapore) NUS255H0 Are Southeast Asian urban models unique from those of the West? This module uses historical and emerging developments to re-evaluate debates on Southeast Asian urbanization. The particularities of Southeast Asian urbanisation will be examined both in terms of its intertwined history with the rest of the world as well as the politics of time and space. The module aims at developing a critical understanding of the interaction between historical, political-economic and cultural processes that constitute urbanization in Southeast Asia. (Co-listed as SE2212 National University of Singapore) NUS256H0 This module attempts to understand the rationale of changes in Singapore’s urban landscape. It places these changes within a framework that considers Singapore’s efforts to globalize and examines how policies are formulated with the idea of sustaining an economy that has integral links sub-regionally with Southeast Asia while developing new spatial linkages that will strengthen its position in the global network. Emphasis is also given to recent discussions about how diversity and difference in the perception and use of space pose a challenge to the utilitarian and functional definition adopted by the state. (Co-listed as GEK2001/SSA2202 National University of Singapore) NUS350H0 This module examines important geographical, ecological and political concepts and approaches to natural resources management. In particular, we focus on ownership regimes, access, exploitation and conservation in different social, economic and cultural contexts. Detailed cases of fisheries, forestry, freshwater and agriculture conflicts and problems are discussed. (Co-listed as GE3210 National University of Singapore) NUS351Y0 The module exposes students to different geographical methods, both human and physical, and as such it is an ideal preparation for any student wishing to undertake further primary research at higher levels in geography, and other social science disciplines. After a series of lectures/seminars on fieldwork methods, fieldwork ethics, and health and safety issues in the field (which may include some basic introductory language classes), students then undertake a 2 – 5 week period of field study overseas, depending on logistical and other constraints. Previous field studies have been for periods of 4-5 weeks overseas in Thailand and Malaysia. While overseas, students undergo orientation workshops, meet peers in host universities, and visit potential field sites before conducting an intensive period of fieldwork in small groups of 3-5 students. (Co-listed as GE3230A at the National University of Singapore) NUS352H0 This module examines aspects of the geography of East Asia, which includes China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Korea. Emphasis is placed on the developmental processes and the underlying physical, political, socio-cultural and economic factors that account for their development. It evaluates various discourses on East Asian development and also assesses the impact of East Asian development on regional conflicts, patterns of social change, urbanization and sub-regional integration. (Co-listed as GE3209 at the National University of Singapore) NUS353H0 This module aims to provide students with an in-depth understanding of the social, political, and economic changes at various geographical scales with respect to globalization. More specifically, the module focuses on developing understandings of the complex forces driving globalization and the related urban and regional changes and the relationship between globalization and regionalization. This module is not just for geography students, but for all students who are interested in the urban and regional changes in the Asia-Pacific with respect to globalization and regionalization and the driving forces of the changes. (Co-listed as GE3219 at the National University of Singapore) NUS354H0 This module is concerned with understanding and assessing the development experiences of the South Asian countries. Students are expected to grapple with concrete case studies of development programs in their work. The coursework covers issues pertaining to rural, agricultural, urban, industrial and human development, as well as their impact upon people and the environment. Particular attention is given to the situation of the poor and the weak, including disadvantaged children, women, and ethnic minorities. (Co-listed as SN3232 at the National University of Singapore) Geography CoursesFirst-Year SeminarThe 199Y1 and 199H1 seminars are designed to provide the opportunity to work closely with an instructor in a class of no more than twenty-four students. These interactive seminars are intended to stimulate the students’ curiosity and provide an opportunity to get to know a member of the professorial staff in a seminar environment during the first year of study. Details here.
NOTE GGR100H1 Introduction to physical geography, with an earth systems approach. Topics include the atmosphere, weather and climate, Earth materials and plate tectonics, geomorphic processes and the genesis of landforms, glaciers, soils, and world biomes. Emphases placed on processes, energy flows, cycles and scale. Lab exercises and a local field trip provide practical experience with each major topic. GGR101H1 This course focuses on the rise and fall of ancient civilizations (i.e. Mesopotamia, China, India, Inca, Aztec) within the context of (1) environmental barriers encountered during the development of city-states, (2) the technology advancement made to overcome physical and climate barriers, and (3) the ways in which natural resources were exploited by ancient cultures. GGR107H1 Examines the relations between food, nature, and society. Food is fundamental to human existence, and central to most cultures – it also has significant and widespread effects on the physical environment. This course uses food as a lens to explore human-environment interactions locally and globally. It serves as an introduction to environmental geography. GGR124H1 Introduction to the urban process. From the origin of cities to global urbanization; the evolution of systems of cities; uneven growth and the functional specialization of cities; globalization and economic restructuring, migration, public policies. World cities. Dynamics of urban property markets, population and demography, job location, housing, mobility and neighbourhood change, social structure and spatial inequalities. Planning, politics and policy issues in U.S. and Canadian cities. GGR201H1 An introduction to the principles of geomorphology; earth materials; major features of crustal morphology; landforming processes of water, wind, waves and ice; human impact on earth surface processes. One hour laboratory session approximately every other week; a local field trip. GGR203H1 Introduction to the large scale processes responsible for determining global and regional climate and atmospheric circulation patterns, as well as the small scale processes responsible for determining the microclimates of specific environments. GGR205H1 Introduction to soil science dealing with the chemical, physical, and biological properties of soils; soil formation and development; the classification of soils, and the application of soil science to environmental, agricultural and forestry issues. GGR206H1 An introduction to the hydrologic cycle with emphasis on the physical processes, including precipitation, interception, evaporation, runoff, ground water and soil water. Basic hydrological models will be practised. GGR216H1 With films, fiction and critical theory, this course explores global cities from around the world by looking at their everyday life: the people of these cities; how they got to be there; what they do; and how they deal with increasingly globalized political, economic and cultural forces. JGI216H1 In this course, we examine the processes of globalization, mass urbanization and economic change that are taking place in cities around the world. This includes an interdisciplinary exploration of the locational and economic shifts that have ensued as a result of globalization, as well as the social and cultural manifestations associated with the emergence of global cities. GGR220H1 This course focuses on theoretical and empirical topics aimed at describing, analyzing and explaining the spatial distribution of economic activity at macro- and micro-spatial-scales. Topics covered could include theories of regional economic growth and change, issues surrounding uneven development in space, the empirical definition of regional economic systems, and the measurement of economic growth and structural change. GGR221H1 This course provides an introduction to economic geography and economic geography theory from THE 1970s on, illustrating the different ways that geographers have conceptualized the restructuring of resource industries, manufacturing and services. The crisis of Fordism and the rise of new production models will be given particular attention, along with the reorganization of finance, the rise of cultural industries and the globalization of commodity chains. New regimes of governance of the economy will also be considered. GGR222H1 Shows how environmental studies is working to knit different disciplinary perspectives into one interdisciplinary body of knowledge; interplay of science and values in definition and framing of issues; roles of markets, politics and ethics in developing solutions; local to global scale; historical and current timeframes. GGR240H1 An introduction to the historical geography of North America from the pre-Columbian period to the present. Topics include European imperialism, staple economies, colonial settlement, railroads and the West, industrialization and urbanization, environmental and agricultural change, modernism and militarism, and struggles over land. GGR241H1 An introduction to the historical geography of urban social exclusion and segregation afTER 1750. Using a selection of cities from around the world (such as Lagos, Pittsburgh, Hamburg, Mumbai and Nairobi), the course examines the impacts and implications of urban social inequalities. GGR246H1 Social and economic differences have been, and continue to be, a prominent feature of Canada’s geography. In this course these differences are examined at a regional and local scale. The course adopts a thematic approach and considers issues such as historical development, urbanization, industrialization, immigration and population change, Canada’s culatural mosaic and native issues. Emphasis will be placed on the evolution of social and economic policies and Canada’s incorporation into a global economy. GGR252H1 The problem of retail location. The spatial structure of consumer demand and retail facilities. Shopping centres and retail chains. Techniques for site selection and trade area evaluation, location strategies, retail planning. GGR254H1 After a short historical overview, this course focuses on contemporary issues in American society, economy, politics, race, regional distinctions and disparities, urban development and the U.S. as world power. GGR270H1 Theory and practical application of elementary quantitative techniques in geography emphasizing descriptive, inferential and spatial statistical analysis, probability, and sampling. GGR271H1 Practical course on field methods designed to enable students to carry out their own research projects. Behavioural observation, interviewing, questionnaire design, sampling theory, content analysis of written and graphic material, data coding and focus groups. GGR272H1 Introduction to digital mapping and spatial analysis using geographic information systems (GIS). Students learn how to use GIS software to find, edit, analyze and map geographic data to create their own maps, analyze geographic problems and use techniques that can be applied to a variety of subject areas. GGR273H1 Builds on GGR272H1 by providing students with practical spatial analysis methods and the underlying theory needed to understand how to approach various geographic problems using geographic information system (GIS) software and a variety of data types and sources. GGR299Y1 Credit course for supervised participation in faculty research project. Details here. GGR300H1 Content in any given year depends on instructor. The program in which the course can be used depends on its content. Consult Department Office in April. GGR301H1 Elements of drainage basin morphology and hydrology, classification of rivers, stream patterns and hydraulic geometry. Elements of open channel flow, sediment transport and the paleohydrology of river systems. River channel adjustments to environmental change, human impact and the management/design of river habitats. Exercises include experimentation in a laboratory flume. GGR303H1 Discussion of the exchange of energy and matter (carbon, water) between the Earth’s biosphere (terrestrial vegetation) and atmosphere, with a focus on processes underlying key feedbacks on regional climate. Examples will be taken from research on contemporary as well as paleoclimate systems. Case studies to include how human disturbances like land-use change or future climate change may alter these processes. GGR305H1 The course identifies and explains plant and animal distributions through space and time. Topics covered include ecological and evolutionary dynamics, disturbance, dispersal, migration, continental drift, paleoenvironments and island biogeography. We will also examine terrestrial and marine biomes, microbial ecosystems and address recent biogeographic changes associated with human impact. GGR307H1 An introduction to physical and chemical processes operating at micro- to landscape scales and their effects on soil and water quality. Discussion of anthropogenic impacts and management and conservation issues. Local and international case studies. GGR308H1 We will explore the geomorphology, soils, and hydrology, followed by biogeochemical cycling, limnology and food web structures of the Arctic and Subarctic. GGR314H1 A comprehensive examination of the greenhouse warming problem, beginning with economic, carbon cycle, and climate model projections; impacts on and adaptive responses of agriculture, forests, fisheries, and water resources; abatement options; technical and institutional issues. GGR320H1 This course examines recent changes in global migration processes. Specifically, the course addresses the transnationalization and feminization of migrant populations and various segments of the global labor force. The coursework focuses on analyzing classical paradigms in migration studies, as well as emerging theoretical approaches to gender and migration. In addition, it traces the shifting empirical trends in gendered employment and mobility patterns. It uses in-depth case study material to query the frameworks employed in migration studies and to understand the grounded implications of gendered migration. It pays particular attention to the interventions made by feminist geographers in debates about work, migration, place, and space. JUG320H1 The idea of wilderness permeates narratives of Canadian national identity, while policy-makers seek to manage and contain natural areas. This course compares and contrasts historical and contemporary wilderness narratives in literature, painting and film with policies in areas such as conservation, urban planning, land claims and tourism. JAG321H1 This course explores Aboriginal views of environment and resource management from pre-European contact times through to the present from an Aboriginal perspective. Emphasis will be placed on the emerging role of Aboriginal people in environmental and resource management in Canada. Topics to be covered include: history of Aboriginal/non-Aboriginal relations, Aboriginal world view and philosophy, Aboriginal environmental ethics and principles and current environmental issues confronting Aboriginal people. JGE321H1 Diverse approaches to environmental issues from a variety of multicultural perspectives are introduced, compared and analyzed, using case studies. Perspectives on environmental management will be discussed as they emerge from contexts such as South America, Asia, or Africa. GGR323H1 Explores issues in the geographies of population at a variety of scales from global to local. Topics include an investigation of the mechanics of population growth, theories of population, population growth through time, migration, the impact of population growth on the environment and the social and economic consequences of population change. GGR327H1 An introduction to the work of feminist geographers. The course will explore the relationship between gender and space, emphasizing spatial cognition, architecture, and layout of the city. GGR328H1 This course explores changes in the nature of work and the structure and geography of labour markets. Topics will include globalization, lean production, flexibility and risk, industrial relations, workfare, the body at work, and gender and work. GGR329H1 This course introduces major issues and theories related to sustainability, trade, equity and health in the global food system. Particular attention is directed to comparative farming systems and diasporic (transnational cultural) cuisines in relation to several intergovernmental policies and civil society movements. JGE331H1 Introduction to and critical evaluation of major social theoretical paradigms applied to environmental and natural resource politics and regulation. Topics include: neo-classical approaches, eco-Marxism, political ecology, social constructivism, production of nature, ecological modernization, tragedy of the commons, staples theory, science and administrative rationalism. GGR332H1 This course examines 1) factors affecting the spatial distribution of wastes; and 2) models and policy implications inherent in all aspects of waste management, from waste generation through recycling and waste disposal. Contrasting waste management practices in the developed and the developing world is a central theme. GGR333H1 Examines the technical and economic potential of advanced fossil-fuel-supply technologies, renewable energy (solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, ocean, hydro), and the potential for more efficient end use of energy in the residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation sectors. Also discusses: innovative energy systems, global scenarios, policy implications. GGR334H1 Managing demand and supply; linkages between water quality and human health. Case studies from the industrial world and from developing countries, rural and urban. Implications of population growth and climate change for water resource management. GGR335H1 Steadily increasing pressure on biospheric resources (eg. water) and sinks (eg. the atmosphere) requires business to adapt and innovate, while simultaneously responding to globalization and the information revolution. Examples include the financial services sector, as well as energy, transportation, tourism and resource-based industries. GGR336H1 Processes of urbanization; development of urban systems; changing internal patterns: central area, residential districts, housing, transportation, reform and planning movements. Emphasis on the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. GGR337H1 Principles of optical, active and passive microwave remote sensing; satellite orbit and sensor characteristics; image processing and analysis techniques and software; and environmental remote sensing principles. GGR338H1 Describes and analyses a broad range of the key environmental issues currently facing developing countries from geographical perspectives. Emphasis is on air pollution, water contamination and treatment, residential and industrial solid waste collection and management, with multimedia and written examples drawn from throughout the developing world. GGR339H1 The interdependence of political processes and institutions, public policy and urban geography. The political economy of federalism, urban growth, planning and public services as they shape the urban landscape. The spaces of the city as the negotiated outcomes of variously empowered people and the meanings they ascribe to localities and places. Approaches informed by post-colonial, post-modern, and feminist perspectives. Canadian, U.S. and European comparisons. GGR340H1 An exploration of the aspects of health in which place or location matters. Particular attention will be paid to the role of environments (physical, social, etc.) in explaining differences in health between places, the structuring of health-related behaviour in place, and the development of health policy for places. GGR341H1 This course seeks to develop a general understanding of present-day Latin America by focusing on hu7man-environment interactions, past and present. Case studies are used to understand the diversity of Latin American landscapes (physical and cultural), and how they are changing within the context of globalization. DR=SOC SCI; BR=TBA GGR342H1 Examines changes in the social, political and economic geography of Southeast Asian countries. Examples drawn from Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines as these emerging newly industrialized countries enter the 21st century. Emphasis on political-economy, urbanization and environment siNCE 1950. GGR343H1 The evolving physical, social, political and economic landscape of China. Focus on development strategies, industry, agriculture, urbanization and the environment siNCE 1949. Special attention paid to the character and impact of China’s on-going transition from a planned to market economy. GGR344H1 Overview of the physical environment and historical geography; changes in population distribution during the Soviet period; current demographic and ethnic problems; the rural economy; urbanization, industrial location, and regional development issues. JGI346H1 An overview of how planning tools and practice shape the built form of cities. This course introduces twentieth century physical planning within its historical, social, legal, and political contests. Community and urban design issues are addressed at local and regional scales and in both central cities and suburbs. The focus is on Toronto and the Canadian experience, with comparative examples form the other counties, primarily the United States. JGE347H1 The course examines the options available for dramatically reducing our use of primary energy with no reduction in meaningful energy services, through more efficient use of energy at the scale of energy-using devices and of entire energy systems. Topics covered include generation of electricity from fossil fuels and energy use in buildings, transportation, industry and agriculture. JGE348H1 The course examines the options available for providing energy from carbon-free energy sources: solar, wind, biomass and nuclear, as well as through sequestration of carbon from fossil fuel sources. GGR352H1 This course will investigate the changing nature of space and our thinking about it, centering on works of contemporary geographers and spatial theorists such as Lefebvre, Soja, Gregory, Harvey, Massey and others as well as challenges to this thinking - voices from the margins or peripheries. It will explore changing conceptions of spatiality that inform geographic thought and that help us understand the ways in which political, economic and social power is constituted and contested in and through the control of space. GGR356H1 Introduction to spatial organization and environmental impact of recreation. Prediction of demand, problems of over-use, ecological risks, conflicts of interests, planning perspectives, Canada’s tourist trade. GGR358H1 The intersection of geography and political economy has been well-studied in recent years. Political economists have been interested in the ways that governments and markets intersect, while geographers have been concerned with how space influences this intersection. What happens when religion is included as a variable? This broad question has only recently begun to receive significant attention by geographers. What happens, for example, when the welfare state is replaced partially or wholly, by faith-based social service providers? Do the assumptions of the secular welfare (universality, equity, etc.) change or are they simply delivered differently? Do such changes affect the landscape of the welfare state, religion, or both? This class focuses on applied questions of this sort, with the broader aim of exploring the various intersections of political economy, geography, and religion. GGR360H1 The history of approaches to the idea of landscape. A consideration of the origins and uses of the term in geographical inquiry will be followed by a series of case studies, global in scope, from the Early Modern period to the present. Emphasis will be placed on the representational aspects of landscapes, as well as struggles over their definition, interpretation, and use. GGR361H1 Three related themes are discussed: the underlying social, cultural and economic forces that have given cities their form and image; various aesthetic and political philosophies that have been put into practice in constructing the urban landscape; and recent European and North American attempts to control the landscape of the contemporary metropolis by the application of urban policy and planning. GGR363H1 This course introduces a diversity of critical perspectives for geographers and others, including anarchism, Marxism, feminism, sexual politics, ‘postcolonialism’, anti-imperialism and anti-racism. In so doing it illustrates how such radical ideas about space, society and culture have contributed to our political thought and action. GGR366H1 Toronto’s development compared to other large North American cities. Culture, social life, economy, politics, and planning process. GGR371H1 This course is designed to give students exposure to advanced quantitative techniques including inferential applications of the simple regression model, multiple regression analysis (MRA), data screening for MRA, model building issues in MRA, qualitative independent variable models, discrete choice models, cluster analysis and forecasting methods. GGR373H1 Advanced theory, techniques, and applications in geographic information systems (GIS), including interpolation, geostatistics, modeling, and raster and vector analysis. GIS project design and implementation. GGR374H1 This course will investigate the theory and methods available to help identify and measure the social and economic impacts of specific policies and/or exogenous changes at the urban and regional scales. Emphasis will be placed on understanding the potential of policy mechanisms for promoting the revitalization of urban areas through the re-use of former industrial/commercial/institutional properties. GGR375H1 This course will examine the great moments and issues surrounding the constant evolution, revolution and demand for geographic information. The emphasis will be put on the exploration of geographic information’s progression from paper to digital through an examination of societal changes brought on by information technologies over time. The focus will be placed on the demand for geographic information within an historical, political, and intellectual context. The range of topics examined throughout the course will include the migration of geographic information from paper mapping to digital mapping; interoperability; open source and open access; evolving data cultures; government control of data and information; and geospatial analysis. GGR381H1 Introduction to field studies in environmental geography. The course includes exercises and a project during a one-week field study in late August or early September, some preparation during the preceding summer and complementary practical work and/or seminars during the Fall Term. Each student is required to pay the costs of their transportation and accommodation. Students must register with the Department by April. Course may be limited by size. GGR382H1 Introduction to field studies in human geography. The course includes exercises and a project during a one-week field study in late August or early September, some preparation during the preceding summer and complementary practical work and/or seminars during the Fall Term. Each student is required to pay the costs of their transportation and accommodation. Students must register with the Department by April. Course is limited by size. Preference given to Geography SPE/MAJ/MIN. Applications open to all students GGR390H1 Introduction to field methods in vegetation mapping/analysis, soils, hydrology, climatology and geomorphology. The course includes exercises and a project during a one-week field camp just before the start of classes, a little preparation during the preceding summer, and complementary practical work and/or seminars during the Fall Term. Each student is required to pay the costs of their transportation and accommodation. Students must register with the Department by April. Course may be limited by size. GGR391H1 A seminar course in which each student prepares a research proposal incorporating relevant theory, published research, sources of data, and methods of enquiry and analysis. A proposal prepared in this course may be used to plan research for GGR491Y1. GGR398H0 GGR399Y0 An instructor-supervised group project in an off-campus setting. Details here. GGR400H1 Content in any given year depends on instructor. The program in which this course can be used depends on its context. Consult Departmental Office in April. GGR403H1 Seminar course on biogeochemical cycling of carbon, water, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and iron between the Earth’s atmosphere, oceans, and biosphere. Focus will be placed on the global carbon cycle, including how other biogeochemical cycles feedback on carbon-based processes and mechanisms. Examples and case studies will be taken from research on contemporary as well as paleoclimate systems. GGR409H1 Are we experiencing a subclinical epidemic of subtle adverse health effects due to chemical contaminants in our bodies? The environmental behaviour and toxicology of inorganic and organic chemical contaminants is discussed in order to understand the scientific basis of this question.. Facility is gained with simple mathematical models. The interface between science and policy are discussed throughout. GGR413H1 Modern developments in hydrology and ecology, including form and process models, interactions of hydrology, ecology and geomorphology; the course emphasizes use of computer simulation models of drainage basin processes. GGR416H1 Environmental impact assessment (EIA) as a mechanism for avoiding or mediating the potential costs of development. Focuses on the theory and practice of EIA in Canada in general and Ontario in particular. Using a broad definition of “environment”, various components of EIA are addressed, with an emphasis on principles, legal and institutional frameworks, stages in the process, and specific analytical techniques. GGR418H1 Examines political aspects of the appropriation of natural resources, including policy and regulation, environmental impacts, and social justice. Emphasis is placed on reading contemporary literature on the politics of resource access and control from geography and other social science disciplines. GGR419H1 The course examines how environmental problems affect people, communities and societies differentially and how marginalized communities and people often bear the brunt of environmental costs, while contributing little to their creation. It uses readings and case studies from across the globe to address the production of environmental injustive and the struggle for environmental justice. GGR421H1 The history of geography as an intellectual subject, focusing primarily on the modern period, and on the genealogy of central concepts such as region, landscape, and place. Disciplinary developments will be situated next to broader contexts, including imperialism and militarism, the relationship between culture and nature, and the shifting social role of the academy. GGR424H1 An introductory overview of major issues in interurban and intraurban transportation at the local, national and international scale. Topics include urban transportation, land use patterns and the environment, causes of and cures for congestion, public transit, infrastructure finance, and transport planning and policy setting. GGR431H1 Theory and analysis of regional economic change with emphasis on North America and Western Europe. Export-base, neoclassical, increasing returns, and political-economic explanations of regional growth and decline, globalization, knowledge-based economy and the role of regions. Geography of technological change, labour-markets and labour relations. Objectives and approaches for local and regional development policy, including talent-based strategies for enhancing local creativity. GGR438H1 Examines the implications of development – as an economic and social project – for how the environment is used, by whom, and to what ends. Topics include: interpretations of scarcity and degradation, questions of consumption, the greening of development, and formations of social movements at the interface of development and the environment. GGR439H1 Introduction to geopolitical theories. Emphasis on the development of the nation state, theories of land claims and the territorial manifestations of nationalism. Will examine recent theoretical as well as empirical challenges to many of the conventional geopolitical assumptions about scale, space, and power in global politics. Please note that this course is open to students who have taken GGR239H1 (formerly Global Political Geography). GGR452H1 The changing nature of space and our thinking about it, centering on works of contemporary geographers and spatial theorists such as Lefebvre, Soja, Gregory, Harvey, Massey and challenges to this thinking. Explores changing concepts of spatiality that inform geographic thought and help us understand the ways political, economic and social power is constituted and contested. JGI454H1 This course will focus on the role of a planning practitioner in contemporary society using a wealth of examples drawn from recent issues and debates in Canadian cities and regions. The course will walk students through the demands made of planners in terms of both technical expertise as well as political necessity and ask them to think actively about how to prepare for the extraordinary growth of cities during the next century. Examples of issues that will be discussed in some detail include the myths surrounding the city vs. the suburbs, the creativity and passion involved in planning work and the need to see Toronto’s future from a regional perspective. GGR457H1 This course investigates post-war suburbs, beginning with an examination of their competing contemporary meanings. It considers images of prosperous private enclaves, of declining and difficult to access places, of racialized and segregated areas, of banality and homogeneity, of precarity and polarization, and of creative social struggles. It assesses these different visions through an analysis of urban growth and change since WWII. The course will focus on themes of public and private space; class, race and segregation; gender and suburban space; immigration; ‘urban sprawl’, and the changing social and economic geography of the suburbs. It examines North American areas, with examples from Australia and Europe. GGR458H1 Though there is some debate about the actual moment, we have either already surpassed or will very soon exceed the point when over 50 percent of the earth’s inhabitants live in cities. In most developed countries, the rate of urbanization is well over 70 percent already. In short, the twenty-first century is rapidly shaping up as the urban century. The social, economic and political significance of cities is thus increasingly important to understand. This course will cover advanced work on the geography of cities to further this understanding. The first third of the course will cover foundational ideas in urban geography while the final two thirds will cover two separate contemporary topics in the field. The course will be useful for those broadly interested in the topic or more particularly interested in preparing for a career in urban planning or policymaking. GGR462H1 Students work in groups to develop their own research project and then acquire, organize and analyze geographic data to complete it. Emphasis is placed on research design, project management and the application of GIS concepts and skills learned in previous courses to a practical problem. JFG470H1 Application of operational research and information technology to develop decision support systems for forest land management planning. Basic principles of mathematical programming, simulation and decision analysis, and their application to planning for forest conservation and sustainable development, policy analysis and other land management planning problems. GGR473H1 The design and production of maps using GIS cartographic and graphics software packages. Map perception and map use, principles and elements of cartographic design, data acquisition and manipulation, production and reproduction of maps and atlases. Practical exercises culminate in a major project in thematic map design. JFG475H1 Use of operational research and information technology to develop mathematical models and decision support systems to design and evaluate the performance of emergency response systems. Forest fire management systems are used to illustrate the basic principles of emergency response system planning that can also be applied to urban fire, police, and ambulance services. GGR490H1 A two-week course emphasizing the use of advanced field methods for analyzing the pattern of variations in vegetation, soils, surface hydrology and geomorphology in montane and alpine environments. Course is offered in August at the University of Calgary’s field station, Kananaskis, Alberta. Students are responsible for the cost of board, lodging and transport to and from the field. Students must register with the Department in March. (Offered in alternate years) GGR491Y1 A course specially designed for students wishing to gain experience in conducting research in their area of specialization. Of particular value for geographers interested in graduate study, or positions in government, planning and consulting firms where research skills may be an asset. Students select a research problem and complete a project under the supervision of a faculty member. Enrolment requires written permission from a faculty supervisor and GGR492H1 Students design and implement an independent applied geography/planning project in consultation with an employer (paid or volunteer), who will act as their “client.” Enrolment requires written permission from a staff supervisor and Undergraduate Coordinator. Only open to students who are enrolled in a Specialist or Major program sponsored by the Department of Geography.
Students design and implement an independent applied geography/planning/GIS
project in consultation with an employer (paid or volunteer), who will
act as their “client”. Enrolment required written permission from a staff supervisor
and Undergraduate Coordinator. Only open to students who have completed
10
FCEs and who are enrolled in a Specialist, Major or GIS minor program sponsored
by the Department of Geography GGR498H1 An independent research extension to one of the courses already completed in Physical Geography. Enrolment requires written permission from a faculty supervisor and Undergraduate Coordinator. Only open to students who have completed 10 FCEs and who are enrolled in a Specialist or Major program sponsored by the Department of Geography. GGR499H1 An independent research extension to one of the courses already completed in a social science or humanities branch of Geography. Enrolment requires written permission from a faculty supervisor and Undergraduate Coordinator. Only open to students who have completed 10 FCEs and who are enrolled in a Specialist or Major program sponsored by the Department of Geography. |
Exclusion: