Population Geography

Demography -statistical study of human populations Demographers study pop. patterns & trends Use these statistics to predict future population changes

Why do we (city planners or other leaders) need to know about our population in the future?

Schools Roads Police & Fire Services Jobs Nursing Homes, Home Health, Housing for elderly Daycare Entertainment

Knowing pop. trends (either increasing or decreasing) can help govts. plan for future.

Population Density -avg. # of people per square mile Pop Density = number of people land area

Pop. Density in U.S. Counties Loving, TX Forest, WI Blue Earth, MN Honolulu, HI San Francisco, CA Manhattan, NY 0.10 p/sq. mi ,448 16,256 67,255

Case Studies Canada 8/sq.mi mil. pop 3,851,806 sq. mi. Most people live along s. border Bangladesh 2,361/ sq. mi. 131 million pop. 55,599 sq. mi. Pop. evenly distributed

Population Distribution Pop. is unevenly distributed Major pop. Clusters East Asia (China) South Asia (India) Europe Eastern North America (BOSWASH)

Why is the world’s population so unevenly distributed? People tend to live in areas that are favorable to settlement 90% live in N. Hemisphere- 2/3 in mid- latitudes Many cluster on fertile plains, near water. What areas would people avoid?

Top 10 Most Populated Countries 1.China 2.India 3.U.S. 4.Indonesia 5.Brazil 6. Pakistan 7.Russia 8.Bangladesh 9.Nigeria 10.Japan

Population Change The # of people in any place is the result of 3 major factors 1.Birthrate -# of births each year for every 1,000 people in an area 2.Death Rate -total # of deaths each year for every 1,000

3.Migration -the process of moving from one place to live in another. a. Emigrants -People who leave a country to live somewhere else b. Immigrants -People who come to a new country to live.

Geographers study migration by looking at push & pull factors 1.Push factor -things that make people leave a location (become an emigrant) 2.Pull factors -things that attract you to a new location (become an immigrant)

Push Factors Lack of jobs Discrimination Lack of religious freedom War Famine Natural Disasters Unpleasant climate

Refugees -People who are forced to leave their homes because of war or political unrest. – Ex: Albert Einstein – a Jew who fled Germany during the Holocaust.

Pull Factors Jobs Political Freedom Religious Freedom Education Reunite w/ Family Good Climate

Population Pyramids Shows the age & sex distribution of a population Shows the history of a country’s population growth—Ex. Baby Boom Generation in U.S.

Country’s pop. Pyramid can show 1 of 3 types of growth 1.Rapid growth-wide at the base (Ex: Haiti) …looks like a true pyramid 2.Slow growth- straight up and down or a little wider at base than top (Ex: US) 3.Negative growth-broader at top than bottom (Ex: Germany)

Brainstorming Reasons why some countries have high birth rates? (Have lots of children?) Reasons for high death rates? Reasons why some countries have low death rates? (Have few or no children?) Reasons for low death rates?

Stages of Population Growth Countries experience three stages of population growth as their economies develop. *Stage One: Birthrate and death rate are equally high *Stage Two: Birthrate remains high while the death rate declines *Stage Three: Birthrate and death rate are equally low