1. MIDDLE AMERICA II (CHAPTER 4: 196-221)

3. Natural
Resources

4. MAQUILADORAS Tijuana Ciudad Juarez Nogales Reynosa Matamoros Chihuahua
Monterrey

5. GDP PER CAPITA ALONG THE US-MEXICAN BORDER

6. MAQUILADORAS >4,000 maquiladoras >1.2 million employees
Initiated in the 1960s as coupon houses
Assembly plants that pioneered the migration of industries in the 1970s
Today
>4,000 maquiladoras
>1.2 million employees

7. MAQUILADORAS Modern industrial plants
Assemble imported, duty-free components/raw materials
Export the finished products
Mostly foreign-owned (U.S., Japan)
80% of goods reexported to U.S.
Tariffs limited to value added during assembly

8. MAQUILADORAS Maquiladora products Electronic equipment
Electric appliances
Auto parts
Clothing
Furniture

9. MAQUILADORAS Mexico gains jobs.
ADVANTAGES
Mexico gains jobs.
Foreign owners benefit from cheaper labor costs.
EFFECTS
Regional development
Development of an international growth corridor between Monterrey and Dallas - Fort Worth

10. NAFTA
Effective 1 January 1994
Established a trade agreement between Mexico, Canada and the US, which:
Reduced and regulated trade tariffs, barriers, and quotas between members
Standardized finance & service exchanges

11. NAFTA
How has Mexico
benefited from NAFTA?

12. MEXICO AND NAFTA Foremost, it promises a higher standard of living.
NAFTA creates more jobs for Mexicans as US companies begin to invest more heavily in the Mexican market.
Mexican exporters increase their sales to the US and Canada.
Is that the entire story?

13. U.S. TRADE WITH CANADA & MEXICO
Canada remains as the United States’ largest export market.
Since 1977, Mexico has moved into second place (displacing Japan).
85% of all Mexican exports now go to the United States.
75% of Mexico’s imports originate in the United States.

14. Middle & South America’s Vertical Climate Zones
ALTITUDINAL ZONATION
Middle & South America’s Vertical Climate Zones

15. ALTITUDINAL ZONATION TIERRA CALIENTE (Hot Land)
Middle & South America’s Vertical Climate Zones
TIERRA CALIENTE
(Hot Land)
Bananas, Cocoa, Sugar, Rice
2500’
750 m
Sea
Level
Sea
Level

16. ALTITUDINAL ZONATION TIERRA TEMPLADA (Temperate Land)
Coffee, Rice, Corn, Sugar
6,000’
1800 m
2000’
600 m
Sea
Level
Sea
Level

17. ALTITUDINAL ZONATION TIERRA FRIA (Cold Land) Corn, Wheat, Potato
12,000’
3,600 m
6,000’
2,000 m
2000’
600 m
Sea
Level
Sea
Level

18. Middle & South America’s Vertical Climate Zones
ALTITUDINAL ZONATION
Middle & South America’s Vertical Climate Zones
TIERRA HELADA
(Frost Land)
12,000’
3,600 m
6,000’
2,000 m
2000’
600 m
Sea
Level
Sea
Level

19. CENTRAL AMERICA

20. THE REPUBLICS Guatemala Belize Honduras El Salvador Nicaragua
Costa Rica
Panama

21. ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
Tropical Deforestation
3 million acres of woodland in Central America disappear each year!
What are the causes of
tropical deforestation?
What are the alternatives?

22. CAUSES OF TROPICAL DEFORESTATION
Clearing of rural lands to accommodate meat production and export
Rapid logging of tropical woodlands to meet global demands for new housing, paper, and furniture
Population explosion: forests are cut to provide crop-raising space and firewood
What is the solution?

24. THE
CARIBBEAN
BASIN

25. THE CARIBBEAN BASIN The Greater Antilles The Lesser Antilles Cuba
Hispaniola
Jamaica
Puerto Rico
The Lesser Antilles

26. TOURISM: A MIXED BLESSING?
Advantages
State and regional economic options
A clean industry
Educational
Disadvantages
Disjunctive development
Degrades fragile environmental resources
Inauthentic representations of native cultures

27. MIDDLE AMERICA II (CHAPTER 4: 216-235)