Glossary

biodiversity

The variety of living organisms on earth and the recognition of the need to maintain and protect this diversity.

biosphere

The realm of earth that includes all plant and animal life forms.

citizenship

Formally defined as membership of a nation-state that brings certain rights and privileges. Active and informed citizenship involves participation in community activities and public affairs.

civics

An identifiable body of knowledge, skills and understanding relating to the organisation and working of society, including a country’s political and social heritage, democratic processes, government, public administration and judicial system.

communities

Refers to two human elements of environments: shared space and shared social organisation.

culture

Body of beliefs, attitudes, skills and tools by which communities structure their lives and interact with their environments.

democratic processes

The strategies whereby individuals and groups participate in decision-making about governance, rights and values.

ecological dimension

Describes the relationship between people and the environment and the effect that they have on each other.

ecosystem

A system formed by the interaction of all living organisms (plants, animals, humans) with each other and with the physical elements of the environment in which they live.

environment

Includes the physical and biotic elements of the earth together with those features altered by people.

geographical issues

Areas of concern which arise due to changes resulting from the interaction within environments which can be investigated from spatial and/or ecological dimensions.

geographicals processes

The combination of physical and human forces that form and transform our world.

human environment

Includes those parts of the total environment altered or created by people.

local scale

A scale of human organisation large enough to include distinct social, cultural and economic activity, yet small enough to provide familiar study.

majority world

A term used to describe and group the world’s poorest countries which dominate in terms of population and the area of the earth’s surface they occupy (previously referred to as ‘developing’, ‘South’ and ‘Third World’ countries).

physical environment

Includes water, air, living things, earth and sunlight.

nation-state

The political unit of people living in a defined territory, with government authority in their economy, political organisation and external security.

political organisation

Refers to the formal scales of the state, from local and regional to national and international, and to other structures where people are organised into political activity, eg a residents’ action group.

social/

Includes individuals, groups and all social/cultural institutions, practices and

cultural factors

processes, such as technological, political, economic, aesthetic, religious.

spatial dimension

Describes where things are and why they are there.

spatial

The degree to which phenomena depend on each other for development and/or

interdependence

survival. Spatial interdependence implies that a spatial association exists.

sustainability

The ability to meet the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.