Settlement and Development of Russia and the Eurasian Republics

​Settlement and Development of Russia and the Eurasian Republics

• Explain what factors have caused people to settle in specific parts of Russia and the Eurasian republics

• Describe the adaptations and incentives that Russia is making to improve settlement

• Interpret data to describe settlement patterns

​Objectives/Goals

​Vocabulary

• Arable

• Icebreakers

• Trans-Siberian Railway

​Essential Question: What challenges have the people of Russia, and the Eurasian republics faced when attempting to settle in the region?

Open Ended

Where in the World is Comet?

(Specific Place Name, City, and Country)

Clue 1: This country's nickname is "The Land of Fire"

Clue 2: This country has many natural gas and oil reserves.

Clue 3: This country is the second largest city in the country.

Clue 4: This place was built by Ibrahim Jafarov.

Clue 5: This place is very beautiful and colorful built from recycled items.

Where in the World is Comet?

​Population Density

• The variety of physical geography, landscapes, and physical features creates unique and different population density patterns. 

• What information can you tell from this map?

  • Densely Populated vs. Sparsely populated

  • West vs East

• What information can you not tell from this map?

  • Location within the region

  • Size of Urban areas

  • Change over time

​Population Density in Urban Areas (1 million or more people)

• The variety of physical geography, landscapes, and physical features creates unique and different population density patterns. 

• What information can you tell from this map?

  • Location of cities

  • Lower Latitudes vs. higher latitudes

• What information can you not tell from this map?

  • Cities with less than 1 million

  • Capital City Population

  • Jobs/Industry of Cities

​Population Density Map Re-cap

• There are areas that are very densely populated and there are areas that are sparsely populated.

• There are more areas that are densely populated in the west; there are more areas that are sparsely populated in the east.

• The Russian cities with more than one million people are all located in western Russia.

• The largest cities are clustered in lower latitudes.

• There are not many large cities at high latitudes.

​Let's Discuss...

1. How does the information on the population density maps connect to what you already know about the physical features of Russia?

2. What are some questions you have about these maps or this region?

Pull Factors of Major Cities

• Pull Factors

  • Economic Opportunities

  • Educational Opportunities

  • Culture/Arts/Entertainment

  • Accessible Public Transportation

  • Connectivity to other Regions

  • Available Housing

  • Less Harsh Climate

  • Located in Lower Latitudes

  • Located in more flat regions

• Moscow, Russia - Capital City - Public Transportation, Entertainment, Universities, Housing Options

• St. Petersburg, Russia - Culture Center (architecture, art and theater center, White Night festival)

• Novosibirsk, Russia - Industrial Center (medical production, food processing, tin smelting, gold refining, heavy machinery for agriculture and aviation)

• Yekaterinburg, Russia - Economic Center (Factories produce oil extraction equipment and steam turbines, titanium manufacturing)

• Almaty, Kazakstan - Commercial and Financial Center (housing market, industrial production zones)

• Tashkent, Uzbekistan - Capital City - Cultural Center (Skyscrapers, malls, entertainment and business)

Industry and Extreme Climate

• There are not many large cities at high latitudes, but there are a few. 

• One major challenge for people to settle in some parts of this region is the harsh climate, with limited vegetation and useable soil, arid regions in the steppes, limited diversity of resources, and extreme temperatures. 

9. Sparsely Populated

   • Building Roads

   • Building Factories

   • Transporting Construction Resources

   • Rich Resources but lack of ways to access resources

   Arable Land to grow crops

   • Only 7% of Russian land is able to be farmed

• Transportation of Resources

  • Ice-Breaker Ships: a special type of ship with the power to push through ice

  • Trans-Siberian Railway: built to transport food, natural resources, and other goods across Russia. It connects Moscow in the West to Vladivostok in the east. 

  • Siberia is sparsely populated because of the rugged terrain and limited job opportunities 

​Challenges to Settlement

• Harsh Climate

  • Temperature Range

  • Severe Weather

  • Agriculture

    • Limited Growing Time

    • Permafrost

  • Building

    • Infrastructure

    • Industry

    • Home

  • Remote Locations

• Rugged Terrain (Siberia)

  • Transportation

  • Communication

  • Limited Job Opportunities

​Climate Change and Its Impact

• Rising Temperatures

  • Melting Permafrost = Rise of Methane and Carbon Dioxide levels

• Changing Weather Patterns

  • Less rain = drought/dust storms

  • More rain = floods

  • Disruption to agriculture

• Melting Glaciers

  • Lack of water in rivers

  • Lack of water for irrigation and drinking

• Military Presence

  • Uninhabited land is now accessible and livable

  • Arctic Boundary and the Need to protect it and its Resources

• Land Claims

  • Challenges the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea - claiming they should have more of the Arctic

​Adaptions to These Challenges

• Communities have adapted to living in these harsh and rugged climates

  • Siberia

    • Homes with thick walls and strong roofs

    • Fur/wool-lined clothing

    • Insulation for cars

  • Steppes

    • Nomads - Herding animals (Sheep, horses, etc...)

    • Irrigation for agriculture

  • Flood Zones

    • Houses on stilts

​Incentives for Settlement

• Russia's Government is trying to encourage people to settle in newly accessible land

  • Incentives/Subsidies (Money paid to move and live somewhere)

  • Tax Breaks

  • Infrastructure Development

• 2016 Law on the Far East: gave free hectares (2.5 acres) of land for people who chose to move and live there

Open Ended

If you were to move to one area of this region of the world, where would you move and how would you adapt to living in this region?

Be sure to use an example from today's lesson.