Fundamentals of Human Geography is a college-level digital textbook aimed at introducing undergraduate students to the field of human and cultural geography.

This digital textbook was initially conceived as an interactive supplemental guide for an open-source textbook on Human Geography (Introduction to Human Geography ). However, as more materials were added to this digital textbook, it slowly evolved into a standalone textbook on Human Geography which can be used by itself or as a supplemental guide. The textbook is divided in 13 chapters.

The syllabus for GGS 103_DL2: Human Geography as taught asynchronously as a distance learning course at George Mason University.

Word Count: 21682

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Introduction to Human Geography by Finlayson provides students with an accessible and concise introduction to the study of Human Geography. This text follows the approach of the successful open textbook World Regional Geography in offering students an engaging approach to geography informed by best practices in geography education. Introduction to Human Geography covers the key concepts and topics students need to succeed, providing commentary and reflection to help students deepen their understanding.

Human geography emphasizes the importance of geography as a field of inquiry and introduces students to the concept of spatial organization. Knowing the location of places, people, and events is a gateway to understanding complex environmental relationships and interconnections among places and across landscapes.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1: Introduction to Human Geography
Chapter 2: Population and Migration
Chapter 3: Cultural Patterns and Processes
Chapter 4: Political Borders, Boundaries, and Governments
Chapter 5: Sustainable Development
Chapter 6: Food, Water, and Agriculture
Chapter 7: Rural and Urban Landscapes
Chapter 8: Global Environmental Issues
Chapter 9: Living with Disasters

Geography is a diverse discipline that has some sort of connection to most every other academic discipline. This connection is the spatial perspective, which essentially means if a phenomenon can be mapped, it has some kind of relationship to geography. Studying the entire world is a fascinating subject, and geographical knowledge is fundamental to a competent understanding of our world. In this chapter, you will learn what geography is as well as some of the fundamental concepts that underpin the discipline. These fundamental terms and concepts will be interwoven throughout the text, so a sound understanding of these topics is critical as you delve deeper into the chapters that follow.

This book is about how to read, use, and create maps. Our exploration of maps will be informed by a contextual understanding of how maps reflect the relationship between society and technology, and how mapping is an essential form of scientific and artistic inquiry. We will also explore how mapping is used to address a variety of societal issues, such as land use planning and political gerrymandering. You will gain insight into the technical underpinnings of mapping as a science approach, complement on-going interest and activities, or provide an applied focus for research or policy.