Latin America Geography - Essay Example

A reflection on how the human population has transformed Latin America's geography helps in understanding how it influences the political future and institutions of the region.
The human population has changed and continues to change the landscape from a natural to a cultural landscape in various ways. One of the significant ways that have seen a transformation of the landscape is through increasing agricultural activities. This has been intense, especially with the rising human population. Humans have cut, cleared, and burned forests for agricultural activities (Erickson, n.d.). An example of a human-built landscape is the area next to Lake Titicaca (Erickson, n.d.). In this area, there have been heightened agricultural activities. In the last eighth century, the environment in the basin has changed into an artificial landscape (Erickson, n.d.). This has been mainly due to raised fields, terracing, and irrigation activities that are related to agriculture.

The other factor that leads to a change in landscape is the clearing of forests. The region has witnessed a massive loss of forest cover for a long period. The region is noted to have had the world’s highest loss of forest cover in the recent past (Pacheco et al., 2011). However, extensive forest transformation has been witnessed in the Amazon basin (Pacheco et al., 2011). As the authors note, the huge population in the region relies on forest resources to support their livelihoods (Pacheco et al., 2011). The population also comprises ranchers and farmers that continue to clear forests to create space for their activities. As a result, most of the land that was previously occupied by trees is left bare.

The changing geography in the region has a profound impact on the regional political future and institutions. One of the issues related to change is the rise in conflict between people, countries, and regions in the area. For example, there has been increasing conflict over the use of resources such as those that come from the forest. On the other hand, failure to guard resources for sustainable development may lead to political instability as some sections of society feels marginalized in terms of resource use (Bartschi, n.d.). The institutions are also likely to be faced with challenges emanating from landscape change. For example, forest clearing is likely to lead to changes in climate that may lead to the unavailability of food. As a result, countries will be forced to look for alternative ways of feeding the population.

The landscape will continue to change. This is due to the rising human population that will require additional space. In my opinion, I believe that the human population in this region and others should strive towards sustainable living. This will help in reducing landscape damages that may lead to conflict and other ills. Read More