Chapter Outline

Use this outline to increase your understanding of the important characteristics of Europe.

1. First World Core -- The modern world economic system was established in this region. Trading and colonial activities spread European culture and political systems globally. Europe's countries are divided into six subregions.
2. Challenge and Change -- The process of overcoming economic, political, cultural, and environmental challenges made Western Europe into a region of great significance.

1. Division and Integration -- Early groups, like the Celts, Greeks, Romans, Germanic tribes, and Moors, laid the foundations of national borders and territories.
2. Europe Goes Global --The Vikings, feudalism, and exploration and discovery of the wider world were important to Europe.
3. Industrial Revolution -- Increased trade, growing demand, and technologic advances in Europe expanded industry into new products and increased production.
4. World Wars and Global Economic Changes -- Damage from the world wars was substantial and the United States and Japan became new economic leaders, but Europe remains very significant. Heavy industry is replaced by light industry and services.
5. Expanding Europe -- Efforts to create links between European countries lead to a series of organizations including NATO and the European Union. Negotiations concerning membership for countries in Eastern and Balkan Europe are recent issues.

3. World Issue: European Union -- The EU grew out of the desire to prevent another major war by linking European economies together. Economically very successful, member countries are dealing with the issue of how much political and social control to give up to the EU.
4. Natural Environment -- The natural environment changes rapidly over short distances.

1. Midlatitude West Coast Climates -- Climate is strongly affected by the closeness of seas and the ocean. Global warming and rising sea levels are a concern for the Netherlands and Venice, Italy.
2. Geologic Variety -- Geologic action has created many mountain ranges and other highlands.
3. Long Coastlines and Navigable Rivers -- The many peninsulas and seas create a very long, irregular coastline. Rivers are useful for transportation. The Rhine river is the world's busiest, has been made more navigable by canals, and suffers from heavy pollution. The Danube River is less important even though it flows through more countries.
4. Forests, Fertile Soils, and Marine Resources -- Forests and fish catches have been much reduced.
5. Natural and Human Resources -- Resources formed the basis of a series of technological advances, which in turn, fostered more and more new ideas.
6. Environmental Issues -- Deforestation, soil erosion, air and water pollution, and waste management are environmental concerns for all of Europe, but especially Eastern Europe.

5. Western Europe -- The earliest and most significant set of core countries in the world economy.

1. Countries -- France, Germany, and the United Kingdom are the leading countries of the industrial core.
2. People -- High population densities, very low birth rates, aging populations, and reactions against immigrants and guest workers are intertwined characteristics. Urbanization levels are very high.
3. Economic Development -- Better technology and EU price supports in agriculture produced a surplus of food production that now is trying to be curtailed. Changes in manufacturing vary by location and by industry. Manufacturing technology has not been updated as fast as in the U.S. and Japan. Western Europe is the world leader in trade. Multinational corporations are important. Services became more important, especially producer services and tourism. Each country has its own set of economic development issues, like Germany dealing with the costs of reunification. Regional development programs are significant, shifting from different ones in each country to a unified EU program.

6. Living in Germany -- Life in affluent Germany is similar, yet different, to life in the United States.
7. Northern Europe -- This region is sparsely populated, but very prosperous.

1. Countries -- Each of the five countries has different characteristics. Greenland and the Faeroe Islands are associated with Denmark and included in this region.
2. People -- Cold climates have kept populations small and pushed people to live in cities located toward the southern edges of this region. Lutheran is by far the most common religion.
3. Economic Development -- The region has very high per capita GDP levels. High-tech manufacturing, North Sea oil, mineral deposits, and forests contribute to economic success. Finland was affected by its closeness to the former Soviet Union.

8. Alpine Europe -- The Alps dominate the character of this region.

1. Countries -- Austria is a remnant of a larger empire, whereas Switzerland has remained neutral for centuries. The Swiss can be considered the wealthiest people in the world.
2. People -- Like the rest of Europe, population growth is slow and urban.
3. Economic Development -- High quality manufacturing, finance and banking, and tourism lead the Swiss economy. Vienna is one of Europe's great cities and Austria's tourism now surpasses Switzerland's.

9. Mediterranean Europe -- Increased assistance from membership in the EU is helping this region catch up with Western Europe.

1. Countries -- Greek ideas, the Roman Empire, and Spanish and Portuguese colonization played important roles in the development of Europe.
2. People --Italy and Spain have the lowest fertility rates in the world. Cultural differences between the countries and within the countries are important.
3. Economic Development -- Economic differences between northern and southern Italy and between rural and urban Spain remain substantial. The Po River Valley (Italy) is the most important industrial area. Tourism is significant throughout the region.

10. Eastern Europe -- These countries are changing from state to market capitalism and increasing ties with the rest of Europe.

1. Countries -- Includes the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Slovak Republic.
2. People -- Some areas are losing population because death rates are higher than birth rates. The region lacks cities of global importance. Most of the peoples are Slavic.
3. Economic Development -- Before 1991, industrialization, a modest service sector, and trade with each other and the Soviet Union were typical. Now these countries struggle to compete in the world economy and have suffered declines in income.

11. Balkan Europe -- Long-standing ethnic differences and political instability characterize this area.

1. Countries -- Past relations between the Soviet Union and the Balkan countries varied from Bulgaria's loyalty to Yugoslavia's independence.
2. People -- The population is becoming much more urbanized. Ethnic conflicts stem from Serbian desires to continue to dominate the region and from resistance on the part of Muslims, Croats, and Albanians in Bosnia and Kosovo.
3. Economic Development -- Slovenia and Hungary are doing relatively well, but Albania, Bulgaria, and Romania struggle to put their communist pasts behind them.

12. Living in Croatia -- Warfare, refugees, Serbian minority, strategically impossible territorial shape, and lack of support from Western Europeare problems facing Croatia since declaring its independencein 1991. Conditions are somewhat calmer in the late 1990s.
13. Landscapes of Europe -- Urban planning and government policies affected urban land use patterns throughout Europe. The rural economy became more diversified as urbanites moved to the countryside.
14. Future Prospects -- EU restrictions, government intervention, slower adoption of new technology, high energy and transportation costs, competition with other core regions, and problems with incorporating the former Communist countries of Eastern and Balkan Europe are issues for Europe in the coming decades.