Reflection

A) I learned how to think about foreign cultures and economies with an open mind and to not be intimidated by the differences between a foreign country and the US. I find things like the Central Place Theory to be most useful because I'll be living in a big city next year so that kind of information helps me understand how urban places work and what kinds of people you find in them.

B) I'm interested in learning more about economic geography and how it relates to tourism and change. I found the Turkish Fez reading pretty interesting so I'm curious if situations like that have arisen in other locations.

C) I would tell them it's a great class to take before going on study abroad because you actually learn things about your study abroad site that you probably wouldn't learn in a different seminar course.

News Summary 5: Denials of scholarships increased by 20% at the University of Seville

1. This article discusses the issue of many students having to drop out of college due to the inability to meet the cost of education. Increases in university fees and more restricted access to scholarships has caused many students to default on their payments. In Madrid alone, 7,000 students are late on their payments and face expulsion. At the University of Seville, 2,500 students have not yet made their course payments and the 30,000 that applied for a grant from the Ministry of Education do not yet know their standing on acceptance. The rejection rate has increased by 20%, so 13,000 students will be denied a scholarship, saving the government 2 million euros.

http://ccaa.elpais.com/ccaa/2013/06/04/andalucia/1370346575_056321.html

2. In class we discussed how GDP = C + G + I + NX. If more and more students are having to drop out of school and thus lose the opportunity to further their education that could lead to an easier time finding a job, then the consumption factor of the equation will be affected because unemployed people are less likely to consume goods and services so that variable would decrease. Although the government saved 2 million euros by denying 13,000 students a grant at the University of Seville alone, in the long run this will have a negative impact on GDP. In Econ 101 we learned that in order for long term economic growth to occur, investment in education has to be supported. Students unable to pay their course fees will have no choice but to drop out of school and their education suffers for it. So while the government saved money now, down the road this will have a negative impact on the economy.

3. It is probable that the economic crisis in Spain led to this unfortunate situation, however, the hardening of academic requirements also plays a large part. Many students are declined scholarships because they don't meet the requirements for that scholarship. Regardless, in order to fix this situation it is necessary for the government to expand the number of scholarships given to students so they don't have to drop out of school. In the long run, this will be more beneficial to the economy than saving money now.

City Analysis for Madrid

1. With a population of 3.234 million people, Madrid falls under regional metropolis in the Central Place hierarchy and is the largest city in Spain. A city of relatively similar size is Barcelona (population of 1.621 million). Valencia (population of 797,028) is considered a regional city, and Córdoba (population of 328,841) is considered a small city.

2. Madrid is the capital of Spain, so it has a great deal more to offer than small places. It has a world renowned metro system that extends throughout the city, and it is also a central hub connecting high speed railway systems that travel to other large cities within the country. There are endless varieties of restaurants and clubs in downtown Madrid as well as the surrounding areas, and the city is well known throughout the world as a hotspot for partying. The Museo del Prado is located in central Madrid and is a very popular tourist attraction, along with the Royal Palace and the Plaza Mayor Square. Festivals and celebrations occur year round that attract thousands of people to the city to participate, including San Isidro and Festival de Otoño. Although Madrid seems like it has it all, there are some things that you can't find there, and one of those things is a beach. Madrid is located in the center of the country, so getting to a beach requires a train ticket or a roughly 6 hour bus ride. There are a ton of street vendors in Madrid, but they most likely does not offer a wide variety of locally grown food, whereas smaller towns probably have a lot of local vendors lining the streets. Madrid provides seemingly endless entertainment and experience, which is what makes it such a popular city to both tourists and Spaniards alike.    

EGT Consulting Summary

Spain has a GDP of $ 1.347 trillion and a GDP per capita of $30,150 as of 2010, making it a relatively high income country. Despite the current economic crisis, most Spaniards are still able and probably willing to pay for a vehicle of greater luxury than a motor scooter, and therefore the market for scooters is most likely very low. The recent opportunity of product expansion in the auto industry has potential for creating jobs, so it would be wise for the client to expand its business in the sedan because it would provide employment and people are willing to pay for a car of better quality than the scooter. With Barcelona as the major port in Spain and an extensive railway system, it would be relatively easy to ship and trasport the sedans throughout the country.

News Summary 4: Spain received 14 million foreign tourists until April, up 2.5% from a year earlier

1. This article reports that Spain saw a 2.5% increase in the number of tourists that visited the country since April of 2012. Around 14 million tourists traveled to Spain, which is the highest amount of people in four years. There was a 1.9% increase in tourists from the United Kingdom, the largest tourist market for Spain, and the most popular tourist destinations remain the Canary Islands and Catalonia.

http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/1820945/0/turistas-extranjeros/espana/abril-2013/

2. In class we discussed how tourism is an export industry because of the services provided to tourists during their stay and the money they spend in the country they're visiting is a source of revenue. If there is an increase in tourism, then there is a positive impact on the export variable of the GDP = C + I + G + NX equation, so GDP would increase. Spain really needs this source of revenue right now since it is still in a financial crisis.

3. The article states that the increase in tourism to Spain is due to the increase of tourist markets such as France and the Nordic countries.

The Box Response

a) A selection from this chapter that I find particularly interesting is, "Even as it helped destroy the old economy, the container helped build a new one". We learned in class about how substitutes can be devastating to a market and this is a prime example of a shipping substitute causing many other shipping markets to go out of business. Levinson discusses how centers for maritime trade that had been around for hundreds of years couldn't adapt to the new demands of container trade and so they went out of business. Despite the loss of many different markets and jobs, the container was so revolutionary that it provided a more efficient market and was thus much more beneficial to the economy.

b) The author views the development of the shipping container as essential to globalization. It created a cheaper way to ship products in bulk across the world and, according to Levinson, without the container the world would be a very different place.

c) Larger businesses and consumers will most likely be gaining from this trasformation of global transportation. Container trade has provided a vast amount of goods to countries all over the world that previously wouldn't have had access to such a variety of products. The container made the cost of shipping much lower, so acquiring materials and resources has become easier for businesses. However, this decrease in cost has caused an increase in competition between businesses. Smaller businesses will lose the battle because they likely serve a local market and bigger companies will be able to offer the same products for a cheaper price. 

News Summary 3: Spanish emigration to Germany fires at the level of 40 years ago

1. This article discusses the rapid increase in emigration from Spain to Germany that has occurred since 2011. According the the German statistics office, the amount of Spanish immigrants to the country has increased by 45%. This magnitude of Spanish immigration to Germany hasn't occurred since 1973. Approximately 30,000 Spanish immigrants entered Germany since 2012. The likely reason for so many Spaniards to leave their country for Germany is that Germany has a relatively low unemployment rate (5.6%) and a healthy labor market. However, less than half of Spanish immigrants actually find work in Germany. Spain is one of many countries that are losing their citizens to Germany. Due to so many immigrants entering the country, Germany has begun to form various programs that will attract skilled workers from other countries.

2. With the loss of more and more citizens, Spain will likely experience decreases in consumption and investment, which will overall lower the National GDP. With less people available to work, the country will be less productive and will probably continue in its economic downward spiral.

3. The economic crisis in Spain led to this problem because people find it close to impossible to find any sort of job, so they really have no choice but to look elsewhere, especially if they have a family to support. Maybe Spain could find a way to follow Germany's lead and develop programs that would attract workers that are looking for jobs and hopefully lower the emigration rate from the country.