| A | B |
|---|
| TERM | DEFINITION |
| apartheid | a policy of racial separation used in South Africa from 1948 to 1990 |
| aquifer | an underground layer of rock and sand that contains water |
| arable | land that is suitable for planting crops |
| arid | a climate that is dry with very little rainfall |
| autocracy | a government system where one leader holds complete power |
| capital resources | man-made things we use to help us work, like factories, machines and technologies |
| communism | a political theory that all goods and property should be owned by a whole society rather than by individual people |
| confederation | a loose alliance of countries, states, and other political units |
| conservation | to take care of OR protect something |
| contaminated | when something is impure or unclean |
| corrupt | lacking integrity, being dishonest or immoral |
| culture | a set of values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviors among a group of people |
| currency | used to buy goods and services |
| deforestation | the loss of forest from cutting down too many trees |
| democracy | a type of government where the people in the country hold supreme power |
| desalination | the removal of salt, especially from sea water |
| desertification | the process by which the desert spreads and soil loses its ability to hold water |
| dictator | a ruler with absolute power and authority |
| diversity | being different |
| drought | a long time with little or no rain |
| embargo | an official ban on trade or other commercial activity with a particular country |
| entrepreneur | someone who has an idea for a good or service and takes the risk to produce it |
| ethnic | a group of people who have the same language, culture or religion |
| famine | an extreme scarcity of food in a region |
| federal | a type of government where a group of states (or other small political units) give certain power and authority to a central government |
| GDP | Gross Domestic Product of a country is the total market value off the goods and services produced by that country in a specific year |
| government | the person or group of people who make rules and laws, enforce rules and laws, and decide if rules and laws have been broken |
| guerrilla | a member of a small group of soldiers that attacks suddenly and disappears into hiding |
| holocaust | an act of mass destruction and loss of life |
| human characteristics | changes to the land that were made by people |
| human resources | people working to produce goods and services |
| humanitarian | someone who is devoted to being kind to others and helping them when they are suffering |
| immigration | to move from one country and make a home in another country |
| industrialization | adopting industrial methods of manufacturing and production |
| infrastructure | the foundation of any system or organization |
| interdependent | when two or more things depend on each other for survival |
| invest | to commit money or capital to gain a financial return |
| irrigation | supplying water to farmland |
| literacy | the ability to read and write |
| location | where something is |
| monarchy | a government headed by a king or queen |
| nationalism | loyalty and devotion to one's country |
| natural resources | materials that come directly from nature |
| oligarchy | a political system where control rests with a small group of people with wealth or power |
| pandemic | an outbreak of an infectious disease that has spread across a large region, such as a continent to throughout the world |
| parliamentary government | a democratic form of government where the legislature controls the power |
| petroleum | a thick, dark oil found under the earth's surface |
| physical characteristics | describing the type of land in an area |
| population density | the number of people living in a specific area |
| quota | an example of a trade barrier that sets a limit on the number of a good that can be imported |
| rainforest | home to the largest variety of plant and animal species on the planet, and are known as the "lungs of the earth" because they convert carbon dioxide into oxygen |
| republic | a system of government where decisions are made by elected officials who represent the people |
| revenue | income a business makes from selling goods and services |
| specialization | being really good at making one or more things |
| subsistence | having just the basic resources for survival |
| tariff | a tax on imported and exported goods |
| theocracy | a government controlled by religious leaders |
| trade | buying and selling items |
| unitary | a government system that gives all power to the central government |
| volunteer | a person who offers to do something by his or her own choice |
