Superpowers specific content

Question 1

What are some key facts to know with the emerging middle class?

Answer 1

• cereal consumption up by 364, meat by 99% and pharmaceuticals by 87%
• The ‘global middle class’ grew by 500 million between 2000 and 2014
• China had 150 million middle class residents in 2016 and by 2030 it is expected to be 1 billion

Question 2

What is a key fact to know with the consumption of natural resources by superpowers?

Answer 2

• The richest countries in the world consume on average 10 times as many materials as the poorest countries and twice the as much as the worlds average

Question 3

What is key facts to know with plastic waste?

Answer 3

• In 2010 8.8 million tonnes of plastic waste could be tracked back to china

Question 4

What is the monetary value of being in the global middle class?

Answer 4

• Annual income of over US$10,000

Question 5

What is meant by the term Arab Springs?

Answer 5

Arab Spring = A series of pro-democracy, pro-democracy, pro-human rights civil uprising in 2011 that affected Syria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Bahrain, and Iran. Some governments were overthrown but in most cases Protracted instability followed the uprising

Question 6

What are some facts on TNCs as players in global trade ?

Answer 6

• Between 1960 and 2010 trade increased by at least 46% per decade
• UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) estimated in 2013 that TNCs now account for 80% of all global trade - which in 2013 was over US$20 trillion

Question 7

We need to talk about environmental concerns what are some key environmental issues?

Answer 7

• Urban air quality is low in emerging power cities due to coal-burning stations. This has major health implications; air quality in Beijing, shanghai and delhi is over the WHO
• Demand for fossil fuel leads to CO2 emissions
• Deforestatiuon and land degradation are issues in some emerging powers as they seek to convert more land into farmland and urbanise more