The Russian Federation, and the Newly Independent

States Physical Patterns

Eastern part of the North European Plain (European Russia) Ural Mountains Western Siberian Plain Central Siberian Plateau Steppe lands and DesertCaucasian Mountains

Climate Mostly continental climates To the south semi-arid and arid conditions

Permafrost

Makes settlement difficult

Important Rivers and Lakes

Volga River Lena, Ob, and Yenisey RiversCaspian Sea Aral Sea Lake Baikal

Which of the following physical features separates Europe from Asia

1. Volga River2. Aral Sea3. Ob River4. Ural Mountains

History Slavs

Mongols

Russian Colonialism

Communism, as a social movement, is defined as one that seeks to:

1. Remove social classes and private ownership

2. Keep the means of production in the hands of a few

3. Encourage private ownership4. Reject all authority

History

Aristocracy and serfsWorld War I Overthrow of Czar Nicholas IIBolsheviks (V.I. Lenin) Soviet PeriodStalin – the Marxist Czar

Command Economy

Gosplan SocialismIndustrializationForming CollectivesMilitary Build-up

Successes and FailuresIndustrial production grewHigher standards of livingEnvironmental disastersOppression

The Cold War Afghanistan Glasnost (instituted by Gorbachev)PerestroikaSoviet Union dissolved in 1991

The Fall of the Soviet Union

Population PatternsBirthrates

Life expectancy

Infant Mortality

Which of the following is true concerning quality of life since the break-up of the Soviet Union?1. Personal incomes have improved2. Per capita consumption of food

has increased3. Adult life-spans have decreased4. Infant mortality has decreased

significantly

Economic Reform “Shock Therapy”

PrivatizationLifting price controls and other regulations

ResultsSkyrocketing inflationShortage of necessary goodsWiped out savings accountsInformal EconomyCorruption

Today's Economy 70 percent private

Growing Informal economy

Unemployment

Greater Integration with Europe, the U.S. and Asia

Political Reform• Oligarchies• Media Reform• Political Status of Women • Corruption

Cultural Reform • Revival of Religion and Ethnic

Groups

Gender70% of the registered unemployed are women

Ethnic ProblemsChechnyaMigration Irredentism

Environmental Issues Thermal pollutionDeforestationAir pollutionWater pollutionNuclear waste

Aral Sea Divergence of rivers for irrigationShrunk in area by 50% In volume by 75%