AP World History AMSCO Guided Notes
2.6: Environmental Consequences of Connectivity
AP World History Guided Notes
AMSCO 2.6 - Environmental Consequences of Connectivity
Essential Questions
- What were some of the environmental effects of trade in Afro-Eurasia from c. 1200 to c. 1450?
I. Agricultural Effects of Exchange Networks
1. What were the major environmental impacts of new crops introduced through trade networks?
A. Migration of Crops
1. What were the key characteristics of Champa rice and how did it transform agriculture in China?
2. How did the introduction of bananas to Sub-Saharan Africa affect population growth and migration patterns?
3. What crops did Islamic caliphs spread as they conquered lands beyond the Arabian Peninsula, and what were the long-term consequences?
B. Environmental Degradation
1. What caused environmental degradation in regions like Great Zimbabwe and feudal Europe, and what were the consequences?
2. How did the Little Ice Age contribute to agricultural decline during this period?
II. Spread of Epidemics through Exchange Networks
1. How did the Mongol conquests and trade routes facilitate the spread of the Black Death from Asia to Europe?
2. What was the demographic impact of the Black Death in Europe and other regions, and how did it affect the labor market?
3. Why were South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa largely spared from the Black Death despite being connected to Eurasian trade networks?
Key Terms
Champa rice
bananas
sugar
citrus crops
overgrazing
deforestation
soil erosion
bubonic plague