An article on the study of Geography, and my experience in iGeo
By Cherie Khoo 26S03B
In the wild African savannah, a lone being scurries across the plain. A strangely-shaped extension to its ape-like silhouette protrudes from its head. A sudden rush of warm air draws back the stratus clouds, and moonlight shines upon the figure. There, on the naked ground, crouches a… a Geographer? (With binoculars, no less)
A common impression of geographers is that we love rocks. That we either dress in khaki from head to toe, or hole our robed selves up in dark-academia-esque libraries, pouring over maps on parchment. That’s true, to an extent – every single one of us has a rock/shell collection, and we’ve all been guilty of studying maps beyond the normal extent (though we do it on computers, of course).
When I represented Singapore at the 21st iGeo in Bangkok, Thailand this year, I was privileged to learn from people all over the world, and understand a little more about what Geography means to them. iGeo is the International Geography Olympiad where students aged 17-19 across the globe compete in tests, fieldwork, and quizzes, but also where geographers go to make lifelong friends.
Here’s what I learnt!
Latitude, or, the practical aspects
To me, Geography is a subject that enables you to draw connections between the natural and the anthropogenic.
Clara Yen, 26A01B
We all know that latitude is the number one factor that drives climate, and that climate affects pretty much anything you can think of. Well, that’s the same as Geography itself, which has a foot in the door of every science and every art. Name it, and we’ve got it.
The basics of Geography are rooted in practicality and tangible uses in our daily life (yet it somehow still reads like a foreign language to many). You won’t believe the number of people who think Singapore is part of China, or that Alaska is “Western Canada”. And it’s such a pity that in our small world, there isn’t more understanding of how things work.
Haven’t we all wondered why it rains when it rains? How animals are shaped by the environments they live in? What causes rockfalls? Geography is the study of science and art that answers the weird and wacky questions we all have.
Aside from just rocks, we learn about thermohaline circulations (why the coast of Peru has more fish than the North Atlantic), noctilucent clouds (shiny blue “auroras” in the night sky), and chocolate hills (karst landforms).
It’s amazing to be able to look at the horizon and understand why there is a gap between the sun and the sea (refraction) or why the sun changes position throughout the year (analemmas). Geography teaches us a lot about understanding why the world works the way it does, and definitely makes sightseeing a lot more fun!
Geog[raphy] really grounds me… like, no one really looks at a tree and thinks “ oh wow, that’s a tree”, you know. It’s really relevant to everyday life, a nice change to create something actually tangible and concrete.
Megan Tan, 26A01B
One useful skill we all learn: reading maps and observing our surroundings. In a time when we rely on digital maps to guide us on our journeys (and even then, many of us struggle to navigate), as geographers, we learn to read maps and find our way without any help. Here’s a fun activity for you to try: the next time you leave your hotel in a new city, endeavour to trace your way back without even a map. You’ll be surprised at how many more things you take in when your eyes are not fixed to a phone.
And here’s the most attractive bonus: you can understand memes like this! (read on for more)
One part of iGeo is a fieldwork exercise, a test so vastly different from any test one has ever had, and a test that most will never have to do. Participants board a bus to an unknown destination, and literally are thrown into the wild to face whatever challenges lie ahead. This year, we were brought to Ko Kret, an island forty-five minutes Northeast from Bangkok.
Wait… “But how do you know this?” You may ask. “Surely you were not allowed to keep your phones?”
Of course, we had our phones collected. And by the way, compasses were banned, too. But I was able to determine the vague location by tracking the position of the sun, of course.
Now, if you ask anyone, fieldwork is not our strong suit. In sunny Singapore, we are coddled by air conditioning and pampered by efficient public transport. We walk on smooth pavements and do not have to worry about dropping things or tripping over bumps like they do elsewhere. (though that may be partially my own fault, especially dropping my test paper in the Chao Phraya river– really not one of my finest moments)
If you take a closer look at this map, the little area coloured blue in the second image is Ko Kret. Seemingly diminutive in size, but terribly difficult to traverse. We were required to walk almost 6km around the Northeastern part of the island in only two hours, answering questions and drawing maps at the same time. We squeezed through winding roads, dirt trails, wooden platforms between houses on stilts, and a crowded market street, the walls barely a metre and a half wide at some points.
I encountered five (5) experiences of tripping over random speedbumps, three (3) instances of colour pencil-dropping, and one (1) count of near-death by motorcycle (an exaggeration).
Being a geographer means you have to be able to hike long distances, not throw up on boats, and remain alert enough to conduct data collection at the same time. My teammate Fei Ran (26S03B) was originally perplexed when I mentioned running 2.4s on the treadmill in preparation the week before the competition, and when I set foot on Ko Kret, I recalled his reply with a chuckle, “We won’t need to walk so much lah.”
Famous last words.
In my time at the iGeo, I also got the chance to learn about how Geography is viewed in different countries. In places like Singapore, Geography is not really a respected discipline. Being classified as an “art” diminishes its importance. Yet in places like the United States, where there is a focus on physical geography, it is considered a science, right alongside Astronomy, and there are full-blown institutions dedicated to its study.
Geography, I have come to realize, is regarded differently in different regions of the world. In the US, it is a science, while in Thailand, an art. Whatever its classification, the most glaring constant is the dismissal of Geography’s significance.
Life, or, the lessons to be learnt
In Geography, we know two things to be true: that life is constantly changing, but also that it will always, always, be unfair. Inequality is prevalent and pervasive in every (figurative) corner of this world, and change may not always be for the better (think: trade-offs). These two important concepts form the cornerstones of geographic pursuit, and if more people understood, acknowledged, and took action to better this, I think the world could be a happier place.
Unfortunately, we also understand that it is precisely because of the unevenness in our lives that render this ideal impossible. In this sense, I think Geography makes us grow up. It exposes us to a little of the harsh reality we live in, and fills us with the motivation and drive to genuinely want to make the world a better place.
How this relates to our society, besides the rising cost of living or environmental degradation, is the stiffening mindset of people. In times of uncertainty, people band together in common beliefs, and unfortunately, some of these beliefs may not be entirely for the better. The most relevant example to students would probably be in school, where humanities students are frequently overlooked in systems and society.
In Japan, Bulgaria, and Türkiye, International Olympiad representatives (representatives, mind you, not just medalists) are invited to ceremonies to receive recognition from their Prime Ministers and important officials.
Now contrast this with Singapore, and our school especially, where these representatives (usually medalists) wait months for a feature on the school’s Instagram page, and for Olympiads in Arts subjects like Geography, are forgotten and left out of morning assembly reports.
Don’t get me wrong, none of us worked for years to represent our country just for the recognition. But it would be nice to be acknowledged, to know that we are something for our country, or even just our school, to be proud of.
It’s in this line of thought that I’d like to point out something rather interesting. Even as many countries term Geography a “humanities” or “art” subject, associating it with traditionally more feminine mindsets, there is an overwhelming overrepresentation of males within Geography at higher levels.
Most of the 47 teams had zero women, and those that did had at most one. Notable exceptions are Brazil, which sent three absolutely lovely girls, Mongolia, with two, and most surprisingly, Iran, which was also represented by two girls.
Ironically, the United States, Canada, and many other countries (even Singapore), which pride themselves on their progress in achieving gender equality, sent zero females (or one, in the case of Singapore). It is undoubtedly true that the boys must have performed exceedingly well, and their place on their teams is well deserved, but it disappoints me to see that even in a supposedly more “feminine” humanities subject, we are still grossly underrepresented.
But this interesting contradiction in Geography’s classification and representation challenges the assumption of “humanities” with femininity, of “science”’s distance from humanitarian thinking. It’s this “stepping back” and looking at the bigger picture, questioning “why” and “how” that allows us to understand more.
And when we step back, aside from the bleak range of inequalities, Geography also shows us the world, and teaches us to yearn for something bigger than ourselves. It’s the same feeling as staring up into the boundless night where all lights on earth fade away, and we realise just how small our place is in this wide world.
We also come to understand the importance of contrasting beliefs and values while still holding true to our own morals. Now, when I hear someone’s opinion of an issue, I find myself less quick to judge or believe them blindly. All thoughts are justified to some degree, from someone’s unique point of view, and since we cannot change others by being aggressive, we have to first change ourselves to understand them.
To quote Ryaen Lo, my teammate from EJC: “For me geography is about how the world works and how everything is interconnected! I think that through learning geography, I’ve been able to make much more sense of the world, from the weather to how our cities are designed. I’ve also started seeing the issues around us more critically, such as climate change or migration, and to understand the decisions that countries make around such issues deeper.”
I previously mentioned my surprise at learning about Iran’s two female representatives. Perhaps this says something about our inherent biases and preconceived impressions of people simply based on where they come from. For example, when we visited the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and learnt about the five beliefs of Buddhism, a boy from Iran mentioned that he found the hardest to avoid infringing upon was the principle of not taking lives.
Our thoughts immediately jumped ahead of us as we all processed the shock. Of course, we assumed he meant human lives. Had he been from Singapore, no one would have even blinked. It was only when he clarified he meant the lives of small beings, like ants, that he couldn’t avoid stepping in that my own unintentional biases did register.
In my time in Bangkok, I met people from all walks of life. I had animated conversations with Iranians about our posters, and a cosy chat with Ukrainians queueing up for the vending machine. I finally put my Mandarin skills to good use, during entertaining discourse with the China-Macau, China-Beijing, China-Hong Kong, and China-Taiwan teams, all of whom were extremely welcoming and delighted to talk in Mandarin. I met people from countries many of you have probably never heard of: Estonia, Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Zambia, and even from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Some extremely memorable nights for us Singaporeans were spent playing cards with the Montenegrins, Serbians, Turks, Bulgarians, and Hungarians down in the hotel lobby until midnight. We shared Turkish baby biscuits and vibed to Bulgarian wedding music. I also bought a pack of Milo nuggets to share and they turned out to be a hit!
It was terribly interesting to see the languages spoken between countries. Just as we chose to speak Mandarin with the Chinese teams, those from Balkan countries chatted in Slavic – which was unfamiliar to even my own Hungarian roommate.
Geography also teaches us resilience. My teammates and I studied and competed for 2 years (2 and a half for some of us) to even get the chance to make it to Bangkok. There were many instances in which I doubted myself, questioning if I would really be good enough, wondering if all this effort would ever amount to anything.
I met students who held themselves back in high school, choosing to stay behind even as their batchmates entered university, for the mere (and very unlikely) chance of making it onto their country’s iGeo team.
But we do all this out of a hope to make our nations proud, to make friends from around the globe, and for the chance of a lifetime. So I’d still make the same choices, no matter the result, another million times.
Love, or, Lava
One thing you should know is that Geographers have big hearts. We develop a sense of compassion for all things around us, even the non-living. We also learn to approach problems in creative ways, throwing ourselves at problems wholeheartedly. Geographers are nothing if not determined.
We are also gifted with many things, other than this somber reality. We gain a sense of adventure! And of beauty! As a writer, a poet, and a musician, I am familiar with acknowledging and appreciating beauty with my eyes and ears. But the Geographer in me allows me to explore my surroundings with smell, taste, and touch. The sweetness of chirping cicadas, the rich flavour of local cuisine, the comforting scratch of wool sweaters made by European grandmothers.
I mean, it’s most obvious when you go on holidays… I will go on a hike with my family and then internally, I’ll be thinking, oh, that’s that rock that we learnt in that one lesson! I’ll see things on the news about weather events or even social and economic stuff that goes on and I’ll think, oh yeah, this reminds me of Geog[raphy].
Yee Sinn, 26A01E
Geography is also about making friends and forging new relationships. My teammate Ryaen (from EJC) made a friend from Ukraine! In a most fitting fashion, they met on our excursion to the Grand Place, where they both wandered around with cameras around their necks. Common interests go a long way, evidently.
Another time, during cultural night at the photobooth, we witnessed many newly made friendships bloom under the camera’s focus – groups of Thai volunteers, team leaders, and participants from across the globe all lined up to take photos together.
I think geography teaches us how to be nuanced in our thinking. It’s about understanding that the world is constantly changing and seeing the connections between various areas of life, from karst landscapes and floods to population and culture.
Mr Mohamed Ridzuan, RI Geography teacher
If you’d asked me three years ago if I’d ever visit the African savannah, if I’d ever go hang gliding off the Swiss Alps, or if I’d hike up the Andes to see Machu Picchu with my own eyes, I’d say you were crazy.
It is a truth that when we live privileged lives, even with the disposable income to travel and explore all that the world has to offer, we choose to surround ourselves with lavish luxuries and inauthentic experiences. Don’t get me wrong, I love shopping in air-conditioned malls just as much as the next person, but I have also developed a connection to the beauty of our land.
And beauty really is a subjective thing. When most people think about natural beauty, we often picture expansive lakes, red-leafed trees, or crashing waterfalls. What we forget, however, is the beauty present in our culture, our people. When we travel, we visit monuments and nature reserves to see wild animals and relive historic events.
But what about the unique social fabric that permeates the land we are in? There is much to be learnt and enjoyed in a society. Even just sipping a cup of local coffee in a cafe can allow you time to observe and catch a glimpse of what life is like for others. You know how others say: “you don’t know how good your life is”? Well, that applies to everyone around you as well.
Perhaps in that hour you spend to savour your drink, you might just learn to savour life itself. When we understand parallels and differences between our lives and others, we are all the more captivated by the oft-unnoticed beauty of human goodness.
What I take away from the iGeo and from Geography is a sense of peace.
A Last Note
The key thing that I took away was that even though we all have our differences, we still were able to embrace them to have meaningful conversations, and to interact with each other amicably.
Ryaen Lo, EJC
As I contemplate life’s mysteries, I am sitting on a bench in school, bossa nova playing in my ears, planespotting. There is a butterfly flitting about red wax palms and cumulus clouds drifting high above at the lifting condensation level.
Call me melodramatic, but in this life, I have never before felt such joy. Meeting new people is an eye-opening experience. My heart grew ten sizes and I felt truly fulfilled for the first time, and this feeling is a high I will forever chase. It goes to show that even in a dingy little hotel room, with cold floors and leaking irons, happiness can be found. When you are a Geographer, you crave connection as your comfort, instead of the typical materialistic luxuries.
I say that Geography is “Somewhere Only We Know” (a song by Keane), because this feeling of wonder and awe is something that you cannot experience unless you are a Geographer. It’s a special place in the metaphysical realm where compassion, curiosity, and courage combine. It feels like coming home.
Whether you are a parent, a student, a teacher, or a foreign friend, I hope you hear me out. The study of Geography is a life-changing journey that follows you long into adulthood and (hopefully) into the people around you, whose lives you can change for the better. It’s about going places mentally and physically, and making memories with people so close to your heart, yet thousands of miles away.
Even simply encouraging them to be more accepting and understanding can improve the lives of others; you’d be surprised at how much happier society could be if we all emit positivity. It is true that Geography is a less-explored discipline, with hazy career paths. But the main aim in studying Geography is not really just to learn about rocks. Rather, it is simply to learn about life, and about love, and becoming better people so that we can make the world a better place.
Here are a few more jokes for any fellow Geographers who have ventured this far.
Answer
Mercator (projection) on the equator
Answer
Longshore drift on a Suzuki Swift
