GLOSSARY (C-D)

capital - money and goods used in the production of other goods or services

capitalism - a political and economic system involving the private ownership of companies through shareholders or individual owners

carrying capacity - the maximum population that a particular ecosystem or environment can permanently support

cash crop - growing crops for commercial sale instead of for local consumption - usually refers to crops grown for export ie. cotton, sugar, coffee, cocoa, tobacco etc.

census - a national count of population usually completed every 5 or 10 years

central planning - an economic and political system where decisions are made by the central government and delegated down to local producers to implement (see communism)

child mortality - the numbers of deaths of children under age 5 per 1000 people in a population per year

clear cutting - the cutting of all trees in an area regardless of size and maturity

colonialism - the domination of one country over another by controlling the colony's economic and political systems

communism - a political and economic system where the state maintains ownership and control of production facilities

community development - the process of improving the social, economic and cultural conditions of a village or small town.

conservation - the philosophy and policy of maintaining and guarding natural resources

cost of living - the average amount of money needed to buy goods and services to provide a given standard of living in a certain area

death rate - the yearly number of deaths per 1000 of a population also called the crude death rate

deficit - the result of spending more money than one takes in

demographic transition - the historical shift of birth and death rates from high levels to low. The decline in death rates usually precedes the drop in birth rates leading to explosive growth in population.

demography - the study of population trends; their size, distribution, structure and growth

dependency ratio - the number of people below age 15 and above 65 years of age expressed as a percentage of those aged 15 to 65 (working age)

desertification - the expansion of deserts as a result of mismanagement of vulnerable lands such as by overgrazing or overcultivation.

developed countries - countries that are generally characterised by high levels of industrialization, personal incomes, educational attainments and health standards

developing countries - countries that are generally characterised by low levels of industrialization, personal incomes, educational attainments and health standards

disparity - inequality - the difference between two measureable items where one item is better than the other

doubling time - the number of years required for a population to double in size given the present growth rate

drought - a prolonged period of dry weather; lack of rain