African Geography and Environment: What We Think We Know

     When we think of Africa, most of us automatically assume images that were exposed to us within a Western context. You know, plain deserts and grasslands filled with wild fauna such as lions, zebras, and giraffes. To be perfectly honest, I'm pretty sure most of our knowledge of Africa comes from The Lion King or Madagascar. And if not that, then it's through other forms of Western media. We have this notion that Africa is sparsely populated by savages and primitives surrounded by wildlife in a continent (although too many people still subconsciously consider Africa as a country) filled only with deserts and the occasional grassland. However, that is far from the truth.

     In reality, and what the Western media fails to showcase, is that Africa contains a diverse variety of habitats similar to the North American continent. Remember: Africa is a CONTINENT not a country. And within that continent are over 50 countries. And within those countries are cities as big and as crowded as any major U.S. city. The city of Lagos in Nigeria is the seventh most populous city in the world, yet a majority of us didn't even know that because it didn't fit into what we were taught Africa was supposed to be like.

     The ignorance is so strong that some people forget that Egypt is indeed a part of Africa. Just because we learned about Ancient Egyptian civilization and we are exposed to modern Egypt in the media, does not mean that it is part of Africa. Yes, it doesn't fit into the mold of what we were taught Africa was like, but then again, most of Africa doesn't. While parts of Africa are covered by deserts and have wild animals roaming around, it also has climates that are similar to other "civilized" areas of the world, such as Italy, Greece, and even California. So rather than running around with our stereotypes of Africa the country, I think it would be to our benefit to learn more about this interesting continent that is more than meets the eye.