Category: Economy and Natural Resources

Geologic resources of Santorini and how they have economized.

3rd Post, Class of 2018, Economy and Natural Resources

Explosive Tourism

Tickets! Tickets please!
Oh, hello there! Are you here for the geology tour of Santorini? I’ll be taking a group on a tour around the island to the see the active volcanic dome, the Akrotiri Archaeological site, different beaches created by volcanic events, and much more! It all starts here at Fira port and all you need is a tick-Ah! I see you’ve already got one. Perfect! Climb aboard my boat, the Gem of the Sea, and let the adventure begin! Continue reading “Explosive Tourism”

natashavoss3 Comments
2nd Post, Class of 2018, Economy and Natural Resources, Physical Volcanology

Cape Plaka: A Trail Through History

The day was June 06, 2018. My day began atop a landscape overlooking the Aegean Sea. The heat was blistering and the air was humid, but I will not forget what I saw this day. To the front of me is the Aegean Sea, but positioned to my right is the explosive history of Santorini. I examined the wall, taking in each gradational layer piled … Continue reading Cape Plaka: A Trail Through History

brittnleo5 Comments
1st Post, Class of 2018, Economy and Natural Resources, Visual Narratives

Athens: The Two-Sided City [Tourist Perceptions VS. Local Reality]

Athens, Greece is known far and wide for its tourist attractions, these attractions ranging from its entrancing sights from atop the Acropolis to the ancient Grecian  architecture preserved in the city today.  This is the part of the city that people from around the world come to witness for themselves. What many tourists don’t expect to see is the graffiti. At my arrival, I witnessed … Continue reading Athens: The Two-Sided City [Tourist Perceptions VS. Local Reality]

brittnleo3 Comments
1st Post, Class of 2018, Economy and Natural Resources, Visual Narratives

Greece’s Money Pit

Since 2010, Greece has been suffering from an ongoing economic crisis consisting of crippling debt. However, this has not stopped the extensive restoration efforts at the Acropolis. How did this continuous “money pit” come to be and how exactly is it impacting the Greek State? Sources for further reading: 1.) “Healing the Parthenon: Inside the Mammoth Restoration Project.” Greece Is, 26 Sept. 2017, http://www.greece-is.com/healing-parthenon-inside-mammoth-restoration-project/. 2.)  … Continue reading Greece’s Money Pit

rachaelohara445 Comments
1st Post, Class of 2017, Economy and Natural Resources, Visual Narratives

Turmoil in the Streets- The Greek Government Debt Crisis Plagues the Country for more than a Decade

 

 

Figure 1: The Vasilissis Amalias Avenue (Hellenic Parliament Building) in Athens, Greece (11), pictured above, has been the focus of a number of riots and protests in response to the Greek Debt Crisis that plagued the country following the 2007-2008 financial crisis. In the late months of 2009 the Great Recession was triggered with the accumulation of structural weaknesses in the Greek economy, and the Greek government undercutting its government debt and deficit level (11).
Figure 2: The European currency, the euro (pictured above) was implemented in 2002 replacing the Greek currency, drachma. The introduction of the euro into peripheral countries like Greece was done with the purpose of reducing trade costs and increasing overall trade volume across Europe (9). However, as labor costs rose in peripheral (less developed) countries like Greece, core (more developed) countries like Germany took away from these peripheral countries (12. As a result, Greece’s trade deficit rose significantly (1).
Figure 3: The streets of Plaka (pictured above) in Athens, Greece are filled with tourists. In 2009, following the global financial crisis Greece fell further into debt as its two main income sources, tourism and shipping, fell by 15% (1).
Figure 4: Overlooking Athens, Greece. With the country facing a great decline in private investment and high currency debt, Greek wages fell nearly 20% from 2010 to 2014 through deflation. As a result of falling wages, reduced income, and a rise in debt-to-GDP ratio, a severe recession fell over the country. Unemployment rose to nearly 25% from a quoted 10% in 2003 (1).
Figure 5: Even with significant cuts in government spending, and the country returning to a budget surplus in 2014, the country would be hit hard in 2015 as banks closed for weeks to prevent a complete financial meltdown (1). As a result, citizens lost their jobs and homes, and businesses and homes like the one above fell into ruins.
Figure 6: Protest signs outside the Athens University in Plaka. Following the 2015 election of Prime Minister Tsipras (11), Greece was facing its third government bailout. By the end of June, following multiple negotiations on the bailout an agreement had yet to be made and the Greek stock market closed in addition to the banks that had closed weeks before. On July 5th a majority voted to reject the bailout terms. As a result, stocks dropped with the prospect of Greece falling out of the EU. By the middle of July an agreement had been made by Eurozone leaders. However, many large debt holders and citizens who had voted on the decision were in disagreement with the negotiation terms and results (1).
Figure 7: Now in the middle of 2017, the Greek finance ministry has reported Greek government bonds approaching pre-2010 levels. While this provides evidence that Greece could be returning to some sort of economic normalcy, many people are homeless and without work (1). 71% of the homeless population in Athens became homeless in the last five years and 21.7% in the last year alone (5,6,7). Whether it’s selling flowers or playing music in the streets, many people are left finding other ways to make extra money since there are few programs that offer aid.
Figure 8: The projected tourist view of Greece is often of the ancient ruins in Athens or the white buildings and blue roofs of Santorini. However, lack of proper housing, a high homeless rate, and declined job opportunities are still the reality of many Greek citizens.

Continue reading “Turmoil in the Streets- The Greek Government Debt Crisis Plagues the Country for more than a Decade”

Sheridan4 Comments
3rd Post, Class of 2016, Economy and Natural Resources, Physical Volcanology

The Colors of Santorini

We have been in Santorini for a total of 20 days, 480 hours, learning about the Santorini Volcano by day and dancing the night away. As our trip comes to an end, my mind is racing. Thinking about our first days in the field, creating stratigraphic columns with the sun beaming down on us and the sweat dripping down our faces. To our last field day roaming the Aegean Sea, traveling to Nea Kameni, and looking down into a dark-black hole, known as the drop-off of the caldera. I started to realize that I have been so focused on all the interior geological aspects that has made Santorini what it is today, that I haven’t had time to take in the exterior beauty of the island. I took a step back, closed my eyes, and let the views of Santorini wash over my body, getting the chills as I think of everywhere we’ve been. We have explored and hiked through a great amount of this island and it was filled with the most unique and breathtaking colors that you would have to see with your own eyes to get the feeling that I had. Continue reading “The Colors of Santorini”

bzive122 Comments
1st Post, Class of 2016, Economy and Natural Resources

A Rock Solid Idea: Impermeable Cement

 

On the first day in the field, our group walked down the road from our hotel to Fira Quarry. From the top of the trail, I had a great view of the size of the rock outcrops that extended all the way down into the mined out area, but from the bottom of the quarry I was staring up at 20 meters of Minoan eruption ash and pumice. The wall of rock that stood dauntingly above me made me think about why it stopped where it did and what happened to all the other material that once filled in the area we were standing in, and why it would benefit anyone to mine the pumice at the quarry. Continue reading “A Rock Solid Idea: Impermeable Cement”

Sam5 Comments
Class of 2015, Economy and Natural Resources

A Four Legged Stool and A Water Scarcity

After three weeks in Santorini, Greece, my homesick heart aches for the smell of pines, the Grand Canyon’s plateaus, and the queen, herself, the Colorado River. When I think of home, the ocean does not first come to my mind. I think of the river, which once carved through rock; the river that we so heavily depend on in the South West region of the U. S. for water and agriculture.

Continue reading “A Four Legged Stool and A Water Scarcity”

savannahrossi1 Comment
Ancient People, Class of 2015, Economy and Natural Resources

The Sustainable Life: Ancient Greece

After tirelessly following a series of wooden hand-painted signs, which insisted that the Acropolis was ahead, a small group of us were on the verge of abandoning our search for the site when we ran into our instructors, Lisa and Alex (Fig. 1). Amidst the maze of tiny plastered homes, we followed them through narrow whitewashed hallways accented with magenta rugs and royal blue planter beds until we passed through the marble entrance of the Acropolis. Through staggered breaths, we began to realize the magnitude of our own unique purpose and place. Continue reading “The Sustainable Life: Ancient Greece”

savannahrossi8 Comments
Ancient People, Class of 2015, Economy and Natural Resources

All About That Base, No Pillars

As I walk up the last steps of the Acropolis, I stop and admire the beauty and grandness of it all. I do not take any photos at first. Instead, I marvel at all of the detail and imagine of all the extensive labor that must have been put into building this city. Every direction I turn has an astonishingly exquisite temple with a story behind it. I can envision the workers pouring their dedication into these temples, knowing that they used manual labor instead of technology. I can conceptualize what the Parthenon may have looked like before it started to deteriorate. I then started to wonder about every single detail of the Acropolis, from the base of it to its location, which is what made me want to research into it.

Continue reading “All About That Base, No Pillars”

marcellabarrios8 Comments