English-speaking countries

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qz658-9ZOCc

Countries where English is an official

or de facto official language

Australia

http://www.ga.gov.au/images/GA1073.jpg

At a glance
an island continent
the world's sixth largest country
capital:
Canberra

largest: Melbourne and Sydney

history
first inhabitants: the Aboriginal people
European settlement in late 18th century
a British penal colony, abolished by 1868
5

At a glance
Multicultural and multiracial
Heritage from indigenous people
Population: over 22 million
concentrated along coast from Adelaide to
Cairns, Eastern Australia
a small population around Perth, Western Australia
6

States and territories

Legal system
a Westminster system of government and
law inherited from the British
two main political parties + minor parties,
make up the Commonwealth Parliament

each state and territory: own government

8

Geography
the lowest, the flattest and (apart from
Antarctica) the driest continent
nearly 20 per cent is desert

many thousands of islands

the mainland + Tasmania
climate
from tropical rainforests, deserts to snow-covered
mountains
9

Biodiversity
the uniqueness of much of Australia's flora
and fauna
have evolved on a geographically isolated
continent
through a time of a slowly drying climate
high variability in climate
more than one million species of plants and animals
less than half have been described scientifically
cca. 85% of flowering plants, mammals, freshwater fish and
almost 50% of birds are unique to Australia
10

Biodiversity
over 140 species of marsupials (mammals with a
pouch)
e.g., kangaroo and koala

at least 18 exotic mammals: feral populations

feral: domesticated species returning to the wild to e.g. extinct
rodents and harmful animals
cats and foxes responsible for the decline and extinction of
several native animals

at least 2700 non-native (introduced) plants have

established populations in Australia
68% of these are considered a problem for natural ecosystems
11

Sustainability in Australia
http://www.environment.gov.au/
Numerous topics and policies

Atmosphere
Marine
Heritage
Human settlements
Land
Living sustainably
Parks
Water
12

United States of America

(USA, U.S.A., US, U.S.)

http://www.50states.com/us.htm#.UOrEjKyyl7s

14

At a glance
50 states + a federal district
Washington, District of Columbia
Alaska and Hawaii away from the other 48
overseas territories: Puerto Rico, the United States
Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern
Mariana Islands

4th largest country in the world by area and 3rd

by population
Over 315 million

one of most ethnically diverse and

multicultural (large-scale immigration)
15

History
15,000 years ago Paleoindians migrated from
Asia
after 1500, Old World diseases introduced by
Europeans greatly reduced their populations
Around 1600 European colonization began
13 British colonies
July 4, 1776: the Declaration of Independence
established the USA

16

History
19th century: expansion across North America
displacing native tribes and acquiring new territories
the Civil War ended legalized slavery

by the end of the 19th century, the American

national economy was the world's largest
WW1, WW2, the end of the Cold War with the
Soviet Union the United States the sole
superpower
17

US today
the world's largest national economy
an abundance of natural resources
a well-developed infrastructure
high productivity
one of the world's largest manufacturers

also a leading political, scientific and

cultural force in the world
18

Geography

6,194 m Alaska's Mount McKinley

86m below sea level: Death Valley (CA)

Mount Whitney, 4,421m, highest in the continental US (CA)
about 80 miles apart

most climate types

extreme weather is not uncommon: hurricanes, tornadoes

megadiverse ecology
Hawaii: about 17,000 species of plants, and over 1,800 species of
flowering plants few of which occur on the mainland
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 protects threatened and
endangered species

19

Legal system
Federation, three-level government (local,
state, federal)
Two parties
Republican (conservative) South, Great
Plains, Rocky Mountains
Democratic (liberal) Northeast, West Coast

20

Sustainability
US Environmental Protection Agency http://
www.epa.gov
various issues (air, climate change, emergencies,
green living, health and safety, land and cleanup,
pesticides and chemicals, waste, water)
numerous projects
Example: food for green energy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhyekv1V32s
Example: oil clean-up
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65oqjg87wv0

21

The United Kingdom of Great

Britain and Northern Ireland
(the United Kingdom, UK, Britain)

http://goeurope.about.co
m/cs/unitedkingdom/l/bl
_uk_map.htm

23

At a glance
4 constituent countries
England, Scotland (Edinburgh), Wales (Cardiff),
Northern Ireland (Belfast)
varying powers

3 Crown dependencies:
Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man

14 British Overseas Territories (e.g., Gibraltar)

remnants of the British Empire
mostly self-governing but British monarch as head of
state
24

At a glance
Population over 60 million
mostly white British, 85%
small-scale immigration
some areas like London and Liverpool over 30% are
non-white

4 Celtic languages in use in the UK to a greater

or lesser extent:

Welsh
Irish
Scottish Gaelic
Cornish
25

History
30,000 years ago: Celtic
the Roman Conquest: 43 AD for 400 years
Anglo-Saxons in south: Kingdom of England
in north: Kingdom of Scotland

1066 the Norman invasion

Scotland, Ireland and England constant
(religious) conflicts until 1707
England and Scotland the Kingdom of Great Britain
1801: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
26

History
18th ct: Atlantic slave trade
Defeat of France in Napoleonic Wars (18/19th
ct) prinicipal imperial power
Industrial revolution
British Empire expanded to almost 1/4 of the
worlds land
27

Legal system
a constitutional monarchy with a
parliamentary system
Queen Elizabeth II
the head of the UK
the head of 15 other independent Commonwealth
countries
has "the right to be consulted, the right to encourage,
and the right to warn

three major political parties: the Conservative

Party, the Labour Party and the Liberal
Democrats
28

Sustainability
DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs) http://www.defra.gov.uk/
Listed topics:

Natural environment and biodiversity

Green economy, green business
Climate change
Flooding and coastal change
Marine
Waste and recycling
Water, air, other environment quality issues

E.g. http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Up6pw_MvySI&list=UUXV14pQStNln11pjSgZEeoA&in
dex=5
29

Australian versus American

versus British English

Differences

Vocabulary
Grammar
Word derivation
Writing

E.g. phrases in Australian English:

http://www.e-phrase.com.au/
31

Spelling
AE / BE, e.g.:
centre / center
litre / liter
color / colour
flavor / flavour
apologise / apologize
analyse / analyze
32