VCE Geography cheat sheet

Land use change is measured through spatial comparison: total area converted, rate of conversion per year, and fragmentation of remnant patches.

Deforestation rate formula: (area cleared in period ÷ area at start of period) × 100, expressed as a percentage per year.

Land cover classes follow a hierarchy: forest, cropland, grassland, wetland, settlement, other land; each class can be subdivided by density or use.

Remote sensing indicators: NDVI (vegetation greenness), NDBI (built-up index), and land surface temperature are used to detect change between image dates.

A land use conflict is defined by incompatible goals between at least two stakeholder groups over the same space; identify stakeholders, interests, power, and scale.

Scale matters: a change visible at local scale (a paddock) may be invisible at regional scale; always state the scale of analysis.

Melbourne's urban growth boundary is a statutory limit on outward urban expansion, directing growth to designated growth areas and infill sites.

Indigenous land management (fire-stick farming, seasonal movement) produced mosaic landscapes; its removal changed fuel loads and species composition.

Impact assessment chain: driver → pressure → state change → impact → response; use it to structure any land change case study.

Population growth rate = (natural increase + net migration) ÷ total population × 100; natural increase = births − deaths.

Doubling time (years) ≈ 70 ÷ annual growth rate (%).

Total fertility rate is the average births per woman over her lifetime; replacement level is about 2.1 in high-mortality settings, lower where child mortality is low.

Population pyramids: broad base and concave sides = high growth; narrow base and bulging middle = ageing; vertical sides = stationary.

Demographic transition model stages: high stationary, early expanding, late expanding, low stationary, declining; migration can override natural change.

Dependency ratio = (population aged 0–14 + 65+) ÷ population aged 15–64 × 100.

Ageing population indicators: median age, percentage aged 65+, old-age dependency ratio, and net migration of working-age people.

Population distribution is described by density (people per km²), clustering, and the physical and human factors explaining the pattern.

Carrying capacity and ecological footprint link population size and consumption to resource limits; footprint is expressed in global hectares per person.