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Welcome to the Democratic Republic of Congo!

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Welcome to the Democratic Republic of Congo!

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This is a glimpse of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). I would like to set  the "mood", take you on a journey, and set the stage of what you are about to see. I hope you enjoy it.

(n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjvwdjYhPCQ

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Becuause of the geographical location of the DRC, the weather is very warm, and humid. It gets a lot of rain there as well. It rains about 117 days out of the year with up to about 1,766 mm of rainfall! Crazy, huh? :) Here is a video with a little glimpse into what it looks like there.

(n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=wandering+thru+ozdala

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WanderingThru Photo Safaris & Expeditions

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The DRC is called "Hydrographic Basin" because there are many sources of water around it, and one of the major resources that the country provides is hydroelectic power.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2019, December 19). Congo basin. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/place/Congo-Basin

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Agriculture is a huge source of income for the people.

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Agriculture is a huge source of income for the people.

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Palm oil, rubber, cotton, cassava, peanuts, yams, and beans, and sweet potatoes are some of the things that are grown there. Minerals are also a valuable resource there.  Some of which are charcoal, and a green mineral used for the batteries of electric cars.  *If it does not play here, please click the YouTube link.

(n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbnftzU-GbQ&feature=emb_err_woyt

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In DRC charcoal is vital for homes but deadly for forests | AFP

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There are the two different kinds of soils that are present in the DRC. One kind is what is called "equatorial" or grassland soil. This is drier soil that usually comes from the savanna area. the other kind of soil that you will find in the DRC is from the swampy areas.   The swampy soils seem to be richer in nutrients as they come from soil that has been touched by animals and have had animal droppings left behind to increase the richness of that soil.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2019, December 19). Congo basin. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/place/Congo-Basin

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--Ferns
-- Orchid
--Venus flytraps
-- Buttress roots
-- Caesalpiniaceae trees
-- Okoumé trees (Burseraceae)

Vegetation and wildlife of Congo. (2020, February 14). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetation_and_wildlife_of_Congo
Plants of the Congo River Basin forests. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/congo_basin_forests/the_area/wildlife/plants/

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This is an example of what a Kapok tree looks like for those of you ( and myself included) that had no idea what it looked like! It is super cool looking!

Admin. (2019, May 2). Tropical Rainforest Plants List, Information, Pictures & Facts. Retrieved from https://www.activewild.com/tropical-rainforest-plants-list/

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This is a carniverous plant that actually eats insects! Imagine that!

Admin. (2019, May 2). Tropical Rainforest Plants List, Information, Pictures & Facts. Retrieved from https://www.activewild.com/tropical-rainforest-plants-list/

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- DRC is the second largest water basin in the world.
- It is a total of 1.3 million square miles in size.
- Draining basin is 1,335,000 square miles (3,457,000 square km)
- 84 million people live there.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2019, December 19). Congo basin. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/place/Congo-Basin

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--It is spread through broken skin or mucus membranes such as mouth or the nose.
--Can be spread through bodily contact
--Can be from person to person as well as from animal to person

Transmission. (2019, November 5). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/transmission/index.html

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Causes:
--Not having proper handwashing skills
--Tranferred from person to person
--Transeferred from contaminated food and drinking water

There is a vaccine available for this disease.

Typhoid: Symptoms, treatment, causes, and prevention. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156859

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In the DRC there are many different kinds of animals, big and small. This video shows you some of the various animals you can find there. It does not mention though that there are 700 fish species, at least 227 kinds of amphibian species, 6 bird areas. This is not to mention we know that we have the Forest Elephant,gorilla, Chimpanzees, okapi, leopards, hippos, and lions. Feel free to take a look and see some really cool species of animals.

(n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=most beautiful animals of the congo

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A sad state of affairs when the refugees decide to leave harm's way and go to the DRC in search of a better life.

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A sad state of affairs when the refugees decide to leave harm's way and go to the DRC in search of a better life.

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This is so sad, but worth watching. The people in this video are wanting to leave a life of abuse for a chance at a better one. With that they bring diseaes, but it just breaks my heart for what they are going through.
(n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqu8Gd68Bmo&feature=youtu.be

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Refugee crisis as thousands flee violence in Democratic Republic of the Congo | ITV News

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Industrial logging, conversion for large scale agriculture, deforestation, and desertification. "Recent estimates of deforestation in the Congo Basin show a relatively stable rate of between 0.15 and 0.20% per year, representing an annual deforested area of 250,000 to 300,000 hectares. This rate is the lowest observed among the three main tropical forest regions (along with the Amazon and Southeast Asia)." ( Europa) Other threats also include tusking and bushmeat hunting.
This video shows about what it looks like as well as gives ideas of how the problem of deforestation can possiby be fixed. I am glad that they are looking into possible solutions since the DRC seems to be taking down many trees and or burning them down in fire situations by use of charcoal.

Threats to the Congo Basin. (n.d.). Retrieved  June 12, 2020, from https://europa.eu/capacity4dev/article/threats-congo-basin

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Beacuse the women go and get the water and have to carry it on their heads with baskets, they are not able to transport very much at one single time. Therfore, there are not many options for freshwater for the people of the DRC. They also do not practice good hygine which in turn causes them to get sick with diseases.
"Water scarcity, defined from a human perspective, is the extent to which human needs for water for domestic and productive purposes remain unfulfilled, both in terms of water quantity and quality. In this sense, only poor people face water scarcity, usually even in circumstances where the natural endowments of water resources are abundant."

Turton, A., & Henwood, R. (2002). Hydropolitics in the developing world: a southern African perspective. Pretoria: Univ., African Water Issues Research Unit.

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Democratic Republic of the Congo

Democratic Republic of the Congo statistics
Because the have such strong and powerful water system, they are able to set up a hydro- electric power system.

Area:

2,267,100 sq km

Population:

79,400,000

Installed hydropower capacity:

2,472 MW (2014)

Hydropower generation:

7.8 TWh (2014)

Democratic Republic of the Congo. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.hydropower.org/country-profiles/democratic-republic-of-the-congo

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---Take the hydroelectic power idea that they have and extend it to a freshwater system as well. This will cost a little bit more at first, but in the long run it will cut down on diseases and will help nourish the people who live there.
--- If we raise awareness about family planning and empower the girls against violence, perhaps there won't be so much rape.This will also help to minimize the amount of pwople that are in poverty.
-- Because poverty is so strong there, perhaps the soil could get better nourished and then cheaper healthier crops could be planted. This would also help to nourish the people who live there, and maybe then there will be more healthier independent people!

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I hope you enjoyed learning about the DRC. I certainly have learned a lot about the DRC watershed, the challenges,  and about the people who live there. It breaks my heart to see so many people in poverty, without fresh drinking water, ample food, and diseases that just has over taken thier country. With that said, I have decided to end on a happy note and show you that there are people there who are happy and made up a special DRC dance. Being in quarantine, we all could use some exercise, so come on and join me in our own version of the Congo line, and shake what your mother gave ya! Enjoy! :) And get your groove on!

(n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2020, from  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DaTCnRfKSM&feature=youtu.be