Studying a State - Texas

Texans are most commonly known for their cowboy culture, which involves either living on a ranch in the grassy plains, or making huge profits in the oil business in the big cities. The very small population that live in the plains (which are now becoming uninhabitable due the changing global climate which is increased the temperate to 100 degrees for 19 days in the summer of 2009 in Austin) to rear horses and cattle are known for being unsociable or rude. This could be because the isolation from modern society means that they aren't used to human contact which leads to intolerance.

As you can see from the demographic above, it is obvious that the population is mostly centred in the main towns and cities, leaving the majority of the state sparsely inhabited. This is due largely to climate change changing the grassy plains into uninhabitable desert, which means that cattle farming is near enough impossible (almost wiping out the isolated cowboy culture) as well as growing any type of crop. The increase in climate-induced water shortages is also a huge factor in the migration of the population as it also encourages people to move into the big cities and towns where it is easier to access water than it is in the middle of desert-y plains.

Due to this dramatic shift in population, it can be suggested that the climate and geography of Texas does, in some ways, determine your identity. The move of isolated cowboys from the plains means that they are unable to carry on with their rural way of life and will have to integrate into large town and city life, meaning that their identity will effectively change.

Source: http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2011/03/20/207725/population-flight-from-growing-desert-of-central-texas/