The NY times has put together an excellent map resource to help us understand the Geography of Ukraine and the current crisis in the region.The maps show the areas of Ukraine which are in favor of the incursion by Russia. They also show the percentage of native Ukrainian speakers as apposed to Russian speakers. While the economic importance of Ukraine is also visualized through the map of the gas pipelines passing from Russia through Ukraine to Europe. Maps of UkraineSimilarly the BBC has produced an excellent analysis of the Geography of the region.BBC Ukraine in mapsNice idea to get students to develop their own maps of the region using the National Geographic's MapMaker Interactive. MapMaker Interactive