1.3.1 Urban Issues Flashcards
Economic inequality
The unequal distribution of money amongst a population.
Diaspora
A group of people with similar heritage or homeland who have settled elsewhere.
What issues can economic inequality cause?
- Political and social unrest
- A rise in crime, drug use and violence
- Health problems, e.g. cities with higher levels of income inequality have more malnourished children
Cultural diversity
The existence of a variety of cultural or ethnic grounds within a society.
On the whole, are cities or rural areas more cultural diverse?
Cities tend to be culturally diverse – they have a wide mix of people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
What are some benefits of cultural diversity?
Ethnic diversity can enrich a city’s character and increase tolerance, while cultural events and ethnic quarters within a city can attract tourists, boosting the city’s economy.
What problems can cultural diversity cause?
- Tensions between different groups, sometimes leading to violence.
- Increased pressure on services, e.g. schools may need extra staff for pupils who can’t speak the native language.
- Minority communities can feel isolated and under-represented politically.
Social segregation
When different groups are separated from other people, e.g. poorer people or people from a particular ethnic background are concentrated in a specific area of a city.
What are some of the reasons for social segregation?
- Builders prefer to build larger, four-bedroom houses because they can make more profit. – These are harder to afford for low-income households. This is why there are top-down policies in place to ensure there is a certain percentage of affordable housing available.
- Gentrification is very heavily biased in favour of the rich. Gentrification causes low-income manual workers to be displaced by rich middle class professionals such as bankers. (For example, Portland Road) – The main way to manage this is to use local occupancy clauses
- Migrants can usually only afford cheap housing. Due to the high living costs in the UK, many migrants can only afford to live in low-cost affordable housing or live in multiple occupancy homes.
Is cultural diversity voluntary or forced?
This can be voluntary, e.g. followers of a particular religion may choose to settle close to their place of worship.
It can also be forced, e.g. many Roma people in Italy can’t access social housing, so they end up in camps on city outskirts.
What are some issues that social segregation can cause in urban areas?
- Lack of integration between different groups can cause prejudice and discrimination.
- People in some areas may have less access to education and jobs, widening inequalities.
- Segregation can lead to anxiety and have negative impacts on health and expectancy.
- In developing countries, poorer areas may lack access to facilities, e.g. electricity, clean water, public transport. They are also more likely to be close to industry and rubbish dumps, affecting health and wellbeing.
Why are cities more culturally diverse?
- Cities tend to offer a greater range of employment opportunities
- Cities are the first point of entry into the country for many immigrant
- Cities tend to house earlier immigrant groups with the same ethnicity
- Established cultural diversity in cities means there are specialist ethnic shops and religious centres located there
- Urban populations tend to be more tolerant of immigrants.
Case study: Antilla, Mumbai
- In Mumbai, the world’s most expensive home, Antilla, can be found towering over one of the largest slums in the city.
- Munesh Ambani, the owner of the house is worth around $100 billion (as of 2022) but the average salary in the slum, Byculla, is less than $2 per day.
- The house is only home to 6 people, but they employ over 600 staff.
Is it easy to map urban inequality?
It is hard to geographically map any patterns of inequality and poverty.
It isn’t necessarily the inner-city areas which are facing inequality anymore. The highest levels of poverty can, and have, been found on the peripheral estates, whilst the inner cities areas are experiencing regeneration and improvements.
Strategies to manage poverty and inequality
- Improving transport systems can make it easier for the urban poor to access jobs.
- Subsidising the construction of affordable housing can help less wealthy people to buy property.
- Introducing minimum wages can help to stabilise wage inequalities between the poor and rich.
- Governments can offer subsidies for new companies, increasing local employment opportunities.
- In developing countries, many cities have introduced upgrading programmes for slum settlements. Investments in road-building, sanitation, drainage and water supply increase the quality of informal housing.
