Contemporary urban environments Flashcards
what is urbanisation?
increase in the number of people living in towns + cities
what is the order of settlements (size order from rural to urban)
- single isolated dwelling
- hamlet (settlement with a limited number of houses/services)
- village (e.g. Delph)
- small town (e.g. Shaw)
- large town (e.g. Oldham)
- city (e.g. Manchester)
- conurbation (place containing many boroughs/councils e.g. G.Manchester)
- millionaire city (more than 1 million people live)
- mega city (over 10 million people)
- meta city (over 20 million people)
what is a world city?
a city with a great influence on a global scale because of their financial status + worldwide commercial power
unrelated to size
there are 3 at the top of the ‘global hierarchy’ (New York, London and Tokyo)
what are cities important for?
the exchange of ideas + creative thinking (e.g. uni etc)
centres of political power and decision making
economic production (e.g. concentration of financial services - for example, Spinningfield in Manchester)
Historically, what importance has urbanisation had in human affairs?
- infrastructure: improved public transport + increased mobility
- reducing poverty: workers are no longer tied to land + can move to a new place to work - better paid jobs - rural to urban migration
- status of women: paid employment/political status/education
- impact of fertility rates
-urban culture
-impact on mortality rates
what is industrialisation?
process of transforming the economy of a nation/region from a focus on agriculture to a reliance on manufacturing (primary to secondary industry)
what are the causes of urbanisation in HICs?
industrialisation led to the creation of the factories
the factory system contributed to the growth of urban areas as large numbers of workers migrated into the cities in search of work in the factories (pull factors)
E.g. in England + Wales, the proportion of the population living in cities jumped from 17% (in 1801) to 72% (in 1891)
In what ways are the causes of urbanisation in today’s LICs/NEEs similar/different to these causes?
similarities:
- both caused by rural to urban migration (push + pull factors play a big role)
- both caused by natural increase
differences:
- driven in HICs by natural economic progression (Industrial Revolution) whereas often dictated by presence of TNCs in NEEs/LICs
- HICs status means they are able to industrialise quicker
what causes rural to urban migration?
caused by a number of push + pull factors…
push factors:
- overcrowding
- agricultural problems (e.g. crop failure)
- high incidence of disease and poor healthcare
- natural disasters
- civil unrest
pull factors:
- formal employment (stable income + higher paid jobs)
- informal sector employment
- better social provisions
- perceived better quality of life (better healthcare)
- social/cultural diversity
what is urban growth?
the increase in total population of a town or city
what is urban expansion?
the increase in size of a city
what is suburbanisation?
the movement of people from living in the inner parts of a city to living on the outer edges
what negative impacts does urban sprawl have?
more roads/infrastructure needed- economic + environmental - loss of green space/extra air pollution
habitat loss- environmental - displaces local species + reduces biodiversity
increased commuting- social - increases stress for people before they even start work
environmental- more cars on the road = more CO2 in atmosphere
increased air pollution- social - can lead to health issues
environmental - contributes to climate change
loss of farmland/open space - economic - can lead to loss in agricultural industry
social - can have health/mental health impacts on people
reduced urban drainage- environmental- increases surface run off as drains are blocked which can lead to flooding and water quality issues – becomes increasingly important due to pollutants from urban areas being washed into rivers or ground water
decentralisation- trying to improve economies in specific areas + creating jobs
homogenisation of the landscapes- increases similarities between towns + cities regardless of their geographical location
what are push and pull factors for the Rio de Janeiro case study?
push:
- limited jobs
- low wages
- natural disasters
- poor healthcare
pull:
- better housing
- more job opportunities
- enhanced social services (e.g. healthcare)
- better transportation and communications
Economic inequalities in Rio de Janeiro…
wealth is shared unequally
huge recession in 2015 increased unemployment
favela unemployment is 20%