CUE 3231 Flashcards
As of 2014, how much of the world lived in an urban area?
54%
In 1960, how much of the world’s population lived in an urban area?
34%
How can cities be efficient?
Because it is easier to provide basic services such as water and sanitation to people living close together.
Define urbanisation.
The process by which an increasing proportion of people live in towns or cities.
How do cities play an important role in reducing poverty?
Because they hold much of the national economic activity, government institutions, business and transportation and have higher levels of education therefore greater opportunities for cultural and political participation.
How does São Paulo demonstrate a city’s importance in human affairs?
São Paulo holds 10% of the population, but accounts for 25% of GDP.
What are the fastest growing urban areas?
Medium sized cities and cities with less than 1 million inhabitants. For example, in India it is predicted that 70% of India’s cities have not yet been built.
In what ways have some cities experienced population decline?
Economic decline in Buffalo and Detroit between 2000 and 2014 led to population decline. Also New Orleans experienced population loos after the Hurricane Katrina.
What are the two main causes of urbanisation?
- rural to urban migration
- natural population growth
What age profile do urban areas tend to have?
Young and fertile
Why are younger people generally attracted to cities?
Because of the prospect of higher paid jobs, better educational opportunities and greater social and cultural diversity.
In London, what is the area stretching from Clapham to Fulham informally known as?
Nappy Valley
Once young people have moved to the city, why is it they usually stay?
Because of rising costs and time commuting.
What is a push factor?
A negative thing which causes people to move away from the city from rural areas.
What is a pull factor?
A positive thing that attracts people to move from the rural area to a city.
What are the 5 main push factors for rural to urban migration?
- wars and civil strife
- natural disasters
- agricultural problems
- population growth
- inadequate medical provision
What are the 4 main pull factors for rural to urban migration?
- employment
- earning money in the informal sector
- a perceived better quality of life
- better quality social provisions
Explain population growth as a push factor.
The same area of land has to support increasing numbers of people, causing overfarming, soil erosion and low yields.
Explain agricultural problems as a push factor.
Agriculture is increasingly being organised globally. Land previously used to grow food for local people is now used to produce cash crops for sale in higher income countries. Thus, many traditional rural communities are been driven off their land.
Also, desertification because of low rainfall, systems of inheritance that cause large plots of land to be divided into small pieces.
Explain employment as a pull factor.
Work in factories and service industries (e.g. hotels) which is better paid than in rural areas. Especially as there is increasing demand for unskilled labour in cities.
Examples of jobs in the informal sector.
Prostitution, taxi driver, selling goods on the street.
Where does the perceived better quality of life come from?
Images from the media
What are the 5 main consequences of urbanisation?
- urban sprawl
- shortage of housing
- lack of urban services, waste disposal
- unemployment and underemployment
- lack of transportation
Define urban sprawl.
The spread of an urban area into the surrounding countryside.
When there’s a shortage of housing in lower income countries, where is new housing found?
- on the edge of a city
- in places of low land value (because of environmental hazards e.g. flooding/landslides)
- adjacent to transport networks
- where there are high levels of air, noise or water pollution
Settlements in low income countries often have…
Limited access to basic infrastructure e.g. water, electricity and waste disposal. Also a lack of services e.g. health centres and schools.
As reported by the UN, the number of people living in slums in 2013 was…
863 million
Regarding slums, what was the success against the Millennium Development Goal?
The UN reports that over 320 million people living in slums gained access to improved water sources, improved sanitation or less crowded housing.
What is the target of the Post 2015 Sustainable Development Goal regarding slums?
Ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and to upgrade slums by 2030.
What are the three strategies of dealing with slums?
- eradicate slums
- self help schemes
- slum upgrading programmes
Description and evaluation of eradicating slums.
Knocking down slum housing.
This simply moves the problem elsewhere.
Description of self help and site and service schemes.
These schemes acknowledge the presence of slums and provide help in the form of materials and services.
These schemes have been helpful in some cities, but the quantity and quality of housing remains inadequate in most areas.
Describe and evaluate self help schemes.
Inhabitants are given legal ownership of the land and so people can improve their land slowly (eg by replacing mud walls with bricks, fitting proper windows and doors, adding upper floors).
Bus operators start and health centres are built.
People work together and over time it changes to a legal, medium quality housing area.
Describe site and service schemes.
Land is divided into plots by the authorities. Roads, water and sanitation may be provided. Newcomers can rent land and build a house following guidelines.
When they have more money, they can improve their house.
Describe slum upgrading programmes.
More recent initiatives that seek to improve slums in partnership with local Non-Governmental Organisations.
The focus is on securing rights for dwellers, formalising land tenure rights and providing basic amenities eg electricity, water.
Slum Dwellers International (SDI) is a slum upgrading programme. Describe what it is.
It is an organisation which gives a voice to those living in informal settlements and links up poor communities across Africa, Asia and Latin America. The idea is for slum dwellers to share their knowledge and expertise so that they are no t excluded from the economic and political processes happening in their cities.
Between 2010 and 2015 in London, there was a __% rise in average house prices.
50%.
Why was there a 50% rise in average house prices in London between 2010 and 2015?
Due to immigration, gentrification and wealthy foreign investors buying properties.
Why do overseas investors buy properties in London?
Because London is a major global hub and they buy here to diversify their international portfolio.
Poor maintenance of infrastructure can result in…
- traffic congestion
- polluted water courses
- flooding
- rapid spread of disease
Problem with the old pipeline infrastructure in India?
It has not kept up with urbanisation. So in 2015, only 5% of piped water reached the slum areas of 42 Indian cities.
Example of where waste disposal is a good opportunity?
Nairobi, Kenya.
What happens with water in Nairobi, Kenya?
Recycling is an important part of everyday life.
- old car tyres cut up to make cheap sandals
- washing machine doors used as kitchen bowls
- glass bottles collected then returned to store for refilling
- food waste is collected and fed to animals
What is under employment?
A situation in which a person is not doing work that makes full use of their skills and abilities. Often occurs when a migrant moves to a new city.