Urban change - 2

Question 1

What is the Importance of the City - London?

Answer 1

• Capital & centre for government
• Largest & wealthiest city in UK - wages & house prices increased rapidly, its a world city w/ global influence
• Many companies locate HQ’s there
• Centre for culture, entertainment, tourism, legal & medical facilities, education, media, communication networks

Question 2

What is the location and background of London?

Answer 2

• Grew as port
• Tidal nature allowed ships to navigate in
• Position allowed international trade and import & export of goods
• Originally lowest bridging point on Thames

Question 3

What are the Social opportunities in London?

Answer 3

• Culture attractions - West End theatres & museums

* Retail Areas - Regent Street & Westfield are very popular

Question 4

What are the Economic opportunities in London?

Answer 4

• Retail sectors contribute to thousands of jobs
• Financial centres contribute to city’s economy hugely
• High tech industries attracted to Olympic Park since regeneration

Question 5

What are the Environmental opportunities in London?

Answer 5

• One is worlds greenest cities
• 47% is green space
• Urban greening cleans air, absorbs carbon, reduces flood risk, create wildlife habitats & provide recreational opportunities including allotments

Question 6

What are the Social challenges in London?

Answer 6

• House prices increased with greater house shortages
• 2 million people live in poverty
• Social deprivation reduces life expectancy
• Significant socio-economic divide

Question 7

What are the Economic challenges in London?

Answer 7

• Closure of port based industries & factories caused large scale unemployment
• Favoured by companies & adding to N/S divide

Question 8

What are the Environment challenges in London?

Answer 8

• Urban sprawl led to increased pressure & decline of greenfield sites around city
• Air pollution increasing

Question 9

What were the Aims of the Olympic Regeneration Project?

Answer 9

• Attract investment in more businesses & job opportunities in areas of multiple deprivation
• Aimed to improve public spaces with more green urban environments

Question 10

What were the Main Features of the Olympic Regeneration Project?

Answer 10

• Polluted brownfield sited used to create: Olympic stadium
• New home of West Ham United
• Aquatics centre & Velopark
• Westfield Stratford City retail complex
• East village & 2,800 new homes
• Queen Elizabeth Country Park & Here East
• Media centre & hub for creative and media industries

Question 11

What is the Population like in London in the past and over the years?

Answer 11

• 1801 - largest city in world
• Industrial revolution - migrants attracted to jobs
• WW2 - badly bombed so population moved out as houses demolished
• 2015 - 8.6 million
• Migration creates multi-cultural society
• 2030 - reach 10 million
• Disintegration of greenbelt & additional growth in suburbs

Question 12

What is the Location and Background of Lagos?

Answer 12

• Costal city in South West of Nigeria
• Africa’s fastest growing city
• Population of 15 million people
• Growth Rate = 600,000 a year

Question 13

What is a Major NEE City?

Answer 13

Lagos in Nigeria

Question 14

What is a Major UK City?

Answer 14

London

Question 15

What is the Importance of the City - Lagos?

Answer 15

• No longer capital but still centre of trade & commerce
• 80% of industry based in & around Lagos
• Main financial centre in West Africa
• It has an international airport & busy sea port

Question 16

What are the Social Opportunities in Lagos?

Answer 16

• Living standards improving gradually
• Still division between rich and poor
• Health Care & education better now

Question 17

What are the Economic Opportunities in Lagos?

Answer 17

• One of highest incomes per person in country

* Has various types of employment (oil, retail & manufacturing, work in informal sector)

Question 18

What are the Environmental Opportunities in Lagos?

Answer 18

• Congested roads
• Street gangs
• Electricity in short supply
• Sewage system hardly works
• 10,000 tonnes of waste produced per day - problems to contend with daily

Question 19

What are the Social Challenges in Lagos?

Answer 19

• Severe shortages of housing, schools & healthcare centres
• Large scale inequality - creates tension between rich & poor

Question 20

What are the Economic Challenges in Lagos?

Answer 20

• Rise of informal jobs w/ low pay & tax contributions
• 90% of new jobs are in the informal sector
• Eko Atlantic & TNC’s making a difference

Question 21

What are the Environmental Challenges in Lagos?

Answer 21

Shanty towns called Favelas are established around the city - typically on unfavourable land (e.g. hills)

Question 22

What was Migration like in Lagos in the past and recently?

Answer 22

• 1970’s - expansion of Lagos took off with oil
• But, main growth is due to urban migration
• Recently - millions of people migrated from rural areas that have drought, lack of services & unemployment to Lagos
• People do this to get a better quality of life, though opportunities are perceived & face poverty still
• Youthful population - most migrants are young

Question 23

What are Squatter Settlements like in Lagos?

Answer 23

• Densely populated due to shortages of land
• Makoko extends into Lagos lagoon & built on stilts
• Homes makeshift & lack basic facilities & sanitation

Question 24

What is the Population of Makoko in Lagos?

Answer 24

Quarter of a million people

Question 25

How do the Authorities feel about Makoko in Lagos?

Answer 25

• Keen to demolish Makoko, but residents have nowhere to go
• Attempts made to improve water supply & schools(e.g. floating schools)
• But, scale of the problem is beyond what authorities can cope with
• Improvements might make settlements more permanent & attract more to them - but where does money come from if jobs are informal