Urbanization, Population, Environment Flashcards
1
Q
Environmental sustainability vs. capital accumulation
A
- env. sust: egree to which human activity can happen without damaging the ecology
- cap acc: gaining more capital
- these are competing logics in Canada
2
Q
cancer cluster
A
area with proportionally high cancer rates (ex. near Alberta tar sands)
3
Q
environmental sociologists (and their functionalist, critical, and symbolic interactionist viewpoints)
A
- study how humans interact with environments
- functionalists: primary way to survive is adapt to environment
- crit soc: interests that promote exploitation of natural resources for private profit have contributed to society’s disequilibrium with environment
- sym it: looks at how peoples’ attitudes to environments have changed, and how their practices (ie. recycling) have changed as a result of environmental concerns
4
Q
demography
A
- study of populations
- its 3 aspects: fertility, mortality, migration
5
Q
fertility rate
A
- number of children born
- generally lower than fecundity number (potential amount of kids that could be born to women of childbearing age)
- crude birthrate: number of births per 1000 people per year
6
Q
mortality rate
A
- number of people who die
- crude death rate: number of deaths per 1,000 people per year
7
Q
migration
A
- movement of people into and out of an area
- can be immigration (coming in) or emigration (leaving)
8
Q
population composition is made up of
A
- made up of fertility, mortality, and migration rates -> creates demographic profile of a population
- includes sex ratio (number of men for every 100 women)
- includes population pyramid (population distribution by sex and age)
9
Q
4 theories about population
A
- Malthusian
- zero population growth
- cornucopian
- demographic transition
10
Q
positive checks vs. preventative checks
A
- Positive checks: increase mortality rate and create suffering and misery (ex. War, pestilence, famine)
- Preventative checks: decrease birth rate and create vice (ex. abortion, infanticide, prostitution)
- Malthus didn’t agree with any of these options
11
Q
cornucopian theory
A
- humans won’t be wiped out -> we can resolve any environmental and social issues that develop
- ex. if food is scarce, we’ll figure out how to grow more
12
Q
demographic transition theory
A
- population growth will develop along 4 stage model
13
Q
staple thesis
A
- Proposed by Harold Innis (1894-1952)
- Suggested that Canada was founded upon staple industries established to export to empire societies such as US and England -> Staples include fisheries, lumbering, mining, etc. (“primary industries” -> related to raw material extraction)
- Canada is composed of resource-based communities centering around primary industries to meet the needs of industrialized nations -> These communities are also very vulnerable as they are dependent on other places that want their resources
- Explains the emergence of Canada’s regionalized economy and cultural ties to Europe and the US
14
Q
implications of staple thesis
A
- Foreign ownership: much of the capital and technology for resource extraction comes from core nations
- Market vulnerability: resource-based economies depend on a large blue collar workforce and lacks employment diversification; ultimately vulnerable to market demands of other countries
- Losing autonomy: allows room for cultural penetration (ie. From the US)
15
Q
demographic equation
A
- Note: Pop t+1 means “population in the future”
- Pop t+1 + Natural increase + net migration = population change
- Pop t+1 + (Births – deaths) + (immigration – emigration) = population change
- Note: often measured as a rate per capita
16
Q
birth rate and total fertility rate
A
- Birth rate = number of live births per 1000
- Total fertility rate = average children per woman (2.1 is the average needed to sustain the population -> Canada is below this at about 1.6)
17
Q
death rate and infant mortality rate
A
- Death rate = number of deaths per 1000
- Infant mortality rate = number of deaths of infant < 1yr per 1,000 live births
18
Q
what’s death rate related to?
A
- general health/condition of the population
- Prevalence: total number of case/disease
- Incidence: new cases of a specific disease
19
Q
life expectacy
A
- median number of years a person is expected to live under current conditions (“current conditions” meaning no war, no natural disasters, etc.)
- Within the same country, LE is different depending on social position (class, gender, and race)
20
Q
what’s infant mortality rate linked to?
A
- society’s level of healthcare -> Level of nutrition -> Scope of medical care (degree of expertise) -> Availability of pre/post-natal care
- Largely correlated with level of socio-economic development
21
Q
Malthus’ thesis
A
- People need to eat and have sex
- Malthus argues that food supply increases in linear progression, whereas population expands by exponential progression
- The world’s population was growing more rapidly than the available food supply
- Material growth produces much “misery and vice”
22
Q
Malthus’s suggestions
A
- 2 forces can control population: preventative checks and positive checks
- To avoid vice and suffering, Malthus saw population control as an answer. He argued that couples must take responsibility for the number of children they choose to bear.
- To avoid overpopulation, welfare should be eliminated since it encourages the poor to have more children -> however, this logic was flawed -> he was basically saying that people want to have kids so that they’ll get welfare checks, which isn’t true
23
Q
Malthusian trap
A
- Cycles of population growth are often followed by outbreaks of war, pestilence, and famine that keeps population in check
- Every population has an upper limit, and anything beyond that limit will create social problems
24
Q
Marx’s response to Malthus
A
- Marx saw no special relationship between population and supply of resources
- If society was well ordered, increases in population should lead to greater wealth, not hunger and misery
- Social problem is linked not to overpopulation, but to unequal distribution of resources; suffering and injustice can exist even when population limit is not reached
25
Q
Critiques against Malthus
A
- Technological advances have allowed rapid growth in how much food is produced, opposite of the slow growth scenario Malthus predicted
- Contraceptive devices and technologies have allowed people to control the consequences of sex; preventive checks are not necessary condition for vice
- Theory do not always fit the data; some regions of the world have experienced rapid growth and yet has become some of the most properous regions of the world (ie. Europe)
- Welfare does not encourage people to have more children; low fertility rates of often found in countries with generous welfare programs (ex. Canada, Sweden, etc.)
26
Q
demographic transition
A
- Describes how society’s population changes over time (general trend, not a law or formula)
- Focuses on change from (high birth rates and death rates) to relatively (low birth rates and death rates)
- A process that describes industrialized nations
- Typically viewed as a 3-stage process: pre-transition stage, transition stage, post-transition stage
27
Q
pre-transition stage
A
- a lot of people giving birth and a lot of people dying (ex. 19th century North America)
- High death rate due to:
- Famine (no food, failed harvest)
- Poor medical knowledge and treatment of diseases
- Poor sanitation
- High birth rate due to:
- Many die at a young age -> need replacement
- Many children needed for farming
- No family planning
28
Q
transition stage
A
- where you see the population boom -> lots of people give birth, but not a lot of people die (ex. Afghanistan)
- Low death rate due to:
- Improved food supply
- Improved medical knowledge
- Improved sanitation
- High birth rate due to:
- Less kids die at young ages due to improved medical care
- Children still needed for farming (but less)
- Some family planning
29
Q
post-transition stage
A
- low birth and death rate (ex. Mexico)
- Low death rate due to:
- Steady food supply
- Good medical care
- Sanitary environment (due to refrigerator)
- Low birth rate due to:
- Children no longer needed for income generation
- Delayed marriage and fertility due to level of education
- Family planning
30
Q
population pyramid
A
- Tool used to describe a population by age and gender
- Like a snapshot of society
- can be used to make predictions re: population change
31
Q
key drivers of population change
A
- baby boom
- policy
32
Q
baby boom
A
- Period of high fertility
- Result of soldiers returning home after WWII, high wages and general prosperity encouraged many married couples to buy homes and have children
- Term “baby boomers” describes those who grew up between 1946-1964
- most high fertility period in Canada and the US
33
Q
policy
A
- immigration laws to increase population (ex. Europe)
- family planning (to control population)
- Ex. China (1-child policy), Iran (free vasectomies), Singapore (policies to boost fertility rate -> ex. more money to raise kids, housing priority for families, more parental leave, funding assisted reproduction, healthcare, etc.)
34
Q
high fertility, intermediate fertility, low fertility country examples
A
- High: African countries -> large growth expected
- Int: US, India, Mexico -> small growth expected
- Low: China, Australia, European countries -> population decline expcted
35
Q
urbanization
A
- study of social, political, and economic relationships in cities
- urbanization reached 50% -> half the world’s population is living in cities
36
Q
3 pre-reqs for development of a city
A
- good environment with freshwater and nice climate
- advanced technology
- strong social organization
37
Q
urbanization in Canada
A
- proceeded rapidly during industrial era -> workers left farms to move to cities
- then “the corporate city” added onto this -> people began focusing on finances and corporate management -> high-rises, industrial parks, office towers, etc. were built
- corporate city turned into postmodern city -> focused on global consumption
38
Q
3 formations characterizing post-modern city
A
- edge city: cities that have no central core
- dual cities: divided into wealthy and poor zones
- fantasy city: transform themselves into theme parks to draw tourists
39
Q
suburbs vs. exurbs
A
- suburbs: communities surrounding cities, allow more space than city living
- exurbs: communities outside the suburbs for wealthy families who want even more space
40
Q
gentrification
A
members of upper and middle classes entering less affluent parts of the city and renovating them, forcing out poorer people because they can’t afford to live there anymore
41
Q
metropolis vs. megalopolis
A
- metropolis: city centers, suburbs, exurbs, and metropolitan areas combined
- megalopolis: urban corridor encompassing multiple cities and their surrounding suburbs
42
Q
global cities vs. slum cities
A
- global cities: centres of financial and corporate services, concentrating wealth in corporate sectors (ex. London, New York, Tokyo)
- slum cities: no access to sanitation, frequented by gangs and prostitution (ex. “City of the Dead”, Quarantina, etc.)
43
Q
concentric zone model
A
- views cities as series of concentric circular areas expanding outward from city centre
- as people and business from one zone invade another, its inhabitants are pushed out
44
Q
environmental sociology
A
studies how humans interact with their environments (related to human ecology)
45
Q
pollution
A
- when contaminants are introduced into the environment at damaging levels
- ex. water pollution, soil pollution, garbage (landfill and incineration), e-waste, air pollution from fossil fuels, etc.
