What is Urbanisation?
Rural to Urban Migration
Urbanisation = The process by which an increasing percentage of a country's population comes to live in towns Rural-urban migration is the movement of people from rural areas to urban areas. People move because
and cities. of push and pull factors.
Rural vs Urban 1950 Rural vs Urban 2050
• A push factor is a reason to leave an area e.g. harsh climate, lack of jobs.
• A pull factor is a reason to move into an area e.g. better facilities, more job opportunities.
Push Factors Pull Factors
unemployment
more jobs
lower wages
higher wages
crop failure
better living conditions
poor living conditions
better education and health services
poor health and education services
better facilities
few facilities
less chance of natural disasters
HICs were the first to urbanise, and generally have the largest proportion of their population living in towns natural disasters
civil war
and cities. LICs currently have lower rates of urbanisation, but are urbanising rapidly.
Megacities Growth rate in Megacities
Global Megacities During the last Ice Age (10,000 BC) the Worlds population was 10 mil ion. The first megacities to appear
A megacity is defined as a were New York and Tokyo in 1950’s. Today we know there are 33 megacities, mainly in Asia. The
city that has a population
population of cities usually changes in one of two ways:
of over 10 mil ion people.
Today more than 50 per 1. Natural increase (or decrease)
cent of the world's - this is the difference between
population live in urban the number of births and the
areas. The number of cities number of deaths.
with over 10 million people
is increasing. 2. Migration - this is the
movement of people into or out
of the city.
Keywords
Squatter Settlements Air Pollution
• Squatter settlements are any collection of buildings where the people have no
In late 2018, the European Environment Agency issued a warning that said close to 500,000 premature deaths are
legal rights to the land they are built upon.
caused by air pollution. In this instance, they warned against polluted air particles too small to smell or see that could
• The people are living there il egally and do not own the land. They provide housing
cause or worsen the symptoms of asthma, lung cancer and heart disease.
for many of the world’s poorest people and offer basic shelter usually in LICs.
The main air pollutants across Europe are:
• They are often constructed with poor materials initial y, including plastic sheeting,
• fuel-consuming transport vehicles;
corrugated metal, wood and cardboard. These are all materials that are available • The production and distribution of energy;
either freely as waste or cheaply.
• industry and agriculture;
• Squatter settlements also often lack proper sanitation, water supply, electricity
• commercial buildings and homes;
or telephone services.
• waste management.
Dharavi Sustainable cities
In Mumbai the squatter settlement of Dharavi is now home to over 1 million people. Dharavi lies If something is sustainable it benefits the environment, people and the economy, without harming either. If it is damaging
between two railway lines and is one of the biggest squatter settlements in the world. The squatter for any of those things, it is not sustainable - we can’t keep doing it.
settlement is unplanned and has the following characteristics:
Many people are working towards trying to make cities more sustainable. A sustainable city offers a good quality
• overcrowded, noisy and smelly
of life to current residents but doesn't reduce the opportunities for future residents to enjoy.
• houses are made from cardboard, wood, corrugated iron, plastic sheeting and
metal from oil drums Key features of a sustainable city
• lack of sanitation, clean drinking water and open sewers o Resources and services in the city are accessible to all.
• pollution and disease are common
o Public transport is seen as a viable alternative to cars.
• thousands of workshops and people employed in the informal job sector
o Public transport is safe and reliable.
Opportunities Challenges
o Walking and cycling is safe.
o Areas of open space are safe, accessible and enjoyable.
Informal shopping areas exist where it is ⅹ There can be as many as 5 people per
possible to buy anything you might need. room. The houses often have no windows,
o Wherever possible, renewable resources are used instead of non-renewable resources.
Mosques catering for people's religious needs. asbestos roofs (which is dangerous if broken) o Waste is seen as a resource and is recycled wherever possible.
Family life dominates, and no planning to fit fire regulations o New homes are energy efficient.
Many daily chores are done in social spheres ⅹ Rooms within houses have multiple functions,
because people live close to one another. This including living, working and sleeping.
o There is access to affordable housing.
helps to generate a sense of community. ⅹ Enormous environmental problems with air and o Community links are strong and communities work together to deal with issues such as crime and security.
The buildings in this part of the slum are all of land pollution. o Cultural and social amenities are accessible to all.
different heights and colours, adding interest ⅹ However, toilets are open holes above a river.
and diversity. This could lead to dengue fever, cholera and
o Inward investment is made to the CBD.
85% of people have a job in the slum and hepatitis o A sustainable city will grow at a sustainable rate and use resources in a sustainable way.
work locally, and some have even managed to ⅹ Children and women sift through the rubbish
become millionaires. for valuable waste. They have to work under
Dharavi has a recycling zone. Everything is
recycled from cosmetics and plastics to
the hot sun in appalling conditions. They earn
around a £1 a day for their work.
Environmental quality survey - Skills
computer keyboards. 23% of plastic waste ⅹ Many of the people work in very poor This Bipolar Chart constructor creates bars from data that are measured on a
gets recycled in the UK, in Mumbai it is 80%. working conditions, and includes children. continuum between negative and positive end points. Bipolar scales are often used in
geography fieldwork to measure environmental quality, residential quality and
perception variables. A bipolar value range of -5 to +5, for example, indicates a
negative through to a positive assessment, with 0 representing neither good nor bad.
