Urban Change (AQA GCSE Geography)

Pattern of Urban Change

• Urbanisation is:

The process by which an increasing percentage of a country's population comes to live in towns and cities

• Urbanisation varies across the globe

• High income countries (HICs) show the highest levels of urbanisation, with the lowest levels being in Africa and SE Asia

• More people now live in towns and cities than in rural areas

• World population doubled between 1950 and 2015, but the urban population more than trebled due to:

  • The decline of industry in developed countries, as the industry moved overseas to newly emerging economies (NEEs) and low-income countries (LICs) to take advantage of a cheaper workforce, government incentives, tax breaks, etc.

  • Which led to industrial growth in NEEs and 'pulled' people from rural regions to urban areas, with the hope of a better life and employment

Urbanisation pathway

• Countries become more urban as they develop economically

• Differences between LICs, NEEs and HICs can be shown as a pathway over time 

• The pace through the stages slows and flattens or will decline as counter urbanisation gains speed

Urbanisation pathway showing the stages a country will pass through as economic development occurs

• HICs have lower rates of urbanisation as towns and cities already exist

• In 1900 there were just 2 'millionaire'' cities (London and Paris), by 2018 this had grown to 512

• As the growth of cities continues, the term mega city is used to describe cities with more than 10 million people:

  • In 1970 there were only 4

  • By 2000 there were 15

  • In 2018 that rose to 33 with Tokyo having close to 37.3 million people

• Due to modern transport and communication, urban areas are sprawling into rural regions to create conurbations, further adding to the growth of urban areas

Urban Trends in HICs & LICs

• Urbanisation growth rate differ not only between countries across the globe but also within countries

Table of Global Urban Trends

Urbanisation

• The main factors affecting the rate of urbanisation are:

  • Speed of economic development

    • Economic growth drives urbanisation

    • The faster the growth of secondary and tertiary employment sectors, the faster the growth of urbanisation

  • Rate of population growth

    • Economic growth needs a supply of labour

    • This demand can be met in two ways:

      • Natural increase in an urban population: A slow way of meeting demand

      • Rural-urban migration: This is the more important source of labour as it attracts a wider pool of people into the urban region

• Natural increase

  • Accounts for roughly 60% of urban population growth

  • Due to decreased death rates and higher birth rates

Push-pull factors

• There are many reasons for people to migrate to and from urban areas and can be generally classified into push and pull factors

• The push factor is the reality of the current situation for the migrant; it is what makes the person consider moving from the place of origin

• The pull factor is the perceived outcome; it is what the migrant imagines the move will bring to the place of destination

• Push-pull factors are unique to each person depending on their end goal: What is a pull factor for one person may not be for another

• These factors can be further divided into:

  • Social

  • Economic

  • Political

  • Environmental

• High levels of unemployment are a push factor, whereas higher wages and a better lifestyle are a pull factor

• Therefore, rural-urban migration is usually a combination of factors that cause people to migrate

Examples of push-pull factors leading to migration

Megacities

• Megacities are urban areas with over 10 million residents   

• In 2007, more people lived in an urban environment than a rural one

• By 2050 it is thought that more than two-thirds (7 billion) of the world population will live in urban areas

• This scaling up of the urban environment is the fastest in human history

• Largest growth of megacities is seen in Asia

Reasons for growth

• Four main factors:

• Economic development

  • Encourages population growth which leads to the desirability of goods and services

  • All megacities act as service centres within the formal economic sector

  • However, megacities in NEEs are also important manufacturing centres (Mumbai in India or Dhaka in Bangladesh) with thousands working in the informal economy

• Population growth

  • Young people are drawn to live in megacities with their vibrancy, fast pace and opportunities

  • There is also ‘internal growth’ where people who have moved into the cities have children, so sustaining population growth (Mexico City, Mumbai, Pearl River Delta in China)

• Economies of scale

  • Cheaper to provide goods and services in one place than spread across several cities

  • Financial savings for local governments in respect of infrastructure provision

  • Communication and transport are centralised, making savings in time and money

• Multiplier effect

  • As a city prospers, it acts as a beacon to people and businesses 

  • This encourages inward investment

  • This leads to yet more development and growth

  • Generating further need for skills and labour and job growth

  • This cycle multiplies the positive effects and growth continues (San Francisco and the digital development)

World cities

• Megacities have a powerful attraction for people and businesses 

• They are influential cores with large peripheries

• World or global cities can be any size but exert particular influences around the globe

• They are considered prestigious, with status and power  

• They are critical hubs in the global economy

• The three top (alpha) world cities are London, New York, and Tokyo 

• These are the financial centres of the world, each with smaller networks of world cities feeding into them

• There are only four world cities in the southern hemisphere:  

  • Sydney

  • Rio de Janeiro

  • Sao Paulo

  • Buenos Aires