Urbanisation Processes

I will discuss this according to the Urban Process Timeline, so that it is orderly. The timeline is as follows:

1. Agglomeration
2. Suburbanisation
3. Commuting
4. Urban regeneration
5. Counter-urbanisation
6. Urban re-imaging
7. Urbanisation of suburbs

Urbanisation: Process of change that converts rural areas, regions and countries into urban ones. It is also the growth of towns and cities which leads to an increasing percentage of a country's population living in urban settlements. 

1. Agglomeration: This is how urban settlements first appear. It is the concentration of people and economic activities at favourable locations. E.g. at river crossing points so there is a supply of water, near a mineral resource such as coal, iron or oil. Long ago, defence was important so people were able to protect themselves. E.g. hilltops made good defensive sites, there were good views but it was hard to reach, and would not be sheltered from strong winds. 

2. Suburbanisation: Definition: The outward spread of the urban area, often at lower densities compared with the older parts of a town or city. 

• As towns grow, they expand outwards through suburbanisation. 
• Adds to built-up area, but building densities lower than in older parts of town. 

3. Commuting: People start to move out of the town/city to live in smaller more rural areas. These are often called dormitory settlements because many new residents only sleep there. They commute to work and still make use of urban service like shops and hospitals. Commuting definition: Travel some distance between one's home and place of work on a regular basis. 

4. Urban regeneration: involves re-using areas in old parts of the city where businesses and people have moved out into the suburbs or beyond. (Expanded upon in another post 'Urban regeneration and re-imaging)

5. Counter-urbanisation: the movement of people and businesses (employment) from major cities to smaller towns/cities and rural areas. 

6. Urban re-imaging: changing the image and look of an area to attract people.  (Expanded upon in another post 'Urban regeneration and re-imaging)

7. Urbanisation of suburbs: suburbs are generally areas of low-density development, so instead of using rural areas governments want to use suburban areas--suburban areas become more dense, raised to an urban level--. Empty spaces are being developed and large detached houses are replaced by flats. The suburbs are no longer just residential areas anymore, shops and other services start to locate there too.

If you need further details/clarification, just comment and let me know. :)

Urban regeneration and re-imaging

Urban regeneration + urban re-imaging= rebranding-->to help sell an urban area to a new target market

Urban regeneration and Urban re-imaging are different. 
Definitions:
Urban regeneration: the investment of capital in the revival of old, urban areas by either improving what is there or clearing it away and rebuilding.


Urban re-imaging: changing the image of an urban area and the way people view it. 

Urban regeneration:  Over time, old parts of town would suffer decline. The factories would move elsewhere, resulting in jobs lost. Quality of life and housing is poor, so the place needs to be regenerated, as in 'brought back to life'. Regeneration includes:

• transforming the economy of the area by encouraging new businesses to replace those that have closed/moved elsewhere. Employers--people who might provide employment in the area by using/buying shops or offices need to be brought in to the scheme as they can provide new work which hopefully improves the economy. 
• upgrade the quality of the built environment by a) finding new uses for old and often empty buildings, b) clearing them away to make way for new ones. (The London Docklands is a good case study which I have talked about in another post. The old warehouses in the run-down dockland area were converted into luxury apartments and flats which also transformed its image.)

Urban re-imaging: To change the reputation of a city or an area by: 

• focusing on a new identity/function--Docklands had more services such as pubs and cinemas so it became the new 'cool' place to be. 
• changing the quality and appearance of the built-up area--Docklands was completely redeveloped and regenerated, new industries would locate there so there were more jobs and it was a good brownfield site development, re-using space and saving land in the process (reclaiming land and putting it to another use) 

Greenfield vs Brownfield

Basically a cut down version of pg 165 of Edexcel IGCSE Geography textbook

Some people aren't happy that the countryside around towns and cities of HICs is being developed and lost.
Environmentalists believe that new developments should be done on brownfield sites opposed to greenfield sites.


Brownfield site: land that has been previously used, abandoned, and now awaits a new use
Greenfield site: land that has not been used for urban development

Brownfield site

Advantages: 

• reduces loss of countryside and land that could have agricultural/recreational use
• revives old and disused urban areas
• services already installed e.g. water, electricity, gas and sewerage
• nearer to main areas of employment=reduces commuting

Disadvantages:

• more expensive as old buildings must be cleared and land decontaminated (clear pollution)
• often surrounded by rundown areas so is not appealing as residential location, especially to wealthy people
• higher levels of pollution=less healthy
• may not have good access to modern roads

Greenfield site

Advantages: 

• cheaper and rates of house building faster (no need to clear old buildings/pollution)
• layout not hampered by previous development, can be made efficient + pleasant easily
• healthier environment

Disadvantages:

• valuable farm/recreational space lost
• attractive scenery lost
• loss of wildlife and their habitats
• noise + light pollution due to development
• encourages suburban sprawl

No clear winner between the two. All depends on:

• what land use? Housing-quite flexible in terms of where it can be built, but shops/offices/industries need specific locations (e.g. close to main road so workers can access office easily)
• circumstances of particular town/city. Green space-valuable? Reusing brown space-serious problems? High costs?
• your own set of values. Should countryside be protected? Should it be released for urban growth? 

What is Urbanisation?

Urbanisation is happening fastest in poorer countries

Urbanisation is the growth in the percentage of a country's population living in urban areas. It's happening in countries all over the world-more than 50% of the world's population currently live in urban areas (3.4 billion ppl) and this is increasing everyday. But urbanisation differs between richer and poorer countries. 

1. most of the population in richer countries already live in urban areas. e.g. more than 80% of the UK's population live in urban areas
2. not many of the population in poorer countries currently live in urban areas e.g. around 25% of the population of Bangladesh live in urban areas.
3. most urbanisation that's happening in the world today is going on in poorer countries and it's happening at a fast rate

Urbanisation is caused by rural-urban migration

Rural-urban migration is the movement of people from the countryside to the cities. 

This causes urbanisation in richer and poorer countries.

The reasons why people move are different in poorer and richer countries though.

Reasons why people in poorer countries move from rural areas to cities:

1. there's often a shortage of services (e.g. education, access to water and electricity) in rural areas. Also ppl from rural areas sometimes believe that the standard of living is better in cities. (even though this often turns out not to be the case)
2. there are more jobs in urban areas. Industry is attracted to cities because there's a larger workforce and better infrastructure than in rural areas.
3. In rural areas some people are subsistence farmers. This means they grow food to feed their own family and sell any extra to make a small income. Poor harvests and crop failures can mean they make no income and even risk starvation.

Reasons why people in richer countries move from rural areas to cities: 

1. most urbanisation in rich countries occurred during the Industrial and the Agricultural Revolutions (18th and 19th centuries)-machinery began to replace farm labour in rural areas, and jobs were created in new factories in urban areas. People moved from farms to towns for work. 
2. in the late 20th century, people left run-down inner city areas and moved to the country. But people are now being encouraged back by the redevelopment of these areas.

Good healthcare and high birth rate in cities

It's normally young people that move to cities to find work. These people have children in the cities, which is what is meant by 'natural increase in population'.. fancy terms. So this increases the proportion of the population living in urban areas. Also, better healthcare in urban areas means people live longer, again increasing the proportion of people in urban areas.