Cities and Regions ENVS230
Environmental & Social Problems of Cities and Regions in the Developing World
Dr Urmila Jha-Thakur
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Today’s Aims
• Setting the Context for Cities and Regions in
Developing Countries;
• Exploring Environmental & Social Issues in
Cities and Regions within Developing Country
Context;
• Identifying good practices in Developing
Countries.
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Literature
• United Nations Human Settlements
Programme, 2009, Planning Sustainable Cities:
Global Report on Human Settlements 2009,
London, Earthscan
• Hardoy J E, Mitlin D, Satterthwaite D, 2001,
Environmental problems in an urbanizing world: Finding solutions for Cities in Africa,
Asia and Latin America, London, Earthscan
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Challenges for Cities and Regions in the
Developing World
• 1950-1975 population growth was more or less evenly divided between urban and rural areas, since then balance has tipped towards Urban growth;
• In 2008, more than half of the population lived in Urban areas and by 2050 this will have risen to 70 percent.
Most of the rise will be in the developing world.
• Between 2007 and 2025, the annual rate of change of the urban population in developing regions is expected to be 2.27 per cent, and 0.49 per cent in developed regions (UN Habitat, 2009).
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Challenges for Cities and Regions in the Developing World
Urban Population by region (2005-2050)
United Nations Human Settlements Programme, 2009
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Challenges for Cities and Regions in the
Developing World
• Certain cities will attain sizes that have not been experienced before:new megacities of over 10 million and hypercities of over 20 million are predicted, many of such cities will be in the developing world;
• Rapid urban growth is taking place in countries least able to cope (Infrastructure, governance, poverty);
• Climate Change brings additional challenges and most vulnerable are the cities and regions from the developing world.
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Challenges for Cities and Regions in the
Developing World
• There will be 27 of these megacities by 2020, up from 19 in 2007,with most located in Asia,
South America or Africa (Victor Rodwin, director of the
World Cities Project at New York University).
• For every minute that we speak, a new person is going to be moving into Lagos, Kinshasa or Dhaka
(adapted from Ricky Burdett from the London School of Economics).
• One in every 25 people on the planet will be living in a megacity by 2025 (Francisco Armada Perez, World Health
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Challenges for Cities and Regions in the Developing World
Mega-Urban Regions
A significant trend in Asia is that Urbanization is occurring beyond
Metropolitan borders, leading to the formation of enormously extended mega-urban regions that have developed along infrastructure corridors radiating over long distances from core cities: • Shanghai mega-urban region (6340 sq km);
• Beijing mega-urban region (16,870 sq km);
• Jakarta mega-urban region (7,500 sq km)
These new spatial configurations have created complex planning and governance problems within the region
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Environmental Problems (School Assignment)
http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXOG7YLiOCU 9
Exploring Environmental & Social Issues in Cities and Regions within Developing Country Context
Mega Cities
Mega Urban Regions
Mega Slums
Megadisasters
?
City regions
Cities
Neighbourhood
Work
Home
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Environmental Problems
In 2009, the UN Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs John
Holmes, predicted that megacities were ripe for a "megadisaster" due to climate change and rising sea levels as several are located in coastal areas. United Nations Human Settlements Programme, 2009
Natural Disasters
Cities in Developing countries suffer disproportionately from the impacts of natural disasters. This is a function of the inability on the part of authorities to manage pre and post disaster situations. Consequently, natural disasters tend to claim more
