URBAN STUDIES

LECTURE 1

P. Adams

Approaches

Physical (urban biophysical) Human-environment (env. determinism or

possibilism) Regional studies Spatial analysis Behaviorist Marxist Humanist Social theory Postmodern

Tools

Writing Mapping Mathematical modeling Spatial modeling GIS

Topics of Recent Interest

Urbanization and global cities Feminist urban geography Urban culture Urban history Locational analysis

Focusing In

Urban biophysical Urban micro-environment (fauna, flora,

climate, groundwater, surface water, air) Feral cats, invasive species, wild species with

new habits Neglected subject

Human-Environment Determinism (Wittfogel, Semple) Possibilism (site issues and shifting definition

of “resource”)

Focusing In

Regional Studies (descriptive, atheoretical) Spatial Analysis

Location and distance are primary interests Diffusion is another interest Chauncy Harris, Edward Ullman, Walter Christaller,

August Lösch prediction of the location and growth of cities

(situation) interest in urban hierarchy prediction of the location of facilities within cities inter- and intra- urban pattern identification location optimization for planning and investment extraction of general principles and laws

Focusing In

Behaviorist urban studies incorporated psychological findings & theories recognized perceived/experienced distance as more

important than “map distance” sought most direct connection to human behavior

Marxist urban studies questions the motivation behind the prevailing questions values intervention over explanation & prediction addresses justice and equity issues previously ignored reveals contradictions (conflicts of interest and power

relations)

Focusing In

Humanist urban studies emphasizes understanding rather than explanation or

intervention looks at experience for its own sake, not as a cause of behavior

Postmodernist urban studies opposes modernism

anti-rational anti-bureaucratic opposed to “master narratives” (rejects attempt to find a single best

way to understand the city) employs irony and playfulness to disrupt what it sees as the

oppressive power of rationality draws on Marxism, feminism, postcolonial and ethnic studies

growing interest in hybrids (human-machine networks and human-animal networks)

Focusing In

Social Theory in urban studies symbolic constructivism social contestation (class, race, gender esp.) landscape iconography blend of Marxist, humanist and postmodernist insights seeks primarily to intervene rather than explain or

understand explanation is seen as being strategic means of

supporting the interests of capital understanding is seen as being a vain attempt to find

common ground where there is none

Topics of Recent Interest

Urbanization and global cities (econ.) Feminist urban geography (pomo.) Urban culture (pomo. & social theory) Urban history (mainly empirical, some

Marxist, social theory & pomo.) Locational analysis (spatial anal., planning,

corporate, governmental)

Hospitals & Clinics from multiple perspectives Determining the optimum location for a new hospital Understanding the sense of place associated with

being hospitalized Exposing the fact that hospitals are concentrated in

the wealthier parts of the city Revealing the way clinics treat people differently

based on whether they have insurance Exposing how the “healthy body” promoted by clinics

is one suited to work rather than pleasure Comparing the number of emergency room cases in

a rich neighborhood and a poor neighborhood

Hospitals & Clinics from multiple perspectives Finding differences between hospital workers’ respect

for the privacy of men versus women Identifying the main geographical area served by

each hospital in a city Analyzing how climate affects the annual cycle of

illness based on hospital admissions data Exposing the development and expansion of a

monopolistic network of hospitals in the eastern US Understanding how residents of a neighborhood feel

about a new hospital being built nearby Showing the success of a community movement to

stop the closure of a nearby hospital

URBANIZATION

Primary Source

Kingsley Davis “The Urbanization of the Human Population” Scientific American, 1965

Urbanization

Definition: increase over time in the percentage of a population that lives in cities as opposed to rural areas

Cut-off must be determined: Kingsley Davis used cities of 100,000 People in larger centers were considered “urban” People in smaller centers were considered “rural” Is this a justified cut-off? Should the cut-off change over time? How?

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Population sizes of some places in Texas Dripping Springs 1,548 Buda 2,404 Bastrop 5,340 Bryan 65,660 College Station 67,890 Austin 656,562 Austin MSA 1,249,763

Should Buda & Dripping Spgs. be counted separately? Houston MSA 4,250,000

An example of urbanization

1900

urbanpopulationruralpopulation

2000

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“Developed Country” example

Another example of urbanization

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2000

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“Developing Country” example

The typical S-curve of urbanization(varies from place to place regarding the onset time and steepness of the slope)

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Why does the top of the curve begin to slope down?

As cities grow quickly, crowding and pollution constitute disamenities (opposite of amenities, things that make cities less attractive places to live)

Societies with a high level of economic development have better communication & transportation infrastructure (such as freeways and phone lines) that permit people to flee from cities to suburbs

Individuals in developed countries can most easily afford personal transportation, which in turn enable spread-out development

What urbanization is not:

“Urban growth” this is growth in the population of a particular city or cities

“Urban sprawl” this is growth in urbanized land area due to low density development

Endless “Urbanization is a finite process” (Davis p.7)

Complicating factors

Locating the boundaries Political jurisdictions (municipalities) generally under-bound the

relevant areas of urbanization Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) must therefore be

identified Chicago MSA has more than 1,100 local governments NYC, Philadelphia & Pittsburgh MSAs each include more than 500

municipalities Comparing cities across cultures

Should the “cut-off” between a town (rural) and a city be the same in the U.S. as it is in Mongolia?

Should we measure the “urban” population in terms of linear distance or time-distance from urban amenities?

Current degree of urbanization

Globally, the 50% urbanized mark will be passed in 2007

16.7% of world’s population was urbanized in 1965! About 80% of U.S. population is urbanized, but the

remainder generally has access to urban amenities Can easily drive to a city Often have a family member who commutes to work in a city Can buy nationally-marketed brands Can participate in urban culture via TV, computer, etc.

Causes of urbanization

Reflects growing economic role of cities commerce industrialization social specialization

Which leads to rural-urban migration Rural-urban migration also occurs due to:

population growth in rural areas growth in agricultural output per person overt and covert government policies

(e.g. enclosure, 1750-1850) aggression against villagers by national military,

guerillas, miners, etc.

The 10 least urbanized countries

Rwanda Burundi Uganda Malawi Ethiopia Burkino Faso Eritrea

Bhutan Nepal

Papua New Guinea

Yellow areas on map

What do these countries have in common?

The 10 most urbanized countries

Singapore Kuwait Belgium Qatar Iceland Uruguay Luxembourg Malta Argentina Lebanon

Outlined areas on map

What do (most of) these countries have in common?

What factors lead to high/low levels of urbanization? Low urbanization reflects lack of economic

development High urbanization reflects economic

development, agricultural potential, and small country size combined

SINGAPORE SKYLINE

Americans often assume that cities like this exist only in Europe, the US, and Japan

Problems specific to cities in developing countries Although cities are growing rapidly, they are still not able to

absorb all the surplus population from the countryside Population density increases in countryside despite rural-urban

migration Rural-urban migration shows little sign of abating

City growth occurs without the kind of economic growth seen when the U.S. & Europe were urbanizing (capital is now too footloose)

High number of squatters (1/4 – 1/3 of total urban population) shows inability of urban & national govt. to pay for urban infrastructure improvements

Of the 3 million air-pollution related deaths each year, some 2.7 million are in the developing world

UN estimate: 1/6 of global population occupies slums

Favelas (Latin American slums)

Squatter Settlement, Mumbai (http://www.heartspace.org/sshow/main/intro.html)

World’s most populous metropolitan areas

CITY COUNTRY POPULATION

Tokyo-Yokohama Japan 31.8 million

Seoul S. Korea 20.7

Jakarta Indonesia 19.9

Mexico City Mexico 19.5

New York U.S. 19.5

Sao Paulo Brazil 18.1

Mumbai India 17.4

Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Japan 17.4

Delhi-New Delhi India 16.7

Kolkata India 15.1

Manila Philippines 15.0

Los Angeles U.S. 14.5

Moscow Russia 14.2

Buenos Aires Argentina 13.7

Cairo Egypt 13.7

London U.K. 12.7

Shanghai China 12.5

Rio de Janeiro Brazil 11.3

We’re comparing apples & oranges

What do you think is different? Levels of “development” Economic prosperity Public health & welfare All of which relate to:

Rates of growth The city’s role in the global economy The colonial, post-colonial, and Cold-War

situation of the country it is in Access to human and natural resources

World’s most populous metropolitan areas

Tokyo-Yokohama Japan 31.8 million 0.48%

Seoul S. Korea 20.7 1.76

Jakarta Indonesia 19.9 2.99

Mexico City Mexico 19.5 1.73

New York U.S. 19.5 0.80

Sao Paulo Brazil 18.1 1.80

Mumbai India 17.4 2.43

Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Japan 17.4 0.27

Delhi-New Delhi India 16.7 3.97

Kolkata India 15.1 1.60

Manila Philippines 15.0 3.42

Los Angeles U.S. 14.5 0.97

Moscow Russia 14.2 0.33

Buenos Aires Argentina 13.7 1.18

Cairo Egypt 13.7 1.84

London U.K. 12.7 0.68

Shanghai China 12.5 1.26

Rio de Janeiro Brazil 11.3 1.42

Do the math …

Over 2% annual growth a city: Doubles in population every 37 years Triples every 57 years Grows by 600% in a century At its current growth rate Jakarta’s population

will surpass 50 million in just 33 years

Summary of Urbanization

Urbanization is a process Urbanization is not the same as urban growth or

sprawl Urbanization is just passing the 50% mark at the

global level and is rapidly increasing Urbanization is about 80% in the US and is stable or

declining Urbanization is accompanied by extreme poverty and

hardship in many parts of the world