ACCESS TO ALL CASE STUDIES HERE

Essay outline

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Part 1: The characteristics and distribution of urban
places, populations and economic activities

Characteristics of urban places, including site, function, land use, hierarchy of

settlement (including megacities) and growth process (planned or
spontaneous)

What is an urban settlement?

 Key vocabulary
● Urban growth refers to the increase in number of people living in urban areas,
whereas urbanisation refers to the increase in the proportion of people living in
urban areas.
● Range: the maximum distance that people are prepared to travel for a good or
service.
● Threshold: the minimum number of people required for a good or service to stay in
business.
● Low-order goods: necessity goods or convenience goods bought frequently.
● High-order goods: luxury or shopping goods bought or used infrequently. ●
Sphere of influence: the area served by a settlement
● Site: the physical features of the area of which the settlement is on eg access to
water
● Situation: its location in relation of other factors, relationship with its surrounding area
● Brownfield site: land that has been previously built on. Provides large space, cheap
rent and already has some sort of infrastructure present. However requires clean up
costs, generally less visually appealing and further away from the city centre.

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More vocabulary*
*particularly useful in map reading questions
● Wet point site: cities close to water
● Dry point site: on a mountain, sites that avoid the risk of flooding
● Defensive site: sites on high ground and allowed the inhabitants to see enemies from a distance
● Bridging point: where it leads to a bridge
● Nodal point: natural meeting point
● Aspect - many settlements in the northern hemisphere are located on south facing sides of valleys
where it is sunny
● Shelter - away from rain and prevailing winds
● Trading point - often settlements developed where natural trading points meet such as along rivers or
natural route ways
● Resources - many settlements developed close to where natural resources could be found

Urban areas can have various functions

● commercial (trade and resource exchange)
● industrial
● political (where nationalist feelings develop, allow for ethnic, tribal and religious intermixing)
● administration (economies of scale for health and education)
● social (intermixing may help weaken ties to traditional rural beliefs and customs) 3

Factors affecting the pattern of urban economic activities (retail,

commercial, industrial), including physical factors, land values, proximity to
a central business district (CBD) and planning

PATTERNS IN HIGH INCOME COUNTRIES

Peak Land Value Intersection (PLVI)

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Bid-rent theory

Patterns of land reflect land values:

● The point with the highest land values is
called the Peak Land Value Intersection
(PLVI), it is at the CBD.
● Businesses within the CBD have greater
levels of accessibility and therefore
attracts more business and make more
money (although their outgoing costs
would be higher).
● Key idea: distance decay
● Land prices and building heights decrease
with distance from the CBD.
● Land prices usually fall away quite sharply
from the PLVI (distance-decay), building
heights also decrease. Burgess’ concentric zone model
● As accessibility declines with distance
away from the PLVI, the price that
businesses are willing to pay for land also
declines.
● Only a few types of very profitable businesses
would benefit at this location eg large retail
shops.
● Commercial enterprises such as financial
companies, solicitors and corporate offices
require high accessibility but they cannot
afford the high price, so they are not at the
PLVI.
● Burgess concluded that poorer people
tend to live in inner city areas whereas
developing world cities tend to have
poorer people living on the outskirts,
usually in shanty settlements.

● Key idea: accessibility vs ability to pay for

rent
● The bid-rent theory is the amount of rent
people are willing to pay in relation to
 distance from the PLVI/CBD.
● Land developers try to maximise their profits
through high-rise developments.
● Retailers can afford the highest land prices but
they are not prepared to do so if they are not
in a highly accessible location. Therefore, the
slope of the rent curve for retail shops is very
steep.
● The rent curve for industrial and commercial
enterprises does not rise as high as that for
retail shops, but it falls away a little more
gently because accessibility is not quite as
crucial for them.
● The most profitable land uses are found
Hoyt’s sector model
PATTERNS IN LOW INCOME COUNTRIES
closest to the city centre.
● Over-simplification, as it took no account of
landforms (land prices are higher where
there is a view), transport routes (which
attract industry), or changes that can occur
over time.
● The model suggested that there were sharp
boundaries between land use zones,
whereas in reality the borders are more fuzzy.
● It was only applicable to cities in
industrialised nations, as land uses in
developing countries were not influenced as
strongly by economic forces.
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● Hoyt suggested that land uses in cities are
arranged in sectors that radiate out from the
CBD.
● The model took landforms and transport
routes into account.
● Wealthier people tend to live on higher land
while manufacturing industry will be aligned
along transport routes.
● shops and factories will cluster together for
their mutual advantage
● incompatible high class residential and
manufacturing will not be situated next to
each other
● manufacturing towards edge of city for larger
area and cheaper rent

● Cities usually develop incrementally
(slowly but steadily) and without formal
planning, growing outwards by adding
shanty settlements on the outskirts of the
city.
Push and pull factors - why do urban economic activities (retail,
commercial, industrial) move to new locations in cities?
Retailing
Push ● low population density - low
turnover → low profit
● high rent
● people might not have
as much disposable
income
hence are not as willing
to spend a lot of
convenience goods
● Comparison: businesses
may have seasonal highs
and lows which makes
them unable to afford for
the high rent
Pull ● more people in new
● In these regions not only economic forces
play an effect on land uses, but even more
due to ethnicity, political affiliations,
corruption, loose government regulations and
spontaneous use of land by squatters and
rural-urban migrants.
● As time goes by, these settlements develop
inter permanent buildings and a new ring of
shanty settlements develops further out,
causing the city to expand horizontally.
● As a result, rich people live close to the
centre and the poorer in outskirts.
● Bands of manufacturing industry are
generally situated along major lines of
communication such as roads and railways
● People tend to segregate according to ethnic
group and/or wealth.
● Land uses are commonly arranged vertically
in buildings (three-tier developments). The
buildings typically have a shop on the ground
floor, warehouse/manufacturing in the middle
level and the residence of the family
operating the business on the top floor.
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Service/Financial Manufacturing
● same as retail
● same as retail and
● lower than threshold
service
population means that
● accesibility to clients
the service cannot be
is not as needed
sustained
● high rents, congestion
and pollution of the city
centre
● Mutual advantage:
 urban area, can
increase prices
● lower rent
● along arterial/cross
roads for easier access
and to
encourage impulse
buying in motorists
● people moving in
these new urban
areas might
have more disposable ● usually close to where
income/moving in with a
job hence are more
willing to spend
● new place might attract
tourists and other
visitors
which helps bring in profit ●
central location = more
people = higher turnover =
pay rent + gain profit
● lower rent with more
space for parking and
larger
spaces in general
● less human and traffic ● high visibility, prestige,
congestion so everything
is faster eg delivery of
goods ● lower land values, more
● inner-city areas could
offices form part of an
provide the large
agglomeration os
quantity of unskilled
businesses usually
labour especially in
served by and in close
LICs
association with
● next to main lines of
communication
economic interactions
● better transport links
are most active and
for delivery of raw
administrative centres,
materials and
so they can get the
processed goods
latest economic
● updated, custom
information and info on
made facilities
rules and regulations
accessibility for clients
and staff
space for car parking,
possible future
expansion, more
pleasant work
environment, greater
proximity to motorways
& airports

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Factors affecting the pattern of residential areas within urban areas, including
physical factors, land values, ethnicity and planning
Family Life Cycle model
The Family Life Cycle determines (to some extent) your residential needs. The series of
stages in which a family may pass through time. It explains the type of housing people live in
according to their income and life stage.

Main takeaway: Low income families are largely restricted to council houses throughout
their lives, whereas there is upward mobility for middle income families

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The incidence of poverty, deprivation and informal activity (housing and
industry) in urban areas at varying stages of development
 Formal vs Informal economy
Formal economy Informal economy
● Qualification and training
● Regular work hours and salary
● Job security and legal protection
● Pensions or unemployment benefit
● Work space is well-serviced and built
● Registered business, government
involvement
● Imported technology, using non-local raw
materials
Advantages and disadvantages of the informal economy
Advantages Disadvantages
● Provides jobs for unskilled or semi-skilled
workers
● Immediate jobs for migrants
● Less time and money to set up businesses ●
Goods produced are often not in competition
○ Often goods made in small
workshops are sen to larger factories
for finishing and then sold on the
formal market
● Should be seen as a transitional and
necessary stage
Dharavi and Kowloon Walled City slums case studies HERE
● No qualifications and training
● Unregulated work hours and salary
● No job security and legal protection
● No pensions or unemployment benefit
● Work premise is often unserviced,
sometimes domestic
● Labour intensive
● Often local materials using adaptive
technology
● Some illegal business (not registered)
● Has been associated with negative activities
such as crime, drugs, bribery, smuggling and
prostitution
○ Threatens image & security of the area ○
Impact on residents and potential
businesses/investors
● Limited access to credit due to unregulated
nature of the business
● No protection in a legal sense or for health
coverage for employees
● Health & safety risks for employees due to
work conditions
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Part 2: How economic and demographic processes bring
change over time to urban systems

Urbanization, natural increase and centripetal population movements,

including rural–urban migration in industrializing cities, and inner city
gentrification in post-industrial cities

All centripetal movements examples HERE

Centrifugal population movements, including suburbanization and

counter-urbanization

Urbanisation
● a greater proportion of a people living in urban areas, caused by:
○ Rural-urban migration
○ Natural increase (CBR - CDR)
○ Urban sprawl, where there is a reclassification of rural areas into urban ones

Megacities
● Megacities are cities with a population of over 10 million people. These cities grow
due to economic growth, rural-urban migration and high rates of natural increase. ●
As a result of people migrating to the city in search of jobs, megacities develop an
age structure that is dominated by young adults.
● Thus, the city grows not only through migration but also because of the high birth
rates associated with a younger population.

Centripetal movements - inwards movement, towards the city centre

● Rural-urban migration
○ Urban areas are more economically productive than rural areas, which is a
major reason for the population shift
● Gentrification
○ Reinvestment of money in inner-city areas, especially in residential and
commercial areas upgrading, which often leads to displacement of older and
poorer demographic and the influx of younger and richer people/businesses
○ comes with an economic dimension such as the development of retailing and
other services.
○ young people with jobs like these areas as they initially have low rent and are
close to the CBD
○ usually leads to small-scale businesses being forced out, increased land
price, area seen as hippy place for professionals
● Urban renewal/urbanization (making the site look nicer)
○ When mature cities need revitalisation of urban areas especially brownfield sites,
without impacting countryside/open areas → often reflects more sustainable
approaches to development

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 ○ often part of a government scheme

Centrifugal movements - outwards movement, away from the city centre

● Urban sprawl
○ Physical expansion of city area into the rural area (this is often linked with
suburbanisation), usually associated with unplanned urban growth (LICs
especially), though this is also a global phenomenon
○ also called boundary redefinition
● Suburbanisation
○ More affluent demographic relocates to city outskirts for better housing and
space with cheaper rent (can afford commute & new housing)
○ centrifugal movement involving middle/old aged people moving from the city
to city limits (still within city), usually bringing along their families and young
children.
● Counter-urbanisation
○ More affluent demographic relocates to rural areas outside of city limits for
better quality of life (less stress from crowding, pollution, traffic, lack of
community, etc), characteristic of HIC cities.

Urban system growth including infrastructure improvements over time, such

as transport, sanitation, water, waste disposal and telecommunications
Hong Kong infrastructural growth case study HERE

The causes of urban deindustrialization and its economic, social and

demographic consequences
Deindustrialisation in Detroit case study HERE

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Part 3: The varying power of different stakeholders in relation to
the experience of, and management of, urban stresses

Urban microclimate modification and management, including the urban

heat island effect, and air pollution patterns and its management

Key vocabulary
Microclimate - Any local deviation from the climate of a larger area
Albedo is the reflectivity of a surface, measured in the % of energy reflected.

Reasons for the urban microclimate

● Changed surface qualities - (Pavements and buildings) Increased absorbance or
reflection of solar radiation, reduced evaporation.
● Buildings - Casting a shadow, acting as a barrier to winds, channelizing winds,
storing heat in their mass and releasing it at night.
● Energy seepage - Through walls and ventilation of heated buildings. ● Atmospheric
pollution - Presence of solid particles in urban atmosphere may assist in the formation of
fog and induce rainfall.
● Temperature - Can be 2-4 degrees higher in cities than the surrounding countryside.

Urban heat island effect (UHI)

Urban areas are generally 2-4°C warmer than the surrounding
countryside. Factors to consider:
- Surrounding area’s ecological impact
- Size of city
- Shape of city
- Development patterns of the city
- Population size within the city

Socio-economic impacts of the UHI

● Human health: Heat stress and suspended particulates impacts the respiratory
systems of the young, elderly and sick
● Human discomfort: Humidity, dust and poor air quality negatively impacts the quality
of life
● Disease: Incidences of water borne and vector-borne diseases increase with hotter
temperatures
● Energy waste: Increased temperature = increased air conditioner use (especially
wealthier cities)
● Urban environment degradation: Urban materials like rubber and tarmac degrade
with intense heat, increasing costs for the city.

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 Processes that cause changes in the urban microclimate
Radiation and sunshine
Clouds and fogs
○ Greater scattering of shorter-wave radiation
○ Increased convection and air pollution →
by dust, higher absorption of longer waves
thicker cloud covers in summer and radiation
due to surface material and CO2
fogs/smogs in winter.
○ Reduced visibility arising from industrial
haze.

Temperature
Pressure and winds
○ Anthropogenic heat: heat released by human
○ Severe gusting and turbulence around tall
activity (vehicles, central heating, air
buildings → strong local pressure gradients
conditioning, industrial activities).
from windward to leeward walls
○ Stronger heat energy retention and release
○ Deep, narrow streets are much calmer unless
○ Heating from below increases air mass
aligned with prevailing winds ot funnel flows
instability overhead, especially during
along them (canyon effect)
summer afternoons and evenings.
○ Lower speeds: due to roughness of the land
○ less vegetation to provide shade
surface and variety of building heights leading
○ Height and arrangement of buildings: albedo
to increased surface friction
affects amount of absorption. Urban areas
○ Greater variability: due to layout and height of
have more vertical surfaces which means
buildings. Straight streets lined with tall
that radiation will tend to be reflected off
buildings can produce urban canyons,
many surfaces, each one absorbing some of
causing funnelling of wind in high velocities.
the energy and warming up in the process,
This effect increases as buildings tend to get
reducing heat losses to the atmosphere. Low
taller towards the city centre. Turbulence is
sky-view value mean that areas at ground
created by high-rise buildings, disrupting the
level may receive no direct insolation, and
flow of air.
are in shade the entire day.
○ Large-scale convection: due to heat island
effect, leading to lowering air pressure and air
is drawn in from surrounding rural areas.
Humidity
Precipitation
○ Decreases in relative humidity due to lack of
○ More intense storms, particularly during hot
available moisture and higher temperatures
summer evenings and nights due to greater
instability and stronger convection above
built-up areas.
○ Greater cloud cover due to greater
concentration of condensation/hygroscopic
nuclei (water vapour needs a surface onto
which condensation can take place).

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Air pollution

Causes of air pollution

● Natural: ash and pyroclastic material that come from volcanic eruptions, fires or
allergens, cow fart
● Human: energy use, agriculture, burning wood for cooking, burning trash, inefficient
road design leading to severe traffic jams

Types of air pollution

1. Greenhouses gases from the burning of fuel. GHG includes carbon dioxide,
methane, nitrous oxides and fluorinated gases. They trap heat from the Sun in the
Earth’s atmosphere leading a rise in global temperature. This leads to higher climate
and in turn leads to higher global temperature, creating a cycle. Some of these gases
are also toxic to humans.
2. Smog reduces visibility (brown haze) and poses serious health effects (irritates eyes
and causes respiratory distress).
- Photochemical smog is a result of the reaction between sunlight, nitrogen oxides and
volatile organic compounds.
- These nitrogen oxides come from coal power stations, factory emissions and car
exhaust.
 Solutions
● Deindustrialisation
● Improved public transit
● Improved technology for cars and factories (increase efficiency)
● Government regulation to inforce policies
● Cycling or walking more
● Using a car pooling scheme (sharing cars)
● Using catalytic converters to reduce emissions of NOx
● Decrease burning of fossil fuels, especially in transportation, manufacturing and
electricity generation.

Types of toxins
● Sulphur dioxide: Produced by various industrial processes when coal or petroleum
are burnt
● Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM): Produced when coal, timber and other
hydrocarbons are burnt
● Carbon monoxide: from the emissions of motor vehicles due to incomplete
combustion of fossil fuels.

Air pollution in Beijing case study HERE

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Traffic congestion patterns, trends and impacts

Traffic congestion: The density of cars on a road exceeds the carrying capacity of a road.

Impacts
Social
Environmental
● Health issues – raised blood pressure,
● Road traffic noise
coronary heart disease, psychological stress
● Noise disturbance may cause people in urban
and annoyance, and sleep disturbance
areas to consider moving from cities of high
● Street noise exposure is believed to account
population density to quieter environments
for 4% of the average individual’s annual
● Fuel wasted and increased exhaust
noise dose
emissions (greenhouse gases and particle
● Increased wear and tear on vehicles (could
pollution)
 increase accidents)
● Road rage and increased stress

Economic Solutions
● Time wasted (can lead to financial loss) ● Could Political
discourage investment in a city ● Reduced ● More pressure on government for development of
productivity in a city (could lead to financial loss) roads

Road Engineering Mass Transit Systems

● Road widening Management Strategies
● Tolls ● Train
● Elevated roads ● Traffic lights
● Tunnels ● Bus
● Prohibiting vehicles to a
● Reversing the direction of
● Metro
lane traffic throughout the day
designated area
● IT traffic apps to inform
● Carpooling lane
drivers (pedestrianisation)
● Improved cycle path lanes
● Park and ride schemes

Traffic congestion in Curitiba case study HERE

Contested land use changes, including slum clearances, urban redevelopment

and the depletion of green space
Dharavi and Rio De Janeiro case studies HERE

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Managing the impacts of urban social deprivation, including the cycle
of deprivation and geographic patterns of crime

Urban social deprivation

● When people are forced to live in areas where facilities such as as housing,
education, hospitals, roads, sewerage and drainage systems are inadequate, sub-
standard or inferior to the rest of the city, they are experiencing urban social
deprivation.
● Absolute urban social deprivation: This is a hardship that is potentially life
threatening or which leads to physical or mental health problems.
● Relative urban social deprivation: This is a hardship caused by a lack of access to
services that most other people in the city have.

Segregation based on income

● aka birds of a feather flock together
 ● In most cities segregation occurs on many levels including the separation of people
with different occupations. Very high income earners cluster in certain expensive
areas whilst very low income earners cluster in socially deprived areas. Occupational
groups without extremes of status do not segregate noticeably.
● Areas with greater disparities in income tend to be segregated, face higher crime
rates, suffer lower average life expectancy and experience acute health
problems.

Lorenz Curve and Gini Coefficient

equal the distribution of wealth.
● The greater area of A, the less equal the
distribution of wealth.

Gini coefficient
● calculated from the Lorenz curve
● Ranges from 0 - 1
● The closer to 1 a country is, the less equal
the distribution of wealth.
● Gini coefficient = A / (A + B)

● Lorenz Curves are used to show

inequalities in distributions.
● The more curved (or the farther away of the
45˚ line) the Lorenz curve is, the less 16
Cycle of Deprivation
Why might crime be higher in deprived areas?
● Inequality - Frustrated people who lack access to material possessions that they see
other people have.
● Unemployment - Statistics show that unemployed males are more likely to be
involved in crime, especially violence.
● Drugs and alcohol - Use is higher in urban socially deprived areas than on average.
This can lead to poor judgement and a lack of control.
● Organised crime - Criminal organisations are often based in urban socially deprived
areas (especially shanty towns).
● Inadequate protection - Housing/buildings are less likely to be effective against
burglary or armed attacks, lack of security preventions
● Ethnic diversity - Large ethnic mix within an urban area can create crime and unrest
through xenophobia and racism.
● Poor urban infrastructure - Poor neighbourhoods lack street lightening, CCTV and
often have vacant abandoned buildings and thin alleyways making crime easier to
commit.

Factors influencing crime hotspots

● The presence of crime targets for an offence to happen
● Site features such as easy access and lack of security
● The presence of a higher number of offenders and sufficient incentive and ability to
commit crime
● A high level of residential land use
● A lack of health, centres, schools and recreational areas in a settlement
● Lack of a police station

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Managing urban crime
● More police officers on patrol
● Greater use of CCTV/security cameras
● Improved street lighting
● Buildings designed to avoid dark/unlit areas
● Greater availability of taxi services around the closing time of clubs and bars
● Taxi drivers are women as well
● Adopting zero tolerance policies toward crime
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Part 4: Future possibilities for the sustainable management of
urban systems

Urban growth projections for 2050, including regional/continental patterns and

trends of rural–urban migration and changing urban population sizes and
structures

Opportunities and Challenges of a growing urban population

Opportunities Challenges

● Likely to have an increased quality ● Lack of food sources (S)

in sanitation and education (S)
○ To prevent future disease
breakouts
○ Provide better education for
children → Well educated future
generations
● Technology could advance at a
faster rate (S)
○ In order to keep up with
population demands
● Cultural mix within the urban area
(S) ○ Food, language, shops etc.
○ HL extension: salad mix or
melting pot?
● Increased GDP (E)
○ Less people within the agricultural regions
○ Larger population in urban in comparison
to rural
● Lack of space (Socioeconomic)
○ Will become extremely overcrowded
within areas
○ Could lead to noise, light, air pollution
○ High land price which increases rate of
slum/shanty development
● Damage to land (E)
○ From buildings
○ Reduction of greenspace
● Pollution increase (E)
○ More energy being required as the
population increases
○ Renewable energy is currently not big
enough to support the amount of cities

Resilient city design, including strategies to manage escalating climatic and

geopolitical risks to urban areas

The deterioration of urban areas

● High rates of unemployment and underemployment, as urban labour markets are
unable to absorb the growing number of job seekers
● Insufficient housing and shelter, coupled with the growth of slums and squatter
settlements
● Overloaded and overcrowded transport systems
● Air, water and noise pollution
● Deteriorating infrastructure and shortfalls in service delivery
● Growing inequalities between areas or districts with a city in terms of access to
infrastructures and services
● Inadequate sanitation and water supplies and associated health problems
● Increasing prevalence of social problems
● A general deterioration in the perceived quality of life.
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Chronic stress
Rapid growth of the world’s cities places severe strains on their infrastructure and urban
processes, especially in developing countries.
For example:
● Over taxation of population
● Inefficient public transport
● Unemployment
● Inadequate rubbish disposal
● High rates of violence
● Chronic shortages of food and and water

Acute shocks
Sudden, sharp events that threaten a city such as:
● Earthquakes
● floods
● Outbreaks of disease
● Terrorists attacks

Resilient city
The capacity of individuals, communities, institution, businesses and systems within a city to
survive, adapt and grow no matter what kind of chronic stresses and acute shocks they
experience.

Resilient cities in Rio de Janeiro and Byblos case studies HERE

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Eco city design, including strategies to manage the urban ecological footprint

What is sustainability?
Meeting the needs of the current generation without compromising with the needs of the
future generation.

Urban ecological footprint

The ecological footprint of an urban area is defined as the theoretical amount of land needed
to provide the raw materials on which it feeds, sustain the products that it consumes, and
process the waste products it excretes under prevailing technology.

The ideal eco city

● Key idea: both inputs and outputs are reduced
● Produces zero carbon waste
● Produces zero waste
● Is powered by renewable resources
● Is based on a circular economy, self-contained or more locally based economy ●
Preserves the natural environment: tries to work within it, rather than change or
destroy it
● Combines social and economic development without creating disparities
● Has efficient public transport & high density land use

Eco city in Vancouver case study HERE

Smart city design and the use of new technology to run city services and
systems, including purpose-built settlements and retrofitting technology to
older settlements

Internet of Things (IoT)

● Sensors are devices that can interact with the environment and transmit/receive data.
Sensors are now super small and super efficient
● Internet is widely available and fast
● Automated, devices embedded into lifestyle and seams into it

Blockchain
● Digital record
● Enhance connectivity between device
● Crub risk of hacking

Hong Kong case study HERE

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