Fluent Essays

Migration and Urbanization in in Middle and South America (1) Rural-to-urban migration drives growth of cities Push and Pull factors drive people out of their places of origin (push), attract them to certain destinations (pull) Rural-to-urban migration robs rural areas of more ambitious, educated youth (brain drain) Rural women are as likely as men to migrate Migrants face obstacles, such as long commutes, extreme poverty, and breakdown of families Cities can also offer opportunities for employment and education unavailable in rural areas Migration and Urbanization in in Middle and South America (2) PULL: Political and economic centralization; ‘urban bias’; ‘urban growth poles’ seek to attract investment to enhance economic development, reinforcing disparities PUSH: ‘Rural development’ policies favoring large-scale, modernized extraction/production for export Creation (or magnification) of Primate Cities A ‘PC’ is: a national capital that is >3 x size of next largest city, contains a large fraction of the national population, and very high concentration of both economic activity and political power Creation of megacities: >10 million in metro population Magnification of urban problems (shantytowns, pollution, strain on infrastructure and services; informal economies) Levels of Urbanization in Middle and South America, and Largest Cities by Population, 2018 Legend notes: Sizes of graduated circles correspond to 20 million, 10 million, 5 million, and 3 million. Number in circle indicates global rank in size. Color of country indicates percentage of population living in urban areas: dark red = 83-100\%; dark orange = 65-82\%; orange = 47-64\%; yellow = 29-46\%; light yellow = 10-28\% 3 10 Largest Metropolitan Areas in the Americas, 2015 = megacity = primate city Images of Urbanization in Middle and South America Urban migrants in Brazil Santiago, primate city in Chile Urban migrants in Brazil A child works as a street vendor in Salvador, Brazil. Many urban migrants work in similar informal sector jobs that pay less and are much less secure than formal sector jobs Question: Why might work in the informal economy be considered insecure? Primate city in Chile Santiago is one of the regions’ primate cities, home to 39 percent of Chiles population. It dominates Chile’s economy, generating 40 percent of the country’s GDP. Question: What about this picture suggests that there may be considerable wealth in Santiago? 5 (part of) Mexico City both primate city and ‘megacity’ Urban planning, urban landscapes Most of the resources for urban planning are focused on wealthier areas and high-profile projects. The lack of affordable housing results in shantytowns, or ‘squatter settlements’ of self-provisioned housing. Usually, over time, these shantytowns are transformed into more permanent living areas. Much of the economic activity occurs within the informal economy, particular for the urban poor. Elite urban landscapes are found throughout the region, with considerable wealth, technology, shopping, and more. This often comes at the expense of investment in education, health care, service provision, and other social services. Commutes from shantytowns can be long, and traffic jams can be enormous. Much employment, informal or not, is found outside of shantytowns. A favela (shantytown) in a ravine on the margin of a modern neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Same favela, close up. Clockwise from top left: Curitiba, Brazil Santiago, Chile Sao Paulo, Brazil Mexico City Informal Economic Activities: Salvador, Brazil (left); Lima, Peru (right). World Regional Geography For the WRITTEN portion of the First Exam, you are asked to write one ESSAY in response to any of the following six prompts.  I am looking for approximately three to three-and-one-half pages of text, double-spaced, uploaded to the FIRST ESSAY folder in Assignments in D2L, in Word (.doc or .docx format) or .pdf format, by 11:59pm Thursday, October 14th. You may need to convert to one of these before uploading. Aim to be as clear, specific and thorough as you can in your essays, keeping in mind that you are aiming for between 3 and 3.5 pages. You should be able to respond effectively to any of the essay prompts based entirely on materials found in the course. (The textbook, the PowerPoints, video mini-lectures, third party videos, course notes, supplemental articles, and online discussions will all be useful sources). You are welcome to use outside sources if you choose: I only ask that you cite those sources appropriately, using a standard style you are familiar and comfortable with - Chicago (either author/date or notes and bibliography), or APA, or MLA – and whichever style you use, please be consistent. I will be applying Turn-it-in to your submissions, but primarily for your benefit.  The Similarity Report that Turn-it-in generates by comparing your essays to its database will be freely available for your review, and I will allow one additional day to make revisions, provided they are to eliminate any appearance of plagiarism in your work. If you do make revisions, just upload the revised document to the same folder by 11:59pm on Friday, October 15th , and that is the one I will assess. UNIT 1: 1. In what ways is climate change expected to affect the planet over the next century? How will these changes differ, in both kind and severity, for different regions of the world ? (Be as specific as you can – identify particular regions or areas of the world and the types of effects you would expect to be present in them.) What threats will this pose to physical landscapes and ecosystems of the earth, and what are the most significant challenges to human societies, governments, economies and populations? Will different regions respond differently to these challenges, and if so, how and why? 2. What is ‘ development ’ and how is this concept captured in the Human Development Index (HDI)? Using this view of development as your starting point, how would you interpret the underlying meaning of the ‘Factfulness Quiz’ (based on the correct answers to the questions); compared to your understanding of the many environmental problems facing the world today (including but not limited to human-induced climate change, deforestation, desertification, water scarcity, soil erosion, mass extinction of species, ocean acidification, plastic waste accumulation)? Does this mean that ‘development’ as we know it in direct conflict with a healthy environment? Is it possible for development to be ecologically sustainable? How would you describe such ‘sustainable development’? UNIT 2: 1. Describe the key ultimate (underlying or ‘root’) causes as well as direct (or proximate) causes of tropical deforestation in Latin America (you may focus primarily on the Brazilian Amazon, but express your understanding that causes can vary from country to country), as well as the chief environmental and human consequences of this phenomenon. What is being done - or could be done - to slow or reverse the rate of forest destruction, while still allowing forests to contribute to the economies of the region and help to meet people’s needs? 2. Rapid urbanization has made Middle and South America one of the most urbanized regions in the world in just a few decades. What are some of the chief causes of the process of urbanization in the region? (Pay particular attention to factors that are specific to or especially pronounced in this region , not just the generic drivers of urbanization worldwide.) What are the key consequences of rapid and high levels of urbanization in this region? (Consider both positive and negative consequences.) UNIT 3: 1. Identify, describe, and explain any two consecutive Stages of the Demographic Transition Model as it applies to the region of Europe . What are the key demographic characteristics of these stages, what are the underlying technological, social, and economic explanations for these characteristics, and why and how did the shift between these two stages occur (or is currently occurring)? 2. Identify, describe and explain in some detail any two challenges currently facing the European Union, which might include (but are not limited to): responses to climate change and other environmental issues; monetary and fiscal concerns with the Euro and the debt of member countries; problems of governance and democracy within the Union and some of its member states; social, political, and economic concerns relating to recent large-scale migration from outside Europe and the integration of those migrants, particularly refugees from the Middle East and North Africa; the loss of the United Kingdom due to Brexit; and the threat of further disintegration of the Union. https://e360.yale.edu/features/business-as-usual-a-resurgence-of-deforestation-in-the-brazilian-amazon https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAZAKPUQMw0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1_4JseKlO4 https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aat2340 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGjRNbXeRXI https://oxfordre.com/environmentalscience/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199389414.001.0001/acrefore-9780199389414-e-102 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3BRTlHFpBU