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GEO105UrbanizationinMandSAmericaPPTforvideomini-lecture.pptx
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%
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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 Chile's 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?
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(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).
