Urban Planning Exam 3

Social Equity

Fair distribution of resources, opportunities, and services across all communities, regardless of income, race or background

Gentrification

The process where wheathier people move into low income neighborhoods, raising property values and often displacing long time residents

Segragation

The separation of groups of people within cities, often by race, income, or social class, leading to unequal access to housing, services, and opportunities.

Redlining

A discriminatory practice where banks and insurers refused loans or services to neighborhoods (often minority communities) marked as “high risk” on maps.

Example: Denying mortgages to black families in 1930s Chicago

Blockbusting

A practice where real estate agents encourage white homeowners to sell cheaply by stoking fear that minorities were moving in, then resold homes at higher prices to minorite buyers.

Reparations

Compensation or restitution provided by groups harmed by past injustices, often through financial payments, land or community investments

Affirmative Action

Policies that actively promote opportunities for historically marginalized groups in education, employment, or housing to counter discrimination

Example: College admission considering race or income background; housing programs prioritizing minority applicants

Corrective Assistance

Targeted support to disadvantaged communities to address systemic inequities and improve access to resources

Examples: Subsidies for affordable housings

Environmental Equity

Fair distribution of environmental benefits and burdens across all communities

Example: Equal access to clean air, safe drinking water, and green spaces

Environmental Injustice

Unequal exposure of marginalized communities to environmental harms due to discrimination or neglect

Example: Toxic waste sites places near low income neighborhoods; poor air quality

Environmental Justice

Movement and principle ensuring all people have equal protection from environmental hazards and equal access to environmental benefits

Example: laws requiring community input in pollution decisions; campaigns for clean water in Flint

Just Sustainabilities

The idea that sustainability must include social justice, ensuring fair access to environmental, economic and social resources for all communities

Example: Designing green spaces in underserved neighborhoods; promoting renewable energy

Informal Settlements

Housing areas built without legal approval, planning or basic infrastructure, often on land not officially owned by residents

Example: Slums in Mumbai, Favelas in Rio de Janeiro

Municipal Solid Waste

Everyday trash from households, businesses and institutions

Example: Food scraps, packaging, paper, old furniture

Industrial Sold Waste

Waste produced by factories and manufacturing processes

Example; Scrap metal, chemical byproducts, construction debris

Biohazardous Waste

Waste containing infectious materials that pose health risks

Example: used needs, contaminated lab materials, hospital dressing

Toxic Colonialism

Exporting hazardous waste from wealthy nations to poorer or marginalized communities that lack power to resist

Example: Dumping toxic waste in West African countries

Basel Convention

A 1989 United Nations treaty that regulates the international movement and disposal of hazardous waste to prevent dumping in developing nations

Example: Countries must get consent before shipping toxic waste abroad; bans illegal waste trade

Ocean Dumping

The deliberate disposal of waste material into the ocean from ships, aircrafts or platforms

Example: Past practices of dumping sewage and industrial waste at sea

Ocean Dumping Act

U.S law that bans harmful waste disposal in oceans and regulates permitted dumping

Plastic Waste

Discarded plastic materials that persist in the environment due to slow decomposition

Example: Single use bags, bottles, packaging, fishing nets

Microplastics

Tiny plastics particles formed from the breakdown of larger plastics or manufactured as microbeads

Example: Fibers from synthetic clothing, fragments from degraded bottles

Global Sustainability

Meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations worldwide to meet theirs, balancing environmental, social, and economic systems

Example: International climate agreements (Paris Accords) promoting renewable energy globally.

UN Security Council

The United Nations body responsible for maintaining international peace and security

International Court of Justice (ICJ)

The principal judicial organ of the Untied Nations that settles legal disputes between states and gives advisory opinions on international law

Examples: Border disputes between countries

International Criminal Court (ICC)

An independent court that prosecutes individuals for crimes like genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity

European Union

A political and economic union of European countries that promotes integration, free trade, and shared policies

BRICS

An alliance of major emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa - Focused on cooperation in trade, finance and development

Regionalism

Emphasis on the interest and identity of a specific geographic region, often through cooperation or autonomy

Sectionalism

Loyalty to one’s own region or section of a country over national unity, often causing conflict

Example: U.S North vs South before the Civil War

City Visions

A long term strategic plan or guiding framework that outlines a city’s desired future, focusing on growth, sustainability, equity and quality of life

The Parks Movement

A 19th century effort to create public parks in cities to improve health recreation and social life

Garden City Model

A planning concept by Ebenezer Howard (1898) combining town and country, with self contained communities surrounded by greenbelts

Example Letchworth and Welwyn Garden Cities in England

New Urbanism

A late 20th century movement promoting walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with diverse housing and transit options.

Cities Resilience Program

A World Bank-GFDRR partnership that supports cities in planning and financing resilience projects to withstand climate, disaster and economic shocks

Example: Financing flood defenses and upgrading infrastructure in vulnerable urban areas