Economic Geography Midterm

Urbanization trends by income

As income goes up, urbanization goes up

Highest income countries have highest urbanization trend

Preconditions of early cities

Ecology: Fertile soil, arable land, subtropical climate, river/source of fresh water

Technology: Agricultural revolution 8,000 BC onward, transportation and storage of crops, irrigation, literacy

Social Power: Nascent public sector, administrative bureaucracy, regulate activities of city dwellers

4 hearths

Mesopotamia: Tigris and Euphrates

Egypt: Nile

Pakistan: Indus River

Northeast China: Yangtze River

Mesoamerica

4 factors associated with emergence of early cities

Agricultural surplus

• Labor assigned by a central authority

• Tithing and taxation

Trade

Religious figures

Political defense, fortification

Entrepot and Hinterland

Port city; up-stream agricultural land

Industrial Revolution

18th century: first source of energy from hydropower

19th century: coal, steam power —> means they can be located anywhere

European vs. North American Urban Model

Old World:

• Towns are small and self sufficient

• Centers of interregional and international trade

• Industrial revolution

• Emergence of dominant center

New World

• Colonial trade and export of raw materials

• Diversification of urban economy

• Manufacturing centers based around export commodities

• Emergence of dominant centers

Rank-size

The nth largest city of national system of cities will be roughly 1/n the size of the largest city

Associated with large, federal states with small governments

Primate City

The largest city is more than double the size of the next largest city

Occurs in smaller countries with centralized power

Pr = P1/ra

Central Place Theory

Range: maximum distance you’re willing to travel to use a service

Threshold demand: minimum demand to support an establishment

Threshold population: population needed to generate threshold demand to support an establishment

Isotropic plane: flat, equally sized on all sides

Higher-order vs. Lower-order

Higher-order: larger threshold, spaced out, more establishments, more goods & services

Lower-order: smaller threshold, nested, less establishments, less goods & services, close together

Monocentric Cities

One big city with smaller and smaller cities surrounding it to work together

• Some specialized medium cities interacting

• Limited functions in smaller cities

• Clusters and proximity (agglomeration economies)

Ex. Toronto, Canada

Corridor cities

The Eastern Seaboard, megalopolis = entire network of cities

New York, Boston, DC, Baltimore, along I-95

Megalopolis

Conurbation: At least two cities to form a conurbation, that are located close to each other

Global, national, regional network of cities

Global: New York, Tokyo and London are important globally, with economic competence and important international headquarters. First tier cities multinational, transnational, world headquarters

National: Toronto, second tier cities, moving toward core world city status

Regional: regionally important, Hartford

PUR

Polycentric urban region: Equally sized cities the join together to create a larger economy, open space, maximum distance of 1 hour drive from each other, cannot be too close

• Good infrastructure, better quality of life

• Ex: Amsterdam, the Randstad

• Minimum separation: 10-15 minutes

• Significant specialization

Tourist generating regions

High income, high-demand for travel, culture of travel, unfavorable climate in context

Tourist receiving regions

Favorable climate, high service sector, attractive destination, can be anywhere

Tourism Employment

Unskilled labor, simple, tertiary, low-wage, on-demand basis

High unemployment during low season

Formal employment: clearly documented, employees of large corps, weekly paycheck on the table

• Disney land cast members, tour guides, room service

Informal Employment: Undocumented, independent workers, under the table, cash stays in their pocket

• Street vendors, yard maintenance, taxi drivers, prostitutes, industries of questionable legality

Direct vs. Indirect Economic Effect on Tourism

Direct: Initial introduction of currency into the local economy (destinations) by tourists

Indirect: The recipients of the money pay expenses and reinvest in the tourism business (like the multiplier effect)

Linkage vs. Leakage

Linkage: connections between tourism and other local businesses that support and provide tourist’s demand (= indirect economic effect)

• Drifters: Backpackers, independent

Leakage: Income from tourism that does not get reinvested in the local economy

• When money goes to other countries than the one you’re visiting

Growth Pole Model

Key Center = the growth pole or core

• Large scale resorts developed by multi-national corporations in MDCs, rapid economic development

Polarization Process: negative impact, reinforcing the growth of the core at the expense of the peripheries (circular cumulative causation, backwash, concentration)

Sustainable Tourism

Social, economic and environmental spheres must be equally maintained

• Tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host countries.

1.) Ability to maintain tourism industry over time

• Not just for profit but for balance

2.) Direct mass tourism to be sustainable

• Corporate policies on responsibility programs

3.) Make guidelines to achieve specific goals

• Renewable energy, conservation, childcare, etc.

MDCs and employment

Wealthy countries could promote linkages rather than leakages in LDCs, fair trade, more money spent on certain goods but more compensation for LDCs

• Gender equality, conservation of natural resources, cultural understanding

Global Tourism Flows

Europe generates the most and receives the most tourists of all world regions

Money each tourist spends on other world regions varies

• Poor countries receive more income from tourism than wealthy countries (negative relationship between HDI and Income in tourism)

• Wealthy countries have higher expenditure than poor countries

Globalization

The integration of economic activities across borders through markets

• Production systems, transportation networks, economic policies

4 integrations of production systems:

• State of Autarky: self-sufficient, each country does its own component creation, assembly and distribution

• Internationalization: Trade restrictions reduced, trading finished and differentiated goods

• Full integration: Component plants/suppliers can sell their products to assembly plants in other countries, assembly exchanged, finished goods exchanged

• Full integration with international division of labor: Labor intensive assembly to low income countries, equipment provided by rich country, poor countries send finished products —> done to maximize profit

Outsourcing

Producing parts or products abroad for domestic sale

Ex. Maquiladoras in Mexico

• Cheaper hourly wage

Borders

Boundary: Legal, abstract concepts separation 2 countries

Border: Concrete objects with natural and built environment defining the boundary

• Impermeable: Can’t cross, ex. North and South Korea

• Partially permeable: An opening in certain locations, ex. Border between US and Canada

• Fully permeable: No border, can cross from anywhere, ex. EU Countries

Intrafirm trade

Trade within the same firm but located in different countries

• Form of foreign direct investment

• Firm in USA has affiliate firm in a foreign country

Multidomestic firms

Decentralized to a strategic market in each country

• McDonalds outside US, same products sold in different countries

• Glocalization: mixing of 2 different cultures, aka syncretism and reterritorialization

Global firms

Finds the best locations for every production step in multiple countries based on cost, labor quality, and reliability

Knowledge-based economy

Markets for the sale or transfer of expertise within business know-how and through ICT

• Disintermediation eliminating Brick and Mortar retailers (physical shopping locations)

Product life cycle

• Stage 1: Introduction, R&D, start-ups, rising price

• Stage 2: Growth, outsourcing, mass production, price increase slows

• Stage 3: Maturity, standardization, mergers, price stabilizes

• Stage 4: Decline, market saturation, new tech, R&D, price drops