URBAN PLACES - World Cities and Mega Cities

What is the **character** of world cities?

* Centres of economic (commerce), financial activity, transport hubs and communication
* CHANGE, CONTROL AND COMMAND CENTRES
* Drives economic and social development → lifts people out of poverty

What is a **world city**?

Cities that are known to be control, common and civilisation centres of the global economy and amongst the network of other cities, where the most important business is conducted.

* Examples: London, New York, Tokyo and Paris.

At what rate is **mass urbanisation** occurring ?

It is INCREASING!

* Mass urbanisation historical precedent, over 1 million people are added to the global urban population per week 
* 2-3 billion more to the urban environment in the next ten years

What is the **result of mass urbanisation**?

* we need more airports, ports, and telecommunications (need for rapid infrastructure development.)

Where is urbanisation occurring and what are the **challenges** it imposes?

* Most urbanisation occurring in Africa and Asia 
* Rapid urbanisation = rapid infrastructure development → they can’t cope with this. (consequences: environmental degradation)
* BUT, they have no financial means to build the infrastructure needed

What are some **push factors** of world cities? (6)

* Conflict
* Natural disaster
* Lack of opportunity (ed, jobs)
* Lack of family support or structure
* Security or crime
* Environmental destruction

What are some **pull factors** of world cities? (5)

* Opportunities (ed, jobs)
* health care
* welfare and social security systems
* cost of living
* rights and freedoms

What is the **nature** of world cities? (5)

* *Dominate an important aspect of the economy*


* Have political power (highly educated/knowledgeable people interact with these cities.) 
* They are at the top of World Trade and Communications
* Influence the integrated global networks → reinforces the increase in global communication
* Link smaller urban centres into the global economy (regional, national to the international)
* They have a lot of Banking/Finance
* Control centres of information → make them decision-makers.

What is the **nature** of world cities? (6)

* Infrastructure built to develop social networks
* Office buildings, international hotels, conference centres, apartment blocks, and prestige residences supported by transport and information systems
* A cluster of services needed for international contribution to the economy despite the increase in technology and instant communications (global networking)


* Major stock exchange and futures exchanges located
* Dominate *popular culture through communications and media outlets*
* Creates a culture for high-income earners, purchasing power is concentrated
* *Have a high percentage of Transnational corporations headquarters corporations/financial hub*
* TNCs control products available and where the production will take place
* They will locate to reduce costs & increase access to global markets
* *The emergence of new ways of organising economic enterprises* (i.e. outsourcing of business-related services and key stages in the manufacturing process.)
* *Technological developments in transport and communications*

What is the **spatial distribution** of world cities? (5)

* Dominant - London, Paris, NY, Tokyo
* Most powerful of the global economy


* Major - Zurich, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, São Paulo
* Link large national economies
* Secondary - Sydney, Milan
* Link regions to the global economy
* The largest concentration is in Western Europe (approx 12)
* USA - 9
* Asia - 6
* Only 4 are located in the southern hemisphere (Kearney Top 25 world cities, 2022) also only 1 middle eastern country, Dubai

What is the role of world cities as powerful centres of **economic authority**? (5)

* Command points in the organisation of the global economy
* HQ for TNCs, national corporations, IGOs
* World trade organisation in NYC


* TNC dominate decision-making - produce & production


* Key locations for financial services
* Major stock exchange 
* NY is major trading in equity & gov bonds - in cyberspace
* London, Tokyo and Zurich are major banking centres 
* Specialised service firms
* Manufacturing sector with service industry - suburbanisation of manufacture 
* Key people gather information face-to-face, through networks
* Markets offering goods and services
* Accumulations of wealth & high incomes
* Hold purchasing power 
* Patterns of concentrated retailing areas in high-order goods
* 5th avenue in NY & Champs de Elyse in Paris

What is the role of world cities as powerful centres of **cultural authority**? (3)

* Social infrastructure 
* Develop global social networks 
* Sophisticated transport, information systems, international hotels, conference centres


* Centres for cultural facilities 
* Theatres, opera houses, large entertainment centres - major world cultural sporting events
* Distinctive cultural lifestyles
* Low-income earners have a reduced capacity to participate in the world city
* Experience distinctive cultural lifestyles - due to the mix of cultures and trade of information

London as a world city: OVERVIEW

* The major city for euro trading (since 1999, euro currency)
* London consists of two cities: Westminster and the City of London (financial district aka ‘Square Mile’ or ‘The City
* The population is 8.6 million, (expected to grow to 11 million by 2050)

London as a world city: ECONOMIC AUTHORITY (7)

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* Important centre (of economic authority and control) due to trading culture, quality of specialised services, time zone, language and regulatory environment
* World’s largest financial market.
* The banking sector contains more cross-border banking than other countries (more foreign banks than any other city)
* UK global leader in aviation and marine insurance
* London foreign exchange market has a global share of 41%
* More foreign companies are listed on the stock exchange than in other cities
* During the 1990s, London emerged as one of the main control centres in the ‘new’ global economy.
* The Greater London (GL) region’s economy accounted for 22% of the UK’s GDP. (GL is the 5th largest metropolitan economy in the world.
* London remains ‘the city of choice’ for the super-rich of Asia and the Middle East. 
* The number of UK-based ultra-high-net-worth individuals (those with more than 30 million in assets) is expected to increase by 30% by 2025. 

London as a world city: CULTURAL AUTHORITY (3)

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* One of the world’s most ethically diverse cities.
* 50 nationalities with communities of more than 10 000 make their home in the city.
* More than 300 languages are spoken.
* 37% of Londoners were born outside the UK, and 24.5% per cent born outside Europe.
* Only 44.9% of the city’s population is ‘white’ British
* Most of those with a non-British ethnic background are the children and grandchildren of those who came from the Caribbean and Indian subcontinent during the 1950s and 1960s after the disintegration of the British Empire. 


* Social networking has increased their cultural authority and further developed global networks
* Increases knowledge & need to interpret it
* Found unexpected business opportunities
* Business cards, lunches, conventions & conferences
* Electronic exchange of information (phone, online)
* Build up long-term networks - exchange of personnel with firms or oversea-offices
* __Events__:
* Theatres in the West end, sporting venues (Olympics - London has hosted the most), cafes and restaurants.

How is London a tourist destination and centre of culture? (5)

* One of the world’s great centres of consumption, luxury, leisure, art, museums and sport.


* 26 million tourists each year. Out of this, 17.8 million are international tourists.
* In total, visitors spend 11.8 billion pounds a year. (accounts for 10% of retail spending and ⅓ of theatre seats.)
* The tourism industry employs 380 000 people.
* The creative economy contributes 7.5 billion pounds per year to the economy and employs more than 795 800 people in 15 00 enterprises.
* 16.3% of the city’s workforce.

THE CITY: London’s financial district (6)

* Employs 400 000 people directly.


* Only 8000 people live here.
* 539 foreign banks have a presence here. 
* Has the HQ of 220 out of 500 of the UK’s top companies
* Has a smaller stock exchange than Tokyo and NYC, but it is more international.
* Over 40% of the world’s foreign equities (shares) are traded here
* In total, London’s financial sector alone employs about 1.25 million people or about ⅓ of the jobs available. 

the operation of global networks:

* Control the flow of money, ideas, culture and people (connect different cities together)
* Decision makers located in WC → They represent firms with the global strategy of dispensing services, ideas, people, etc.

**Dominance** in world cities:

* WC have control over urban centres due to cultural and economic authority 
* Centres of corporate decision-making, investment decisions 
* fashion/culture
* Centres of global communication/transport 
* Attract talent 


* Spatial dominance → area they have authority over or influence
* Hierarchy of national, regional and local levels 

**Dependance** in world cities:

* Less powerful urban centres rely on powerful centres (greatest at the bottom of the global hierarchy)
* Cities in less developed countries are dependent on the control exerted by cities in the developed world
* Decisions by TNCs and NGOs affect the dependent cities

What is a megacity?

* *an extremely large, dynamic and complex urban agglomeration.*
* *Continuous Pop. over 10 million and dominates trade and financial flows*
* *Currently 33 MC, the largest proportion are developing countries.*

Nature of Megacities (3)

* UN states 2020 there was 56.2% of the global population in urbanised areas increasing to 60.4 % in 2030
* 96% of urban growth will occur in East Asia, South Asia and Africa (India, China, Nigeria)
* UN rural areas will reduce by 300 million, and this indicates that another 2.5 billion people will be added to urban areas by 2050

**REASONS** for the rapid growth of megacities in the developing world (6)

* ***Transformation of rural areas*** → modern farming methods, decrease world opportunities (mechanisation of agriculture)
* Forced to leave rural areas for work (rural flight/depopulation)


* ***Natural increase and rural-urban migration***
* *UN, 2011, 18 million people migrate rural-urban every year in China* 
* ***The push factors:*** *famine, drought, natural disasters, housing, health, poor agriculture, unemployment, poor living conditions, and civil war*
* ***Pull factors:*** *employment, better income, better healthcare, better education, better facilities,  protection from conflict, and work.*
* ***Opportunity for work within cities***
* *Major centres for manufacturing industries, service, information, trade, and wealth accumulation*
* *centralised*
* ***The cultural role of cities*** 
*  *attracts skilled workers*
* ***National government policies*** 
* *encourage people to move to the city*
* ***Industrialisation*** 
* *TNCs locate in large cities for cheaper labour/manufacturing costs*

**Character** of Mega-cities (11)

* **Constantly changing dynamic** → difficult to respond to challenges


* **National and international functions**
* **Cultural individuality** → Mumbai and Bollywood film industry 
* **Former colonial cities** - still have old colonial buildings/infrastructure
* **Major centres of manufacturing**
* **Over-urbanisation**
* **Over-ruralisation**
* **Slums**
* **Informal economies**
* **social divisions**
* **International migration streams**

**Spatial Distribution** of megacities (4)

* Located mainly in coastal regions of south and east Asia
* Over-urbanisation and increasing pressure of over ruralisation
* The mechanisation of agriculture leads to the abundance of cheap labour attracting TNC’s 
* Of the world’s 10 largest cities 8 are coastal 
* Easy access to trading ports for increased exports/imports
* People prefer to live closer to the water (liveability)
* Developing countries growing faster used to be countries in Europe and North America
* 1950 - NY and Tokyo
* Africa’s population will increase - megacities will increase
* Their country is still developing - health conditions are improving and fertility rates are still high
* 50% of their population still lives in rural areas
* Growth in developed countries will decrease and their prominence as megacities 
* MCs are concentrated in Asia due to over-urbanisation and the abundance of cheap labour, which attracts TNCs
* UN REPORT: developing regions as a whole account for 93% of urban growth while Asia and Africa account for over 80%. 
* The UN suggests Asia’s urban pop. will increase to 2.7 billion by 2030