Urbanization and Economic Development Vocabulary

This set of flashcards covers key vocabulary related to urbanization and economic development. Each term is defined for easier study and understanding.

Urban area

A city and its surrounding suburbs.

Metropolitan area

Includes a city and the surrounding areas that are influenced economically and culturally by the city.

Urban sprawl

Urban areas that expand in an unplanned and uncontrolled way, covering large expanses of land in housing, commercial development, and roads.

Edge city

A type of community located on the outskirts of larger cities, commercialized with urban activities.

Exurb

Fast-growing community outside of or at the edge of a metropolitan area where residents and community are closely connected to central city and its suburbs.

Infill

Redevelopment that identifies and develops vacant parcels of land within previously built areas, used to counter sprawl.

Rank-size rule

Geographic concept that predicts ranking of city size by relationships between population size of cities and their rank in the urban system.

Primate city

City that far exceeds, in population size and influence, the country’s next largest city.

Central Place Theory

Walter Christaller’s theory that explains the hierarchical patterns in the number, size, and location of cities and other settlements.

Central place

A settlement that provides goods and services for the surrounding area.

Threshold

The number of people needed to support a certain good or service.

Range

The distance that someone is willing to travel for a good or service.

Megacity

A city with a population of more than 10 million people.

World city (global city)

Cities that have influence not only over their region or country, but also across the globe.

Concentric Zone Model

Burgess Model, describes a city as a series of rings that surrounds a central business district.

Hoyt Sector Model

As cities develop, wedge-shaped sectors and divisions emanate from the CBD along transit routes.

Borchert’s transportation model

Model developed to describe urban growth based on transportation technology across four epochs.

Multiple-Nuclei Model

Harris and Ulman Model, observes that most large US cities don’t grow in rings or sectors.

Galactic City Model (Peripheral Model)

A model that includes features of urban sprawl and decentralized urban areas.

Latin American City Model

A model that places a two-part CBD at the center of the city.

Disamenity zones

High-poverty urban areas in disadvantaged locations.

Squatter settlements

Informal housing areas with basic infrastructure lacking or overcrowded.

African City Model

Model that reflects the urban landscape of African cities.

Southeast Asian City Model

Model representing urban structures in Southeast Asian cities.

Zoning

Process of dividing a city or urban area into zones within which only certain land uses are permitted.

Ecological footprint

Impact on the environment expressed as the amount of land required to sustain its use of natural resources.

Mixed-Use Development

Single-planned development designed to include multiple uses, such as residential and commercial.

Smart-growth policies

Policies and regulations put in place to create sustainable communities and efficient development.

Mixed-use zoning

City government determines that there can be multiple land uses in the same space.

Traditional zoning

City government creates separate zones based on land-use type.

Greenbelt

Ring of parkland or open space maintained around an urban area to limit sprawl.

Redlining

Housing discrimination regarding loans based on racial or ethnic makeup of neighborhoods.

Blockbusting

Housing discrimination stirred by real estate agents to incite fear and push sellers.

Zones of abandonment

Areas that have been largely deserted due to job loss and declining land values.

Filtering

Neighborhood change process where housing transitions from higher to lower income groups.

Inclusionary zoning laws

Create affordable housing by allocating a percentage of new construction for low-income residents.

Land tenure

The legal rights associated with owning land.

Urban renewal

Nationwide movement to rebuild crumbling neighborhoods using federal grants.

Gentrification

Middle to upper-income buyers restoring and renovating deteriorated buildings.

Brownfields

Abandoned and polluted industrial sites in central cities and suburbs.

Industrialization

Economic activity that uses machinery for production.

Industrial Revolution

A period of rapid industrial growth beginning in the 18th century.

Cottage industries

Small-scale production in homes for local markets.

Least-cost theory

Business location strategy to minimize production costs.

Agglomeration

Benefits for companies locating near each other.

Break-of-bulk points

Locations where raw materials are divided into smaller units.

Bulk-reducing industries

Industries where raw materials cost more to transport than finished goods.

Bulk-gaining industries

Industries where finished goods cost less to transport than raw materials.

Neoliberalism

Belief in open markets and free trade fostering global economic interdependence.

Deindustrialization

Decline in employment in the secondary sector and reduction of industrial capacity.

Growth poles

Areas of high economic activity clustered around high-growth industries.

Just-in-time delivery

Logistics that minimize storage by delivering materials as needed.

Post-Fordism

Production reliant on automation and flexible systems.

Outsourcing

Turning over production or services to third-party providers to cut costs.

Offshoring

Moving production outside of the country to cut costs.

International division of labor

Specialization in production across global economies.

Special Economic Zones (SEZs)

Regions with beneficial economic regulations to stimulate growth.

Export processing zones (EPZs)

Sites for manufacturing exports without tariffs.

Free trade zones (FTZs)

Duty-free areas for transporting and storing goods.

Ecotourism

Tourism that promotes environmental conservation and minimal impact.