Urban Environments & Economic Activity

Flashcards covering key concepts related to Urban Environments and Economic Activity.

What is urbanisation?

The increase in the proportion of people living in towns and cities.

What is urban growth?

The physical expansion of towns and cities.

Define push factors in urbanisation.

Negative aspects of rural areas that encourage people to leave (e.g. lack of jobs, poor healthcare).

Define pull factors in urbanisation.

Attractive aspects of urban areas that draw people in (e.g. job opportunities, better education).

What is a CBD?

Central Business District: The commercial and business centre of a city.

What is urban sprawl?

The uncontrolled expansion of urban areas into the surrounding countryside.

What are shanty towns?

Informal settlements often built on the outskirts of cities, lacking basic services.

What is a sustainable city?

A city designed to have minimal environmental impact and meet the needs of its people without compromising future generations.

Give 3 positive impacts of urban growth.

More job opportunities, better infrastructure, improved access to services.

Give 3 negative impacts of urban growth.

Overcrowding, increased pollution, growth of informal settlements.

Name two urban land use models.

The Burgess model (concentric zones) and the Hoyt model (sectors/wedges).

List 4 common urban problems.

Housing shortages, pollution, traffic congestion, social inequality.

What is economic activity?

Any activity that produces goods or services to satisfy human needs or wants.

What is the primary sector?

Jobs involving extraction of natural resources (e.g. farming, fishing, mining).

What is the secondary sector?

Jobs involving manufacturing or construction.

What is the tertiary sector?

Jobs that provide services (e.g. doctors, teachers).

What is the quaternary sector?

Jobs based on information, research, and technology.

What is renewable energy?

Energy from sources that can be replenished (e.g. solar, wind).

What is non-renewable energy?

Energy from sources that will eventually run out (e.g. coal, oil).

Give 3 examples of renewable energy sources.

Solar, wind, hydroelectric.

Give 3 examples of non-renewable energy sources.

Coal, oil, natural gas.

What is one factor affecting the location of economic activity?

Access to raw materials (also: labour, transport, energy, incentives).

What causes employment structure to change?

Development: LICs have more primary jobs, HICs have more tertiary/quaternary.

Give an example of a renewable energy project.

Qatar solar panels, Nepal HEP, UK solar, German wind farms.