Comments on: After the crunch: more urbanisation or less? http://www.globaldashboard.org/2009/02/18/post-crunch-cities/ Global risks and how to respond to them, edited by Alex Evans and David Steven Sat, 11 Feb 2012 13:49:12 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Guy Edwards http://www.globaldashboard.org/2009/02/18/post-crunch-cities/comment-page-1/#comment-8356 Guy Edwards Sun, 22 Feb 2009 16:52:19 +0000 http://www.globaldashboard.org/?p=8140#comment-8356 Havana, Cuba, provides an impressive example of urban farming by providing each of the 2.2 million inhabitants with roughly 250 grams of vegetables and fresh herbs daily... http://www.tierramerica.info/nota.php?lang=eng&idnews=352&olt=55 Havana, Cuba, provides an impressive example of urban farming by providing each of the 2.2 million inhabitants with roughly 250 grams of vegetables and fresh herbs daily…

http://www.tierramerica.info/nota.php?lang=eng&idnews=352&olt=55

]]> By: David Steven http://www.globaldashboard.org/2009/02/18/post-crunch-cities/comment-page-1/#comment-8279 David Steven Thu, 19 Feb 2009 16:25:32 +0000 http://www.globaldashboard.org/?p=8140#comment-8279 <em>"cities - where you can't grow your food" </em> Not strictly true - around a fifth of the world's food is grown in urban areas. <em>"prospects for the <strong>world’s </strong>cities"</em> Florida and Kunstler are both writing about the US - with arguments that may be generalisable to the rich world, where urban populations are likely to remain fairly stable, and the trends (if there are any) will redistribute existing populations to new ways of urban living. The <em>global </em>picture is rather different where 1.7bn <em>more</em> people are projected to be living in cities by 2030 - 1.5bn of whom will live in developing countries. Globally, we're thus almost certain to see many more hyper and megacities - but also 700m or so more people living in towns. More of everything, in other words - and all in a very brief period of time. More on this in a <a href="http://www.globaldashboard.org/2009/01/30/climate-cities/" rel="nofollow">Tale of Two Cities</a>... “cities – where you can’t grow your food”

Not strictly true – around a fifth of the world’s food is grown in urban areas.

“prospects for the world’s cities”

Florida and Kunstler are both writing about the US – with arguments that may be generalisable to the rich world, where urban populations are likely to remain fairly stable, and the trends (if there are any) will redistribute existing populations to new ways of urban living.

The global picture is rather different where 1.7bn more people are projected to be living in cities by 2030 – 1.5bn of whom will live in developing countries. Globally, we’re thus almost certain to see many more hyper and megacities – but also 700m or so more people living in towns. More of everything, in other words – and all in a very brief period of time.

More on this in a Tale of Two Cities…

]]> By: Alex Evans http://www.globaldashboard.org/2009/02/18/post-crunch-cities/comment-page-1/#comment-8254 Alex Evans Wed, 18 Feb 2009 22:19:00 +0000 http://www.globaldashboard.org/?p=8140#comment-8254 Interesting one. In China, of course, recent migrants from rural areas to cities have latterly been heading back to their homes in the countryside - but that's been because of falling employment opportunities in cities, not greater profitability in the countryside. A lot of the problem in Africa lately has been that farmers haven't been able to profit from higher food prices because of a range of reasons including the fact that fertiliser costs have risen even faster than food prices, plus longer term reasons like lack of access to credit, small average farm sizes, poor infrastructure and so on (lots more on that in Feeding the 9 Billion). But in future, who knows? Interesting one. In China, of course, recent migrants from rural areas to cities have latterly been heading back to their homes in the countryside – but that’s been because of falling employment opportunities in cities, not greater profitability in the countryside.

A lot of the problem in Africa lately has been that farmers haven’t been able to profit from higher food prices because of a range of reasons including the fact that fertiliser costs have risen even faster than food prices, plus longer term reasons like lack of access to credit, small average farm sizes, poor infrastructure and so on (lots more on that in Feeding the 9 Billion).

But in future, who knows?

]]> By: Mark Weston http://www.globaldashboard.org/2009/02/18/post-crunch-cities/comment-page-1/#comment-8243 Mark Weston Wed, 18 Feb 2009 16:08:58 +0000 http://www.globaldashboard.org/?p=8140#comment-8243 I wonder if in places like Africa where so many people have left the land for the cities in recent years, rising food prices (which makes living in cities - where you can't grow your own food but have to buy it - more expensive and also makes farming more profitable) will encourage people to go back to their villages, even without any encouragements from policy-makers? I wonder if in places like Africa where so many people have left the land for the cities in recent years, rising food prices (which makes living in cities – where you can’t grow your own food but have to buy it – more expensive and also makes farming more profitable) will encourage people to go back to their villages, even without any encouragements from policy-makers?

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