Essay Summary of Urbanization

Benefits and challenges of Urbanization SCI/275 University Of Phoenix In this paper I will be explaining the four factors that produce a change in the population as well as urbanization. Urbanization is moving from a rural area to a big city in hopes of better opportunity or employment along with many other benefits. Urbanization may seem like a good idea to those trying to better themselves but it has challenges in the city people may face. I will be providing you with current or historical events that may be a benefit or a challenge of urbanization.
Factors that may produce urbanization and a change in population are the birth rate and death rate. Emigration and immigration are the other two factors that produce urbanization and the change in the population. The reason birth rate produces a change in population due to a person added to the population size. This makes one more person to add to our population when a child is born. If the growth rate is more than zero than the population size increases (Hager&Hassenzahl, 2011, ch. 7). Birth rate produces urbanization because people want to be able to raise their children with employment or a career you may find in urban cities.
Death rate produces population change because it decreases the population size. When a person dies it takes from the population size and produces a change in the population. Death rate produces urbanization in cities due to the poverty level and diseases as well as health hazards. The growth rate of a population is the birth rate minus the death rate in cities (Hager&Hassenzahl, 2011, chp. 7). Emigration changes the population size to decreasing the population. Decreasing the population of the countries in which the individual may have left.

Emigration produces urbanization because one might leave the country in which he or she originated to go to another country for better opportunities. Immigration changes the population by increasing it because people come into the county instead of leaving (Hager&Hassenzahl, 2011, ch. 7). Immigration produced urbanization when they came into the countries immigrants headed to the cities. The benefits of urbanization can be better career or employment opportunities. In cities more jobs could be found than in a rural area.
Compact development is another benefit of urbanization which is the efficiency of the land (Hager&Hassenzahl, 2011, chp. 7). Cities may try to encourage different means of transportation so the air won’t be so polluted by too many vehicles. Availability of goods and services is another benefit of urbanization. Rural areas don’t have as many businesses that may be beneficial to individuals. Such as the choice to what college you want to go to for education. Cities have more than one college who may provide better opportunities for a person.
Closer to the hospital and restaurants, libraries, gas stations, relatives and friends. Rural areas are spread out and people have to travel such great distance in order to receive goods and services needed. The challenges of urbanization have to do with the environment in which these city people live in. The condition of the water and sewer which people drink from which is caused by pollution. Pollution in the air is another challenge of urbanization. In some cities have congested streets and the cars may let off air pollutions. Congestion also of housing and factories within the city is also an environmental problem.
Factories within the city also let off air pollutions that may be harmful to people and the environment. These cause health problems in some that may cause death. In some cities they may be faced with poverty and slum housing such as “ghettos” (Hager&Hassenzahl, chp. 7). There are many challenges in urbanization when people live in cities and the population increases in hope of a better life for an individual’s family. An example of more employment opportunities in the cities is the use of factories for employment of the people who come to the city.
There are more businesses so there are many business opportunity for people to make a career in the cities. Efficiency of land is used because buses and bicycles were developed for people to move around instead of using all automobiles. Many businesses such as hospitals, places to have fun, bus stations were created as well as places to receive the resources from. Challenges of urbanization examples are congested streets of New York City where everything is so close together with one another. Another example is an immigrant coming to America from a different county in hopes of receiving employment.
Other people are doing the same thing so there is much competition in cities for jobs. Once many people are employed the wages tend to drop to be able to pay for employees such as minimum wage of the city. A person starts off with this wage and work his or her way up to more money after a period of time. Poverty example is people living on the streets in these big cities are considered homeless due to the fact of unable to stay employed or health conditions that may put him or her out of work and be able to provide for the family.
Health problems may arise as cancer or lung cancer and breathing problems. These problems may eventually kill a person from the pollution within the city water and sewer, and air. The unemployment office in cities has been establish to help people search for work in cities. I believe that there are more challenges of urbanization than benefits. There are many environmental issues that cities may be faced with. The cities have to control those issues before it beneficial to the people living there. Too many people in one place cause congestion and are the main cause of some of the environmental problems.
They offer employment but the wages sometimes aren’t enough for the person to survive in the city. Therefore poverty sets in as well as crimes in these cities causing harm to people and the environment because people are trying to make it in these cities. Urbanization could be beneficial and yet challenging. Depending on the city you move to in hopes of a change from the area in which you may previously live. Some people it’s all about survival to take care of his or her family or to establish employment.
Many challenges and struggles may be faced for a person living in these cities especially with the increase of population size. Better life may only be a hope and survival for a person considering the competition that has been produced by the population increase and the environmental problems of overpopulation. References: Berg, L. R. , Hager, M. C. , & Hassenzahl, D. M. (2011). Visualizing environmental science (3rd ed. ). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons in collaboration with the National Geographic Society.