Urban Modernization and National Parks Quiz

Southeast Asia

• ASEAN established in 1967
• Objectives include accelerating economic growth, social progress, and cultural development; promoting regional peace and stability; encouraging collaboration and mutual assistance in various fields.
• Major island groups: Greater Sunda Islands, Lesser Sunda Islands, Philippine Archipelago, Maluku Islands.
• Mekong River
• Maluku Islands known as the Spice Islands, historically significant for spices like nutmeg and cloves
• Tropical Rainforests found in regions like Indochina Peninsula, Sumatra, and Borneo; high biodiversity (over 35,000 species), multiple vegetation layers.
• Monsoon Forests present in Burma, Thailand, and the Philippines; trees shed leaves during the dry season, and new leaves during the rainy; many lianas (woody vines), epiphytes (air plants like orchids), bamboo, and teak trees are common.
• Teak tree a tree native to India, Myanmar, and Thailand.
• Population density varies across Southeast Asia.
• Rural settlements often built away from rivers for flood protection, using light materials.
• Migrations—internal migrations to reduce overpopulation.

Latin America

• Subregion of the Americas, where Spanish, Portuguese, and French are spoken
• Consists of 20 countries, stretching from the southern border of the US to the southern part of South America, including the Caribbean.
• Population estimation for 2024: 663 million
• Urbanization high, with 80% of the population living in cities; this proportion exceeds most developed countries.
• Historical factors contributing to urbanization: history, policies, industrialization, migrations, demographic explosion, and cultural factors.
• Concepts of city formation: evolution since small villages; dispersal/spread of innovations.
• Key factors in cities' formation: geographic conditions; social interactions; development of agricultural conditions.
• Early settlements date back to about 14,500 years ago in Monte Verde, Chile.
• Diverse geography created uneven distribution of populations
• Sedentary agricultural societies supported complex civilizations in Mesoamerica and the Andes.
• Civilizations developed systems of writing and accounting.
• Caribbean region had sedentary agricultural populations (Arawaks or Tainos) in settlements.
• Also semi-sedentary populations and non-sedentary peoples in small bands.
• Notable urban civilizations: Teotihuacan

Highly Diverse Area

• Regions often used by the UN to describe Latin America: Mexico, Central America, Caribbean, Andean, Brazil, Southern Cone.

Ideal Spanish City

• Regular checkerboard floor plan; each square block called 'cuadrra or manzana', 100m, divided into equal parts called "solares."
• Plaza mayor in the center.
• Representative buildings grouped around the plaza (churches, city hall, schools).
• Higher-class residences typically around the plaza and lower along the fringes.

Urban Areas

• Monocephalic urban structure: one large city dominates (e.g. Montevideo)
• Bicephalic urban structure: two large cities dominant (e.g. Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil)
• Polarisation-reversal hypothesis (1980): based on outside forces like foreign investment to explain differences in developing country urban systems.

Megacities

• Heavily populated urban areas with at least 10 million residents.

Urbanization 19th and 20th Century

• Growth in some Latin American countries due to European and Asian immigrants.
• Capital cities often experience significant growth.
• Cities became a melting pot of different cultures, races, and customs.
• 20th century changes include Mexican Revolution, Great Depression, Interwar and World War II, Cold War era urbanization explosion.

Urban Systems in Latin America and the Caribbean

• Concentration of population in a few large cities
• These cities usually also control wealth, income, and socio-political power.
• This pattern has held generally steady throughout the urbanization process.
• The urbanization index shows the dynamic nature of urbanisation, but also regional differences.

Urban Primacy Index

• Measurement of the largest city to the population of other cities in a region or country, using a calculated ratio.

Residential Segregation Studies

• Segregation often refers to spatial concentration or separation by factors like ethnicity, social class, etc.
• Gated communities are often segregated by socioeconomic or class, race, or ethnicity, etc.
• Segregation can also be related to the population residing in an area

Changing Economic and Social Conditions in Latin America

• Massive changes since the early 1980s, including re-democratization and neo-liberal policies.
• Privatization of formerly state-owned and state-organized services and enterprises
• Increased influence of international and foreign investments on infrastructure and urban elements.
• Expansion and privatization of highways and industrial parks, as well as the creation of shopping malls and entertainment centers.

The Fragmented Agglomeration

• Spatial concentration due to internal and external factors
• Intra-regional concentration, shifting activities to peripheral areas to reduce costs.
• Interregional decentralization – leading to more decentralization which can create difficulties.
• Sub-regional decentralization which leads to a more stable system.
• Regional differences and polarization

National Parks

• 63 national parks including the areas managed by the national park service
• Includes protected areas in Hawaii and Alaska.
• Yellowstone, one of the oldest national parks.
• Arches, home to numerous rock arches.
• Yosemite, famous for its granite rocks and waterfalls.
• Sequoia, with giant sequoia trees.
• Grand Canyon, known for its vast size.
• Mesa Verde, with ancient archaeological sites.
• Niagara Falls, with the notable waterfalls..
• White Sands, with unique gypsum dunes.
• Petrified Forest, with fossilized trees.
• Saguaro, noted for the large Saguaro cacti.
• Everglades, which are renowned for their diverse ecosystems.

Cities and Models

• Concentric Zone Model
• Sector Model
• Multiple Nuclei Model
• Griffin-Ford Model
• Latin American Model
• Polarized City Model (Sao Paulo)
• Time-Space Growth Model
• Models of different urban structures.

Socio-economic Changes in Russia

• Liveuamap- a live tracking site
• Russia's territory is large but has only 9th place in population.
• Russia touches on both Europe and Asia, bordering with many European and Asian countries.

Oligarchy in Russia

• Oligarchy is a power structure where power is in the hands of a few people.
• After the collapse of the Soviet Union, some multinational corporations were run by a few key members as powerful oligarchs
• The number of billionaires in Russia has grown and declined since 2008/2009.
• This is tied in with the fluctuating gas and oil prices in the world market

Waste Management

• Case study on the Zabbaleen and garbage city in Egypt
• Case study of Adiss Abeba (Ethiopia).
• Garbage is a resource, and waste collection can lead to job creation
• Recycling programs and waste management practices
• Waste incineration and its impacts.
• Incineration is harmful to health.
• Important to look at sustainability and sustainability as a cost.
• Case study on Capannori, Italy showing how waste recycling leads to less waste going to landfills.

Test your knowledge on urban modernization factors and learn about the notable characteristics of national parks like Yellowstone and Badlands. This quiz covers topics from residential segregation to the tourist attractions in various parks. Evaluate your understanding of urban development and natural wildlife in these significant areas.