When a city grows at a manageable rate, which is often considered roughly 1 percent annually, its infrastructure can keep pace with an increasing population and its demands. How fast an area grew, or is growing, is a key component. Many of the newer urban areas, located in Latin America, Asia and Africa, have an entirely different look, feel, and outlook than their older European or North American counterparts. Implications of Growing “Too Fast”ĭepending on cities’ ages and locations, there is much variation in wealth and infrastructure. Additionally, formerly small settlements are being reclassified as urban areas as the populace living there grows from within. Today, most urban growth is natural increase – due to more births than deaths among those already dwelling in cities. The Industrial Revolution caused a shift from agriculturally based societies to industrial, and thus geographically centered, societies. And for a long time, these pull factors are what caused cities to grow. Urbanization is often linked with economics – increased job opportunities, a centralized market, better pay and higher individual wealth have all drawn people into cities. But looking ahead, 90 percent of the future urban increase is expected to take place in Asia and Africa, and it is projected that more than two-thirds of all people will be calling cities home by 2050.

Looking back, the first wave of urban migration took place in what are today’s more developed countries, especially in Europe and North America. Throughout history, cities have attracted people as centers of culture, religion, learning, and economics. In fact, by 2008 over 50 percent of the global population was living in urban areas. Across the globe and in a short amount of time, we’ve given up the tractor for the city bus, the open landscape for one of brick and mortar.

Global city population ranking