Showing papers in "Environment and Urbanization in 1998"
TL;DR: In this article, the authors review some of the literature on rural-urban interactions, with particular attention to the ways in which they have been affected by recent and current economic, social and cultural transformations.
Abstract: TO DATE, MOST development theory andpractice have focused on either “urban” or“rural” issues with little consideration of theinterrelations between the two. By contrast,several empirical studies show that the link-ages between urban centres and the coun-tryside, including movement of people, goods,capital and other social transactions, play animportant role in processes of rural and ur-ban change. Within the economic sphere,many urban enterprises rely on demand fromrural consumers, and access to urban mar-kets and services is often crucial for agricul-tural producers. In addition, a large numberof households in both urban and rural areasrely on the combination of agricultural andnon-agricultural income sources for their live-lihoods. This paper reviews some of the re-cent literature on rural-urban interactions,with particular attention to the ways in whichthey have been affected by recent and cur-rent economic, social and cultural transfor-mations. The paper is organized as follows:the first three sections discuss definitions ofrural and urban areas and activities, reviewconceptual frameworks and consider howrural-urban interactions are conceptualizedwithin development planning. The last foursections review empirical studies on differ-ent flows connecting rural and urban areas(flows of people, of goods and of wastes), andon sectoral interactions (agriculture in thecities, non-agricultural employment in thecountryside and rural-urban interlinkages inperi-urban areas).
523 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that sustainability should not be considered as a goal for a housing or urban programme, but as a constraint whose absence may limit the usefulness of a good programme.
Abstract: This paper critically reviews the concept of sustainability, especially as it has come to be applied outside of environmental goals. It suggests “sustainability” should not be considered as a goal for a housing or urban programme – many bad programmes are sustainable – but as a constraint whose absence may limit the usefulness of a good programme. It also discusses how the promotion of “sustainability” may simply encourage the sustaining of the unjust status quo and how the attempt to suggest that everyone has common interests in “sustainable urban development” masks very real conflicts of interest.
280 citations
TL;DR: The paper concludes that governments and agencies could do more for gender equality by acknowledging the potentially transformative role of interventions aimed not only at, but inside, households, and by adopting more flexible positions towards household diversity.
Abstract: "The aim of this paper is to argue the importance of considering ?the household' in analyses of gender and rural-urban migration, both in respect of how it shapes the gender selectivity of migrant flows and how, in turn, the latter contributes to household diversity across rural and urban areas.... [It] examines the impacts of gender differentiated demographic mobility on contemporary household forms in rural and urban areas including reference to case study evidence from my own research in Mexico, Costa Rica and the Philippines."
157 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the linkages between low-income migrant households in Durban and their rural home areas are described as a continuum, from households which regard their rural homestead as their real home to households who seem to have severed their rural ties.
Abstract: This paper describes the linkages between low-income migrant households in Durban and their rural home areas. These relationships can be seen as a continuum, from households which regard their rural homestead as their real home to households who seem to have severed their rural ties. For a number of households, described as “multiple-home households”, maintaining both an urban and a rural base provides a safety net in times of economic hardship or political violence. In order to address the needs of these households, housing and rural development subsidy policies should take variations in household size into account and allow greater choice in the allocation of subsidies between urban and rural homes.
116 citations
TL;DR: Why it is important to challenge ideology before it exercises a firmer hold on public policy and consciousness, not least because it leads to negative stereotypes of women and “peasant” farmers and could lead to the militarization of environmental policy.
Abstract: This paper critically examines the literature on the interaction between population the environment and development. It posits that population pressure and resource scarcities are unfairly blamed for internal conflicts in Africa Asia and Latin America. Internal conflicts are in fact affected by underlying economic and political causes (international companies development assistance agencies and military). This reasoning implies that the national security threats are environmental groups poor women and social change groups which in fact should be integrated within solutions to poverty environmental destruction and violence. The US militarys focus on "neutralizing environmental consequences that could lead to instability" and promoting sustainable development is misspecified and falls within the domain of civilian agencies. Use of military satellites by the US Central Intelligence Agency in environmental surveillance raises questions about the management of secret archives. The scarcity-conflict model has an indirect role in misshaping public opinion legitimizes population control as a top priority neglects gender issues and dehumanizes refugees. Evidence indicates that the conflicts in Rwanda were the result of institutional failure and ethnic divisions. Homer-Dixons model fails due to weak definitions of scarcity ignorance of the role of colonial history and economic inequities idealized views of the state and neglect of external factors. The scarcity-conflict model is popular due to opportunism and political pragmatism. For the military it provides new rationales for a huge budget.
84 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe differences in the impact of the Economic Structural Adjustment Policy (ESAP) on Zimbabwe's rural and urban areas through the views of recent migrants to Harare.
Abstract: This paper describes differences in the impact of the Economic Structural Adjustment Policy (ESAP) on Zimbabwe's rural and urban areas through the views of recent migrants to Harare. Although the outcomes of ESAP have been more acutely felt in the city than in the countryside, rural populations have also suffered from increases in the prices of basic commodities and in public services fees. Retrenchment and increasing poverty in the city affect rural households, as remittances decline and migrants return to their rural homes, increasing the burden there. Due to the strength of rural-urban interactions and the economic interdependence between city and countryside, the impact of structural adjustment is not clearly geographically defined.
83 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the health problems facing enterprises and inhabitants of peri-urban areas, including the risks posed by malaria, heavy metals, the re-use of solid and liquid wastes, agro-chemicals, biomass fuels and food contamination.
Abstract: There is a growing interest in expanding crop, livestock and other forms of natural resource production in periurban areas. In part this is to capitalize on the availability of urban wastes for recycling and to improve the management of such wastes but also because of the economic potential of such production for increasing livelihoods and for better meeting urban demands. This paper examines the health problems facing the enterprises and inhabitants of peri-urban areas, including the risks posed by malaria, heavy metals, the re-use of solid and liquid wastes, agro-chemicals, biomass fuels and food contamination. It also emphasizes how both research and assessment procedures are required to ensure that natural resource production in peri-urban areas also safeguards human health.
80 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the process of land use conversion in Manila's extended metropolitan region and suggest that rural-urban relations must be seen as intensely political, and that the conversion of rice land into industrial, residential and recreational uses represents a political process in two senses: first, policy choices are made relating to the use of land that reflect a particular set of developmental priorities; and second, the facilitation of conversion involves using of political power relations to circumvent certain regulations.
Abstract: By examining the process of land use conversion in Manila's extended metropolitan region, this paper suggests that rural-urban relations must be seen as intensely political. The conversion of rice land into industrial, residential and recreational uses represents a political process in two senses: first, policy choices are made relating to the use of land that reflect a particular set of developmental priorities; and second, the facilitation of conversion involves the use of political power relations to circumvent certain regulations. These points are made at three different, but interconnected, levels: at the national level of policy formulation; at the local level of policy implementation and regulation; and at the personal level of everyday power relations in rural areas. The paper draws upon fieldwork in the rapidly urbanizing province of Cavite to the south of Metropolitan Manila.
79 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe why there has been a rapid growth of informal settlements in Cairo when there was an oversupply of formal housing, and why most new informal settlements develop on scarce agricultural land while large stretches of desert nearby remain mostly undeveloped.
Abstract: This paper describes why there has been a rapid growth of informal settlements in Cairo when there was an oversupply of formal housing, and why most new informal settlements develop on scarce agricultural land while large stretches of desert nearby remain mostly undeveloped. The paper also reviews the changes in the Egyptian government's housing and land policies over the last 40 years, including attempts to upgrade informal settlement and to combine upgrading with the development of settlements for middle-income households.
77 citations
TL;DR: The importance of rural-urban links for many of the inhabitants of Botswana's cities is described in more detail for Old Naledi, a low-cost, self-help settlement in Botswana as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: This paper describes the importance of rural-urban links for many of the inhabitants of Botswana's cities. This is described in more detail for Old Naledi, a low-cost, self help settlement in Botswana's capital, Gaborone. A third of all households there own cattle, half retain land in the village from which they come and the proportion of households with such rural assets does not decline with people's length of stay in the city. These rural assets are valued both in monetary and social terms and serve as a valuable safety net for households with low incomes and uncertain livelihood prospects within the city.
76 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the scale and nature of agricultural production in urban, suburban and peri-urban zones of Mexico City and how these have adapted to the changing demands from urban populations for food, wood and recreation.
Abstract: This paper describes the scale and nature of agricultural production in urban, suburban and peri-urban zones of Mexico City and how these have adapted to the changing demands from urban populations for food, wood and recreation. It also demonstrates how agricultural producers have successfully adapted their products and their production methods, including building on traditional production systems, despite the environmental deterioration brought about by urban development and the lack of support from government. These agricultural producers have also devised new ways of using degraded land and large volumes of waste. The authors also describe how appropriate support for this diverse production brings many ecological advantages and supports a great range of jobs – but also implies important changes in the ways in which city authorities manage urban expansion.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the development of Bioplan-Manizales, a local environmental action plan (LEAP) for the city of Manizales and the different groups that contributed to its development; also, how this plan became integrated into the municipal development plan and the municipal budget.
Abstract: This paper describes the development of Bioplan-Manizales, a local environmental action plan (LEAP) for the city of Manizales, and the different groups that contributed to its development; also, how this plan became integrated into the municipal development plan and the municipal budget. The measures taken to monitor and evaluate the social, economic and environmental effects of the environmental policy are also described and these include a series of urban environmental observatories. The paper also describes the broader national and international context for the innovations in Manizales – including the political, legislative and fiscal changes in Colombia that have encouraged local authorities to develop local environmental agendas. Manizales’ own historical development is described including the environmental changes that this development brought and the environmental problems that it precipitated.
TL;DR: In this paper, the changes in the relationships between migrants in Dakar and their relatives in rural home areas and how traditional kin structures are gradually replaced by new solidarity networks in the city are described.
Abstract: This paper describes the changes in the relationships between migrants in Dakar and their relatives in rural home areas and how traditional kin structures are gradually replaced by new solidarity networks in the city While remittances are an important resource for rural households especially during the "hungry months" before the new harvest migrants visits are not linked to regular seasonal agricultural work but rather to occasional participation in family ceremonies suggesting a decrease in temporary migration and a more permanent urban residence (authors)
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the nature of the relationship between two settlement types in Zimbabwe and explore the links between the often neglected and underestimated farm and the ever-popular town in...
Abstract: This paper describes the nature of the relationship between two settlement types in Zimbabwe. It explores the links between the often neglected and underestimated farm and the ever-popular town in ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the scale and nature of homelessness, and the spatial location of the homeless in central Johannesburg based on a survey of street shelters, public places and buildings used by the homeless.
Abstract: This paper describes the scale and nature of homelessness, and the spatial location of the homeless in central Johannesburg based on a survey of street shelters, public places and buildings used by the homeless. It also considers the broader context wherein the legacy of apartheid combines with inadequate housing policies to leave much of the low-income population with little possibility of finding adequate quality housing.
TL;DR: The Cities for Life Forum (CFLF) as mentioned in this paper was created to promote the development and implementation of Agenda 21 in cities in Peru, where representatives from several Peruvian cities, grassroots organizations and NGOs, together with scientists and staff from universities and local government authorities, decided to establish a national forum.
Abstract: In March 1996, representatives from several Peruvian cities, grassroots organizations and NGOs, together with scientists and staff from universities and local government authorities, decided to establish a national forum to promote the development and implementation of Agenda 21 in cities in Peru. This came to be called the “Cities for Life” Forum which, today, brings together representatives from 41 institutions in 18 cities. This paper describes the origin and early development of the Forum -and its vision, strategies and work to date. It seeks to show how this Forum developed beyond what was initially a conventional project which depended upon technical assistance and the initiatives of a local NGO into a network of many different actors from many urban centres in Peru who, together, form an autonomous and independent entity. The Forum has encouraged and supported its members in developing and implementing local environmental action plans and in learning from each other's experiences. The paper also ou...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the interrelationships between migration environmental degradation and perceptions of the environment by comparing the responses of middle-income and low-income both native and in-migrant households to the worsening environmental conditions in Mexico City.
Abstract: This paper describes the interrelationships between migration environmental degradation and perceptions of the environment by comparing the responses of middle-income and low-income both native and in-migrant households to the worsening environmental conditions in Mexico City. Migration to secondary centres by middle-class households is explained as a response to both increasing economic opportunities in intermediate towns and to negative perceptions of the capital citys environment. By contrast low-income in-migrant households concerns with land and home ownership eclipse any other environmental perceptions while long-term resident low-income respondents tend to perceive migrants as the cause of negative environmental change. (authors)
TL;DR: In this article, interviews with children on the street, in corrective institutions and in low-income households were conducted to describe the pressures that eject them from homes, and the abuse and exploitation they have suffered at the hands of the police, the corrective institutions, and, often, their own families.
Abstract: This paper draws on interviews with children on the street, in corrective institutions and in low-income households to describe the pressures that eject them from homes, and the abuse and exploitation they have suffered at the hands of the police, the corrective institutions and, often, their own families. It also describes the inappropriate laws and public attitudes that underlie such problems.
TL;DR: The work of the Association for the Defense and Conservation of the Environment of the Province of La Santa (ADECOMAPS) is described in this article, which started as an ecological movement for the protection and conservation of an important park.
Abstract: SUMMARY: This paper describes the initiatives to defend the environment and reduce pollution in Chimbote. This important industrial fishing port is considered the third most contaminated city in Peru due to the lack of urban environmental planning and regulation, and of any genuine leadership from local government. The paper includes an account of the work of the Association for the Defense and Conservation of the Environment of the Province of La Santa (ADECOMAPS), which started as an ecological movement for the protection and conservation of an important park. It then developed an environmental action plan (or Local Agenda 21) for Chimbote. The Association brings together 42 different institutions, including grassroots organizations, NGOs, universities, professional training institutions, politicians and government bodies. The paper also describes the reluctance of the provincial mayor to work with the Association.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe a Localizing Agenda 21 programme in three small cities which sought to enhance the local capacity for urban planning and management, for the benefit of the citizens and the quality of their urban environment.
Abstract: This paper describes a Localizing Agenda 21 programme in three small cities which sought to enhance the local capacity for urban planning and management, for the benefit of the citizens and the quality of their urban environment. It explains the focus of this programme within a growing worldwide Local Agenda 21 movement and describes its two methodological cornerstones the strategic structure planning approach and the capacitybuilding strategy. This is followed by a description of the contexts and thematic action plans in Nakuru, Essaouira and Vinh City, including both the successes and the constraints which limited or slowed progress. The paper finishes with a discussion of the impacts and how these can be assessed, and draws lessons which were learnt while supporting the Local Agenda 21 processes in the three cities.
TL;DR: In this article, the impacts of urban expansion and land surface change in the city of Bamenda in Cameroon, the underlying causes and the ecological and social implications are described, and the impact of unplanned urban expansion is discussed.
Abstract: This paper describes the impacts of unplanned urban expansion and land surface change in the city of Bamenda in Cameroon, the underlying causes and the ecological and social implications. This expa...
TL;DR: In this article, interviews with women street vendors in a poor neighbourhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, were conducted to evaluate the significance of two notions often considered self-evident for women in such contexts: family assistance and community solidarity.
Abstract: This paper reports on interviews with women street vendors in a poor neighbourhood of Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. It describes the reasons why the vendors undertake this work, their income sources prior to becoming vendors, the importance of vending and, for some, other sources of income for family survival. It evaluates the significance of two notions often considered self-evident for women in such contexts: family assistance and community solidarity. It also analyzes the impact of gender relations on the vendors' access to work and on the possibilities of obtaining better livelihoods.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present the findings of research carried out in residential communities adjacent to petrochemical and chemical industries in Durban, South Africa during January-March 1997.
Abstract: This paper presents the findings of research carried out in residential communities adjacent to petrochemical and chemical industries in Durban, South Africa during January-March 1997. The purpose ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the development of a federation of scavengers who live close to a major solid waste dump in Quezon City, and the role of the Vincentian Missionaries Foundation and other NGOs that have supported it is described.
Abstract: This paper describes the development of a federation of scavengers who live close to a major solid waste dump in Quezon City, and the role of the Vincentian Missionaries Foundation and other NGOs that have supported it. A long-term environmental development programme has been initiated which builds on the existing activities of scavenger households and which is also integrated with housing, health and other social initiatives. A successful savings and credit programme has been started that funds micro-enterprises and social needs, including a housing programme. The Federation has also increased the scavengers' capacity to negotiate with local authorities and other government agencies. The paper ends by reflecting on the lessons learnt and their relevance for other communities.
TL;DR: In this paper, community organizations representing the inhabitants of slum communities living along Mumbai's railway tracks and supportive Indian NGOs demonstrated effective and propoor-to-proportional solutions.
Abstract: The paper describes how community organizations representing the inhabitants of “slum” communities living along Mumbai's railway tracks and supportive Indian NGOs demonstrated effective and propoor...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe how the restructuring process of the 1990s has improved the solid and liquid house waste management systems in Cotonou, the largest urban area of Benin, but also how the deepening economic crisis impinges on the proper functioning of this process.
Abstract: This paper describes how the restructuring process of the 1990s has improved the solid and liquid house waste management systems in Cotonou, the largest urban area of Benin – but also how the deepening economic crisis impinges on the proper functioning of this process, which is why results achieved through sectoral planning are meagre when compared to expectation. Its main focus is on the structural and organizational aspects of the reforms with an emphasis on liquid and solid house waste management. Stakeholder and institutional analyses are used to evaluate their impact. These show persistent government failure – mainly with regard to coordinating different actors and activities, supplying supportive infrastructure, and taking needed steps towards instituting a real dialogue between all stakeholders. The piecemeal approach to interventions by diverse actors is damaging to the reforms and more government intervention is needed in these areas of the provision process for effective and efficient waste mana...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report on the findings of participatory research undertaken in three settlements within Dakar which sought to develop concrete actions for achieving "healthy towns and villages" and also identified the constraints on such action.
Abstract: This paper reports on the findings of participatory research undertaken in three settlements within Dakar which sought to develop concrete actions for achieving “healthy towns and villages” and which also identified the constraints on such action. It begins by describing the key healthy city principles – local authority involvement, dialogue and coordination between sectors, and community participation. It then outlines the range of participatory techniques used in diagnosing problems and developing proposals, and discusses the potentials and constraints on their successful implementation. This highlights the potential contradictions between the “healthy cities” philosophy and conventional local authority management culture. But it also points to the more favourable conditions provided by decentralization and by new models of urban management which rely on the increased use of partnerships between neighbourhood associations, NGOs and local authorities.
TL;DR: The authors in this article reviewed the changes in the management of urban services in Buenos Aires over the last 100 years and discussed their implications for the quality of service provision in recent decades and for the future.
Abstract: This paper reviews the changes in the management of urban services in Buenos Aires over the last 100 years and discusses their implications for the quality of service provision in recent decades and for the future. It identifies three distinct stages. The first, decentralized private management, was evident in the late nineteenth century when provision for infrastructure and services was of a quality comparable to cities in Europe at that time. But, over time, municipal regulation and control of private enterprises became instruments in the partisan struggle for power. A crisis in service provision and an increasingly interventionist government led to the second stage, centralized public sector management, but this created a growing gap between local users and federally controlled utilities. When this coincided with economic decline, it led to poorer quality services and increasing numbers of unserved inhabitants. The third stage, introduced in 1989, was the centralized private management model but this f...