CAMBRIDGE AS GEOGRAPHY - POPULATION SUSTAINABILITY. Concept, census, relevance, ageing population, urban population, concentration, New Zealand Internal Migration trends, multicultural population, sustained economic growth, sustainability on a global scale.

1. ASGEOGRAPHY
POPULATIONSUSTAINABILITY

2. What does the concept ‘sustainability’ mean?
Involves adopting ways of thinking and behaving that allow
individuals, groups, and societies to meet their needs and
aspirations without preventing future generations from meeting
theirs.
Sustainable interaction with the environment may be achieved
by preventing, limiting, minimizing or correcting
environmental damage to water, air and soil, as well as
considering ecosystems and problems related to waste, noise,
and visual pollution.
What does this statement mean??

3. How does it apply in the context of population?
What actions and
ways of thinking…
…will lead to
preventing,
limiting, minimizing
and correcting
damage
This will help to
keep resources
sustainable…

4. Remember?
….The census is collected every 5 years in NZ.
Governments need to know about population
structure so that they can address people’s
needs
What part does the collection of census data
have to play in the sustainable management of
a country?

5. What issues are relevant to New Zealand’s population?
• Ageing population
12% of the population are over the age of 65 years
• Urban population
86% of the population live in urban areas
• Lowland, coastal dwelling
90% of the population live within 40km of the coast
• Concentrations of population in the North Island
around Auckland
75% of the population live in the North Island.
Auckland has 31% of the country's population

6. • Multicultural population
In 2006, 23% of New Zealand’s total population had been
born overseas.
• Sustained economic growth
In 2010 NZ’s GDP per capita was $31,000. About 60% that
of the United States.
• Sustained healthy environments
NZ must find a balance between economic
development and use of resources and social and
environmental sustainability.

7. Projected age structure of population (2006 to 2031).
1. Ageing population
What is the forecast by 2031 (20 years from now)?

8. How might this situation become unsustainable?
What can the government do to prevent this?
(pensions? Savings? Immigration? Retirement age?...)
1. Ageing population

9. 9
2. Urban population. Lowland, coastal dwelling.
Concentrations of population in the North Island around
Auckland.
What will
probably be
the future
trend here?

10. New Zealand
Internal
Migration
Trends
• Northward drift
• Rural-urban drift
• Southward drift
counterflow
What are the 3
main trends
shown here?

11. How might the future situation become
unsustainable?
What can be done to reduce the impacts of this?
(Regional growth? Immigration policy? Investment in
mineral exploration?...)
2. Urban.
Lowland, coastal.
Concentrations around Auckland.

12. Recap: Brief summary of Migration - What immigrant groups and when?
Date Event
1861-1865 Gold rush 93,000 people migrated to NZ
1870-1880 140,000 people migrated to NZ from European countries
1880’s Depression causes large scale emigration
1930’s Depression causes a drop in immigration
1939-1945 WWII Population declined
1956-1960 Baby Boom rapid rise in birth rate
1960’s Population increase due to Samoan immigration and
introduction of contraceptive pill which saw birth rates
decrease.
1970’s-today A decline in birth rate due to low fertility levels because of
the contraceptive pill, working women, rising divorce rates,
later marriage, delayed child bearing.
1990’s-today Net population gains from migration largely from Asia.
3. Multicultural population

13. New Zealand net migration change, 2005
What possible situation could
become unsustainable here? Why?

14. The Future?
• Government statisticians predict that
the population will peak around 2046
at 4.8 million
• In the future New Zealand's
population
is expected to grow slowly through
migration.
(In 2006, 23% of New Zealand’s total
population had been born overseas.)
What does this tell us about
immigration?
What problems
could arise?
Therefore what
balance is needed
here?

15. The Government can and does control immigration!
• By creating immigration laws, the government
has control over where the immigrants to NZ
come from and how many come.
• The government sets an immigration target of
how many immigrants are needed per year
(54,000 in 2006), and also accepts a certain
number of fee paying students (90,000 in
2006)

16. 4. Sustained economic growth AND
Sustained healthy environments
In 2010 NZ’s GDP per capita was $31,000. About 60% that
of the United States.
What is needed?
(Investment… foreign?? Mineral extraction – National Parks?
Safety issues? More developments and how fast?)
What problems might these solutions lead to?

17. Sustained economic growth AND
Sustained healthy environments
How do we maintain a balance?
• NZ has legislation in place which helps balance economic
development and environmental health.
• Nzers have the means to voice concern.
eg mining on Great Barrier Island
The Green Party and Act party allow NZ voters to push
either business or environmental issues)
• NZ has a centre- right (National) and centre-left (Labour)
wing political system which maintains a balance between
social development on one hand and economic on the other.

18. Over the years the government has put in place laws and rules to make
sure that the environment is protected for future generations of New
Zealanders. Such things as:
1. The Resource Management Act *
2. A special consent process must be followed
through local Councils if major projects are to
be developed.
Development
idea goes to the
Council Development
idea allowed/ or
not…
* The RMA means that any change must be seen to not be
harming either the environment or people,
yet allowing for future economic development.

19. The government is concerned about future sustainable
development
It has set up a group to help analyse and work out the
impacts of future population issues.
Population and Sustainable Development @govt.NZ

20. Sustainability on a global scale?
What do these graphs show?

21. The forecast shown on the preceding graphs came
form a study done in the 1972 by a group of
economic and social experts know then as
‘The Club of Rome’
A more recent study called ‘The Limits to Growth’ looked
at the past thirty years and compared results with the
predictions made in 1972 and found that changes in
industrial production, food production and pollution are
all in line with the predictions made by the Club of Rome.

22. CONCEPT:
SUSTAINABILITY

23. Now its your turn…
With the use of your notes on India’s population come up
with a list of 4 possible issues to do with sustainability.
For each issue come up with one solution or way in which
the issue may have less impact and be more sustainable??

24. Geographic concept –
Population
sustainability: INDIA
…some issues:

25. Population Growth
Population approximately = 1.2 billion
Population growth rate = 2.4% ( 3 times higher than NZs)

26. Population Growth /
- sustainable solutions?
Population control programmes
1. During the 1980s, family planning programs were
implemented by the central government. In rural
areas, the programs were run through a network of
primary health centres. Often by health care workers
educated in basic health and family planning
information.

27. Population Growth / sustainable solutions?
Population control programmes continued…
2. The use of women's clubs as a means of involving
women in community family planning. The local
voluntary groups either provide distribution of condoms
and birth control pills and also make arrangements for
the operation of sterilization camps.
3. In 2010 the government began a scheme which offers
$106 to couples who put off having a child for the first 2
years of marriage

28. Population Growth / sustainable solutions?
Continued…
4. Health officials in the Indian state of Rajasthan are
launching a new campaign in an effort to reduce the
high population growth in the area. (2011)
They are encouraging men and women to volunteer
for sterilisation, and in return are offering a car and
other prizes for those who come forward.

29. Urban Growth - urbanisation
70% of India’s population live in rural areas. However
there is a rapid rate of urbanisation.
The rate of urban growth is 2.4% (NZ’s is 0.9%)
India has eight large
‘megacities’. Mumbai is
the largest.

30. Urban Growth - urbanisation
This has lead to 2 major problems
The growth of slum housing
and street dwellers. More
than 60% 0f Mumbaikers
live in either of these
situations. (eg. Dhavari)
A growing urban poor who
are mal-nourished,
Poorly educated and have
little access to good health care.

31. Urban Growth –
urbanisation/sustainable solutions?
• Some slums have been bulldozed and replaced with
modern apartments. (slum dwellers are forced to
move)
• High rise apartments built for the poor (often rents
are too high)
• New townships have been built on the outskirts to
house the overflow. (eg ‘New Mumbai’)
• The cities problems are too big and too rapid to deal
with easily

32. Excerpt from an interview with author and ‘Man Booker’ Prize winner Aravind
Adiga as he lays bare the truth of India's poverty. (London Telegraph 2008)
…The couple were angry. Looming over their hovel on the gantry of a nearby
flyover was the grinning face of India's playboy billionaire, Vijay Mallya, owner of
the Kingfisher beer brand and often described as "India's Richard Branson".
From a giant billboard Mr Mallya could be seen exhorting Mumbai's upper
classes to "Fly the Good Times" on his recently launched airline, itself a beacon
of the new, booming India.
So what, I wondered, did Subir think of that poster? Did he find it an inspiring
emblem of a new, prosperous India or a galling, taunting reminder of the fact
that there was absolutely no chance that he'd ever be ''flying the good times" in
one of the planes that came thundering over the tin roof of his shack every five
minutes.
He didn't take long to give his answer. "I don't want to go flying in a plane," he
said, "I just want enough money to eat and to buy medicine for my wife. One
day I want my son to go to school. Today I cannot even afford to give her a sweet
for the Eid festival. There is no honour in this life."