good morning evening afternoon night whenever you're watching this welcome back to the Mr sin Channel today we're going to be reviewing Urban sustainability as always if you find Value in this video consider subscribing now there are a variety of different definitions for what it means for a society to be sustainable but we can see it pretty much comes down to can a society meet the wants and needs of today's people without preventing future Generations from being able to meet their wants and needs Urban sustainability refers to an urban environment that promotes sustainable economic and social growth while also promoting environmental sustainability economic sustainability can be seen in cities that allow for economic growth that is open to all residents and reduces the negative impact on the environment cities that strive for economic sustainability often support small businesses entrepreneurs and local development that strive to create both socially and environmentally responsible businesses social sustainability takes the form of making sure a city has safe and inclusive communities for all residents that have access to affordable housing education and health care services sustainable cities often will use urban planning to create healthy sustainable cities that promote both economic and social opportunity for all residents while also trying to reduce the environmental impact from the city all of which revolves around the goal of having a high standard of living without compromising the ability of future generations to experience the same benefit in order to achieve these goals cities can utilize sustainable design initiatives such as by using zoning policies to incorporate mixed land use developments into urban areas mixed land use areas allow for the mixing of commercial residential and sometimes industrial zones this helps create neighborhoods where residents can work live and play all in one area instead of having to commute between different places this helps promote walkable cities which are cities that design their city in a manner to decreased driving time and increase the amount of individuals who walk or bike to their destination one of the ways in which cities can make it easier for residents to get from location A to B on foot is by utilizing smart growth policies which seek to promote compact walkable cities mixed-use building developments and Zoning changes to reduce urban sprawl sustainable cities often prioritize Transit oriented development a planning approach that aims to encourage the development of mixed-use areas and public transportation this is done by strategically locating public transit stations throughout a city often resulting in a decrease in traffic and an increase in the use of public transportation plus it has the added benefit of making the city more walkable now before we continue on I do want to highlight the difference between smart growth policies and a concept known as new urbanism smart growth policies are policies that are focused around keeping an urban area Compact and walkable essentially the goal is to put the brakes on urban sprawl and stop the urban area from expanding into the surrounding Countryside smart growth policies can lead to the creation of green belts which are undeveloped areas of land surrounding an urban area these are intentionally left underdeveloped in order to preserve the environment limit urban sprawl and provide a buffer between the urban and rural areas when looking at greenbelts today we can look at the London Greenbelt which is estimated to have over a million acres of land or the Tokyo Metropolitan Green Belt which protects green spaces and agricultural lands that surround the city of Tokyo those are just two quick examples of green belts there's more examples that you can find in almost every country around the world now new urbanism on the other hand also strives to have a more Compact and walkable City however there is a greater focus on the architecture and Community design new urbanism puts a greater emphasis on community design which often leads to more self-contained and pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods which integrate economic classes through a mixture of housing types and you urbanism often reflects European urban life which puts a focus on local communities today there are a variety of criticisms for Urban Design initiatives such as smart growth policy As Cities experience improvements in the livability and a reduction in the sprawl it can cause the cost of housing to increase which can end up pricing lower income residents out of their homes and the city resulting in de facto segregation de facto segregation refers to separation of people along racial ethnic or socioeconomic lines that is not officially enforced by laws or regulations essentially it's segregation that happens not because there's a legal law enforcing it but because of unintended consequence for example as urban areas continue to improve and cities invest more in local infrastructure it may cause rent and home prices to increase resulting in residents who originally lived in the area to no longer be able to afford their higher mortgages property taxes and other increases in cost all of which increases the likelihood that the low lower income residents will have to move out of the area Plus at the same time we can also see that oftentimes as urban renewal occurs in a city we'll start to see more affluent residents move into the urban neighborhood which may further displace lower income residents who have original Community ties in the area this is often referred to as gentrification we can see an example of gentrification and de facto segregation in Portland which use Smart growth policies to help reduce urban sprawl and Revitalize its downtown neighborhood you can see this while looking at this map showing percent increases and decreases by population by race the red chose neighborhoods that experienced a decline and the blue shows neighborhoods which gained residence within just four years we can see multiple Regions near the heart of Portland show a significant decline in Black residents with neighborhoods located farther away from the urban core showing the largest increase while at the same time we can see the opposite Trend happening with white residents notice that the neighborhood's closest to the CBD experience the highest increases of white residue while the neighborhoods located farther away from the CBD experience the largest decreases today many people also criticize gentrification and smart growth policies for also destroying historical neighborhoods with a unique cultural landscape and sense of place as new development continues to reshape and replace the spatial layout of cities and their neighborhoods we will talk more about the causes of gentrification and the impact it has on a community and also other impacts such as redlining which shifted generational wealth in our unit 6 topic 10 video another way in which we can see cities limit sprawl and strive to promote sustainable cities is by adopting policies and practices to limit the pace and scale of new development these cities are often referred to as slow growth cities these cities seek to reduce the rate in which their cities grow outward in a variety of different ways oftentimes these cities will Implement growth boundaries which restrict the expansion of the city's footprint and prevent urban sprawl and may even create green belts to protect natural areas these cities often encourage infill development which is when cities seek to promote the development of vacant or undeveloped land within an already developed area this can take the form of developing new buildings on vacant Lots converting older buildings for New Uses or redeveloping Brownfield sites which is when land that was contaminated by previously industrial or commercial use is cleaned up and repurposed for new use we can also see slow growth cities promote public transportation infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists and other Transportation options which reduce residents Reliance on personal vehicles today we are also starting to see a greater focus on creating smart cities which are cities that utilize technology and data to minimize inefficiencies optimize the city's resource usage and improve the overall quality of life for its citizens these cities look to reduce the amount of food that is is needed to be imported into the City by promoting Hydroponics and vertical Farms smart cities also strive to localize their energy production by utilizing more renewable energy like solar and wind instead of just relying on oil and gas pipelines these cities also promote electric cars buses and other Transportation methods to help get residents around the city all of this is done by integrating various systems that allow for different aspects of the city to be connected for example in traffic lights and public transportation systems are connected to a city's Network it allows the network to Monitor and analyze traffic patterns and daily usage of roads and public systems which allows the city to invest in infrastructure and pass new policies that can Target inefficient areas and can help reduce congestion on the roads and improve the traffic in the city so we can see that a lot is happening with Urban Development and sustainability and over time we'll continue to see our Urban landscape change and evolve but now comes the time to practice what we have learned remember if you found value in this video consider subscribing and if you need more help with your AP Human Geography studies check out my ultimate review packet it's a great resource that can help you get an A in your class and a five on the national exam as always thank you so much for watching I am Mr sin and I will see you next time online