Global patterns of urbanisation

• Urban expansion is the increase in size or geographical footprint of a city
• Urbanisation is the increase in the proportion of the population living in urban centres
• Urban growth is the increase in the total population of a town or city.
• Globally, urbanisation rates began to grow rapidly in the mid-20th century. The amount of people moving to urban areas is increasing globally.
• Urban populations have stayed relatively constant in the past 500 years until post-1800, where urban populations began to increase (especially in high income countries which were developing at a faster rate).
• The rate of urbanisation is decreasing , and the rate of rural to urban migration is also decreasing, meaning population growth in urban areas is slowing
• 55% of people live in urban areas which is a 25% increase from 1950
• Urban populations are expected to increase even more by 2050 to 68%