Answer to Question 1
Referring to rapid urbanization, also known as turbo-urbanization, economist Edward
Glaeser (2011) quips that the world isn't flat, it's paved.. Already 80 percent of the
populations in the Global North live in big cities that are getting bigger (WDI, 2015), but
cities are growing fastest in the developing Global South countries. Every month 5
million people move from the countryside to a city somewhere in the developing world
(The Economist, 2011f, p. 91). According to UN estimates, 90 percent of future
population growth will take place in the shantytowns and cities of the Global South
(Muggah, 2015). This is particularly evident in Asia and the Pacific, where three of the
world's ten most global cities are located.
Answer to Question 2
Globalization is real, for better or for worse. Many people recommend globalization
for international public policy, because they believe that its consequences are
basically good for humankind. However, critics argue that globalization's costs far
outweigh its benefits. As the pace of globalization has become a recognized force in
world politics, it also has become a topic of heated debate. Globalization has hit a
political speed bump, provoking intense critical evaluation of globalization's causes,
characteristics, and consequences, and inspiring fresh ethical examination of the
elevated interdependence of countries and human beings.
The World’s Muddiest River
World Population Growth, Past 10,000 years
World Total Energy Consumption by Fuel Type
Population growth in India, China, Africa, and other countries in the developing world
Developing Child, The
Singapore’s Changi Airport now holds the world’s tallest indoor waterfall