SOAS- University of London International Foundation Courses and English Language Studies English Language and Academic Studies

A1 Humanities Summer Term 2011

In your view, what is the most serious problem of big cities and how could it be solved?

Yuta Sato A1-Essay

The Ideal Efficient Cities Generally, freedom is a concept that we might all regard as being positive. The majority of people want to find fulfillment in life that can lead to happiness. It may be true that a significant part of happiness comes from the natural environment, without which prosperous living would not be possible. However, the majority of people hardly acknowledge that there are not infinite amount of natural resources available for humans to use. As Schumacher makes an important point the illusion of unlimited power. That is to say that the westernization of thinking and actions has led to a separation of people from nature and this view has become dominant globally. This phenomenon is certainly true when it comes to the most serious problems of big cities. Capitalism brought huge economic growth and changes in the way mankind regards the natural environment. Many people are keen to live in the big cities because it provides more job opportunities and allows more convenient lifestyles. However, many people are more focused on generating wealth than taking environmental problems into consideration. Perhaps it is time to distance ourselves from focusing on individual freedoms and to start implement new policies for change which will involve sacrificing ourselves in order to conserve our nature. This essay focuses upon raising several important issues concerning problems relating to living in big cities and how they could be dealt with effectively in the near future. To begin with global warming is a concern in the big cities and some companies are creating innovative new products and buildings in order to minimize the release of carbon dioxide. In the contemporary life, particularly in the cities, people tend to rank themselves according to the level of their material possessions. This has led to individualism. For example, some people drive luxury cars that squander large amounts of gas and live in big houses that waste heat and air conditioning. Such behavior

may be justifiable from an individual`s frame of mind (Smith, 2000). However, from the perspectives of society as whole, each individual by living such a lifestyle is contributing to releasing a huge amount of carbon dioxide into the air. In fact, 60 percent of all products are produced in the cities. In the USA, traffic jams have caused 4 percent release of the total release of petrol gas (Hardoy, Miltin and Satterthwite 1992). These are primary reasons why the temperature of the earth`s atmosphere has increased over the course of previous or current decade. Nevertheless, there are solutions to the problem of global warming. For example, Honda has come out with an electronic bike called EV-Neo electronic scooter. It can run on electricity without consuming any gas. It also does not release any carbon dioxide. Another example is the Beddington Zero energy building in London (Steffen, 2005). This is building has capability of producing its own energy through solar panel and recycling of water. The above example illustrates, the people are able to change the dynamic of the way they build things to solve the problems in the big cities. In addition, achieving sustainable development is another matter in the big cities. The demographic transformation from rural to city living has dramatically increased in the last couple years. The shift from agricultural to industrial production in many countries such as China has led to increased concentration on profit seeking by companies and led to attempts to attract more tourists into the city to spur on economic growth. What lies underneath the problem of sustainable growth is neither the people that live in the cities, nor the issue of over population. Instead, how the environmental resources are utilized in the cities is the key problem. Many cities, particularly low-density places, bring about more energy demand than is the case in high-density cities. Moreover, in terms of use of water, 2000 tones of food and 9500 tons of fuel combine to produce 5,00,000 tones of waste water, 2000 tones of waste solids and 959 tones of air

pollution. Therefore, the focal point is to look at cities structures not only with a view to improving the capacity of businesses but also in order to make a contribution to sustainable life in the cities(Haughton 1994). A city policy is already taking effect in Germany. They have invented one of the best transportation systems with buses and trains that go around the city without costing a fortune. Most importantly, people can go anywhere in the city by public transport using a ticket which costs only two euros for an hour. This system encourages more people to ride on the trains rather than drive their own cars. Primarily, it is essential to address environmental awareness globally. In China, it is relevant that rapid economic growth of 12 percent has been taking place. Despite this rapid growth, China is not focusing on generating wealth. Instead, They are focusing more on environmental problems in the cities. Consequently, it is important for other countries to address such problems through including the in the school curriculum and through media campaigns, particularly using television and the Internet, to make the message stick on people mind about environmental problems. This could ensure people will make sacrifices in order to make better use of the natural environment. In conclusion, despite the inevitable expansion of capitalism that has ubiquitous effects on the environment of cities, people have produced new technological inventions and created innovative systems in cities, allowing problems to be addressed effectively in the following ways. One is by creating green-products and buildings that use energy efficiently. The other is by creating incentives that encourage people to use transport system. These systems are new breakthrough ideas that can be applied to city problems globally. If people take notice of how innovative buildings work to protect the environment and make use of efficient green transportation systems, these innovations can help to successfully change their mentality regarding environmental problems in the cities.

References Schumacher, E F. (1973) Small is Beautiful London: Blond &Briggs. Haughton, G. & Hunter C. (1994) Sustainable Cities United Kingdom: Jessica Kingsley. Smith, R. & Mackie, D. (2000) Social Psychology USA: Taylor &Francis. Steffen, A. (2005) Sees a Sustainable Future; http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/alex_steffen_sees_a_sustainable_future. html( 14 June 2011) Smith, R. & Mackie, D. (2000) Social Psychology USA: Taylor &Francis.