Urbanization

This chapter locates and integrates contemporary rampant urbanization with two other macro features of our times, intensive corporate globalization and anthropogenic climate change. Corporate globalization is derived as the latest of three global economic integrations. Each globalization has been characterized by urbanizations previously unparalleled in scale but that have been underestimated in importance. In the contemporary case, the world city network is described as the edifice of corporate globalization. This is described in terms of both the top 20 leading cities and shifts since 2000. A mixture of stability and change is found with the most important cities, notably London and New York, remaining dominant while a West–East shift has occurred, especially featuring Chinese cities. A broader vista is presented as planetary urbanization in which beyond the world city network all planetary spaces are shown to be changed by contemporary urbanization. This is extended historically to provide a long-term approach to anthropogenic climate change indicting urban demand. The conclusion is that urbanization, globalization, and climate should be understood in unison.