Preface -- Global urban growth -- Urban growth pressures and sprawl in America -- Background to the current crisis : land resources and public policy in America historic evolution of urban land use in America -- The contemporary phenomenon of urban sprawl : costs and consequences -- Making better use of the land : the debate over controlling urban sprawl -- Containing sprawl through local zoning -- State-wide prescriptions for sprawl -- Preserving rural lands from urban sprawl -- Fighting sprawl by reclaiming central cities -- Improving life in the suburbs -- Recent trends in the debate over sprawl -- The smart growth movement -- The property rights challenge -- Federal smart growth initiatives -- New trends in urban growth -- References -- Urban growth around the world -- Urban growth in the developed world -- Western Europe -- Eastern Europe and Russia -- Future directions for Europe and Russia -- Japan and East Asia -- Canada -- Urban growth in the developing world -- Urbanization in historical perspective -- Cities of the developing world today -- Life in the slums -- Growth and evolution of slums -- Latin America -- Sub-Saharan Africa -- Middle East -- South Asia -- Southeast Asia -- China -- Future directions in the developing world -- What can be done about slums? -- Turning to the international community -- Private sector solutions to slums -- References -- Chronology -- Biographical sketches
Summary
In 2008, a milestone was reached in the history of humankind: half of the world's population of 6.6 billion people were residing in cities. One out of every three people who live in a city resides in a slum. In the United States, 14 million acres of prime farmland was lost to urban development in the 25 years between 1982 and 2007. These disturbing statistics underscore the tremendous importance of addressing issues of urban growth across the globe
