Urban Environments

Istanbul, Turkey

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Regional Characteristics - B1

Site + Situation

Istanbul is a coastal megacity located on the noth-western tip of Turkey. The largest city in Turkey and thirteenth largest city in the world acts as a gateway between Asia and Europe, the Mediterranean and Black sea  (Harrouk, 2021). The “city cut in half” is situated over the Bosporus strait and has about half of its city in Europe and the other half in Asia. There are two other main bodies of water that come in contact with the peninsula, the sea of Marmara and the Golden Horn (which is a 7km valley) (Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d.). The Bosporus is one of the busiest waterways in the world and Istanbul's port is a key economical aspect of the megacity. It is also positioned alongside the historic Silk Road which is one of the reasons Istanbul has such a massive global trading market (Earth Watching, n.d). 


Urban Growth

Istanbul is one of 37 megacities in the world harbouring around 15.5 million people (UNESCO, 2021). It has undergone massive urban growth and its population has grown exponentially. From post World War Ⅱ all the way to the year 2000 the cities’ population grew by 1111%. In the 1950s it had a population of 983,000 and in the year 2000 it had a population of 10,923,000 (Istanbul Population 2021, n.d). One of the main reasons for rapid growth is due to urbanization. As more and more of the surrounding land underwent urban development, people living in rural communities saw financial opportunities to live in “the big city”. It is also important to note that Istanbul makes up about 40% of Turkey's GDP making it a big attraction for both lower and higher social classes seeing as everyone would want to live in a city where they could prosper (Economy and Industry, 2019). 

Economic Development

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https://air.plumelabs.com/air-quality-in-Istanbul-37OQ

Taking into account everything that was said above, one would think that urban growth would be having positive impacts on economic development, and it is having some, however it is also having devastating negative impacts. One of the central issues being air pollution. Having 15 million people concentrated in one urban environment is going to have catastrophic effects on air quality. The levels of PM 2.5, which is a type of air pollutant that affects people's health and is largely noticed when it reduces air visibility and makes the air appear hazy, WHO calculations have found that the levels of these pollutants in Istanbul are more than three times higher than the WHO safe levels (WHO, 2020). This can lead to some of the following health risks: premature death in people with heart or lung disease, nonfatal heart attacks, irregular heartbeat, aggravated asthma, decreased lung function, difficulty breathing and more (National Geographic Society, 2012). 


Inequality and Sustainability - C2

Income Inequality

Income inequality is a big problem in Turkey, and out of all regions Istanbul has the highest rates. As seen beside, the top 10 percent share about 50 percent of national income and the bottom 50 percent share only 15 percent. Even though Turkey has a fast growing economy, and Istanbul has developed exponentially, the income inequality has remained about the same over the years. As the country and megacity develops, the lower income citizens are being left behind. Income Inequality can result in health and social issues that lead to an ongoing divide. This is reflected by the prevalence of slums and high rates of unemployment in the city (between 7 and 8 percent) (Borgen Project, 2019). 


Poverty + Deprivation

Mixture of old and modern Gecekondu districts...

The rapid urban and economic growth have caused a prevalence of deprivation in Istanbul. As seen previously, the population of the megacity boomed post World War Ⅱ. This unexpected rural to urban migration strained Istanbul’s infrastructure. The megacity was not equipped to welcome all of these people, and the existence of the gecekondu districts came to be (Person, 2018). Gecekondu translates to “landed overnight”,. They were typically built without permits and on vacant government owned lots, not respecting any construction regulations. These houses were poorly built, had outhouses, no sewage, no electricity, little to no clean water access, and usually had livestock on the property (Bloomberg, n.d). These shantytowns were a cocktail of disease, poverty and deprivation. 

The gecekondu districts were typically welcomed and absorbed as a part of the city, due to them profiting the mega city. However, in the late 90s the districts were starting to become gentrified. The city granted legal rights to the makeshift house owners allowing a build/sell cycle to occur. For the most part this was beneficial, but for the poorest residents this was a problem and forced evictions started to occur (Bloomberg, n.d). Forcing poor families onto the streets in dangerous parts of the city.

Overall, poverty has decreased by 2.2% in Istanbul, and a lot of the gecekondu districts have been replaced by high-rise apartment blocks owned by the government (Borgen Project, 2019). Even though things have improved, there are still 40,000 Istanbullular children being exploited for child labour (Borgen Project, 2019). Some gecekondu districts are still present, however a lot of them have been improved and modernized. Istanbul has a long way to go, but it is still the economic powerhouse and backbone of Turkey.     

References

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Atlas of Urban Expansion. Atlas of Urban Expansion - Istanbul. (n.d.). http://www.atlasofurbanexpansion.org/cities/view/Istanbul.

Economy and Industry. Economy and Industry in Istanbul | Go Turkey Tourism. (2019). https://www.goturkeytourism.com/about-turkey/economy-and-industry-in-istanbul.html.

Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Istanbul. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/place/Istanbul.

Environmental Protection Agency. (2021, May 26). Health and Environmental Effects of Particulate Matter (PM). EPA. https://www.epa.gov/pm-pollution/health-and-environmental-effects-particulate-matter-pm.

The Evolving Urban Form: Istanbul. The Evolving Urban Form: Istanbul | Newgeography.com. (n.d.). http://www.newgeography.com/content/003020-the-evolving-urban-form-istanbul.

Harrouk, C. (2021, April 21). The 20 Largest Cities in the World: 2021 Edition. ArchDaily. https://www.archdaily.com/906605/the-20-largest-cities-in-the-world-of-2018.

Istanbul Population 2021. Istanbul Population 2021 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). (n.d.). https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/istanbul-population.

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Istanbul. Unmask My City. (2020, July 28). http://unmaskmycity.org/project/istanbul/#:~:text=Unfortunately%2C%20Istanbul%20has%20a%20growing,than%20the%20WHO's%20safe%20levels.

Kopp, C. M. (2021, May 19). How Income Inequality Works. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/income-inequality.asp.

Megacities worldwide. UNESCO. (n.d.). https://en.unesco.org/events/eaumega2021/megacities.

National Geographic Society. (2012, October 9). air pollution. National Geographic Society. https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/air-pollution/#:~:text=Long%2Dterm%20health%20effects%20from,air%20pollutants%20cause%20birth%20defects.

Person. (2012, November 28). As Turkey's economy booms, deep inequality persists. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/turkey-unemployment-idUSL5E8MGBB420121128.

Starr, S. (2014, August 19). Pollution threatens Istanbul waterways. Environment News | Al Jazeera. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2014/8/19/pollution-threatens-iconic-istanbul-waterways#:~:text=But%20pollution%20of%20Istanbul's%20waterways,the%20city's%20waterways%2C%20experts%20say.

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WorldAtlas. (2021, February 24). Turkey Maps & Facts. WorldAtlas. https://www.worldatlas.com/maps/turkey. 

https://air.plumelabs.com/air-quality-in-Istanbul-37OQ