Transcripts Unit 3
3.1 Chunyun is a period of travel in China, lasting around 40 days. It is the largest human migration in the world, when the planes, trains and roads of China become completely full of people. During these 40 days, nearly three billion people travel. The reason for this huge movement of people is simple. It’s a tradition for Chinese people to spend the Spring Festival with their families. But many people live far from their parents, normally because they are working or studying in a big city. So, during Chunyun they all head to their family homes. Those with money drive or fly home, but many people can’t afford that, so instead they use the very crowded trains and buses. Many of these people are students or migrant workers. Some people cross the country to be with their families, and remember China is an enormous country! We met one of the travellers, Liling, at the main railway station in Beijing and she told us about her travel plans. Liling
Hello. My name is Liling and I’m a student in Beijing. But today I’m going home to spend the Spring Festival with my family. I’m from a town near Chengdu, which is over a thousand miles from Beijing.
Interviewer How long is the journey? Liling
Interviewer A 36-hour train journey? Liling
It’s going to take 36 hours. And I have already been travelling for a long time this morning because everywhere is so busy.
Yes. I left home at 6.30 this morning.
Interviewer What are you going to do on the train? Liling
Interviewer And do you have a bed on the train? Liling
I’m going to sleep a lot because I’m very tired. I’ve been studying very hard lately.
No, I just have a seat. There are beds on the train, but they’re expensive. My ticket only costs 500 Yuan. That’s about 70 dollars for a return ticket.
Interviewer So in 36 hours you’ll be back home with your family?
Liling
No, in Chengdu. I have to get a bus to my town. That’s another three hours!
3.2 The graph shows several things. First, we can see how the total population of the world has risen from 2.5 billion to over seven billion today. Then we can see how the world’s rural population, those people living in the countryside, has slowed down and is now actually decreasing, while the urban population has risen and continues to rise. In 2010, for the first time there were more people living in towns and cities than in rural areas. The map shows the speed at which urbanization occurred at the beginning of this century. As you can see, urbanization is happening fastest in parts of Africa and Asia, rather slower
196 English for the 21st Century • Transcripts
in the rest of the world, and much slower in most of Europe. And there is an explanation for this, of course. In developed countries, such as those in Western Europe, the majority of urbanization has already happened. It was at its highest in the 19th
and 20th centuries, whereas in developing countries the process is still happening.
3.3 So what causes urbanization? We can separate the causes of this migration into push factors and pull factors. That is, things that push people away from rural areas, like low wages or a lack of jobs, or natural disasters such as floods or droughts, which can cause starvation. People are forced out of rural areas by these factors. Then there are things that pull people towards towns and cities. Yes, I’m talking about more jobs and higher wages, but there are also the amenities in urban areas such as schools, hospitals, and so on. In general, people are attracted to the cities by a better quality of life.
3.4 There are, of course, multiple problems in cities caused by the migration of people from rural areas, perhaps the most obvious being unemployment. Some people are offered manual jobs, for example, in the building trade. However, some people are not given work because they do not have the right skills or are too old. And then there is the problem of housing the ever-increasing population. About 40% of urban expansion is estimated to be taking place in slums. And the unsanitary conditions in these slums mean that diseases spread easily. All of these issues are especially problematic when the process of urbanization happens quickly. Cities can grow so fast that the infrastructure cannot cope with the increasing population. Therefore, there isn’t enough quality housing and there aren’t enough schools or hospitals. However, cities can really benefit from this influx of people. People bring with them new ideas and the exchange of ideas in cities helps development. On a practical level, there is more business, and consequently more jobs are created. Studies show that the bigger the city, the higher the average wage of its citizens. But how are rural areas affected by urbanization? Clearly, there are challenges. With so many people leaving the countryside, the workforce can be severely reduced. This is particularly difficult when young men are migrating because traditionally, in rural areas, the more physical jobs were carried out by these young men. A subsequent problem is that often these jobs will have to be done by the children in the families, who would otherwise be going to school. However, the benefits that urbanization brings to rural areas should not be ignored. The migrant workers in the cities earn significantly more than they were making at home and they send a lot of this money back to their families. This money will be spent in the rural communities. Animals are bought and school fees are paid. In addition to helping their families
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