Friday 8 May 2015

We're the biggest! Wow!

Or should that be "gee, shucks ...".
In any case we here in Hong Kong are part of the largest official "urban area" in the world, so says the World Bank:
  • The Pearl River Delta in China – which includes the cities of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan and Dongguan [and Hong Kong, says me, don't forget Hong Kong!!] – has overtaken Tokyo as the world’s largest urban area in both size and population, with more inhabitants than countries such as Argentina, Australia or Canada. [47 million].
There's something about cities: they make people wealthy.  They give huge opportunities for both work and play.  They exude less CO2 per capita than equivalent folk in less dense living areas.  
Of course they also make people poor and fit them in slums.  They exude more overall CO2.  
But on the whole, they're good things. That's why people move to them.
Not sure what I should think about the fact that we're here now part of the largest "urban area" in the world.
Save that it gives me pause for reflection.
That when I first came here in 1976, Shenzhen was nothing but paddy fields (really!).  But now it's a megalopolis of 30 million folk.
That's something.  Not sure it's all good.  But it's certainly something.  And something unprecedented in world history. And, for a goodly part, it's good. And I've seen it all happen these last 30-some years.
And, get this: our "urban area" has twice the population than my country, Australia!
Wow!  
Gee, shucks...