Urbanisation in Brazil - Rio de Janeiro

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Objective: To find out why people move to Rio de Janeiro in huge numbers and the impacts that this has on the destination.

**In preparation for this lesson, you should have watched the Ross Kemp on Gangs video**

Task 1 - The location. Watch the YouTube video and then study the Google map below to write a detailed description of the location of Rio and also our focus area, Rocinha.

Help Needed? Click here
Task 2 - Study the document to the right (thanks to Geography in the News from RGS). Then complete the following activities:

a. Define a shanty town and explain the two different types that exist.

b. In less than 50 words, explain how these settlements have grown since the 1880's.

c. Create a spider diagram to show why shanty towns like Rocinha grow rapidly.

e. Make a list of five possible places that you may find shanty towns. Think carefully about land values and accessibility.

Task 3 - Study the article on the right hand side (thanks to Geography in the News from RGS).

a. Download/print then read the document to the right and save to your GCSE Geography folder - Shanty Towns.

b. Open this worksheet and try to include three bits of information in each section of the table. You may copy and paste individual bits from the article and use information from the Ross Kemp video too.

c. Read this BBC news article about the 2014 World Cup.  Why are the government so concerned about this particular favela? Why do they want to improve it?

GCSE Grade A & A* Extension Work
Spend 20 minutes watching the documentary to the right on YouTube. Take notes on the key aspects of the Favela Clearance Programme in Rio.

Then answer the following question:

To what extent does the 2014 World Cup benefit local people in Rio?

Examine the issue from at least two different viewpoints.  

Improving Shanty Towns

Task 1.  You are going to answer the following GCSE question: “For a named city in an LEDC which you have studied, describe attempts to improve the quality of life in the squatter settlements”     (8)

Before you can do this, you must find out how about the four stages of a  shanty town and research the three case studies below and take notes in your work book. Click here for an animation to show you about the stages of development of a shanty town. Make notes on each of the four stages in your workbooks. 

Case Study 1 - Favela Tourism -  Visit this site and write about the ways in which the people of Rocinha are trying the improve their lives. How do 'Favela Tours' help them to achieve this?

Case Study 2 - Favela Painting Project. Take notes on how this project aims to improve the lives of people who live in favelas in Rio.

Case Study 3 - ABC Trust - Take notes on how this organisation works to improve the standard of living and conditions for residents in favelas in Rio. Produce a new over-dub that explains the progress that has been made in Rochina using the video to the right. 

Alternative task - Improving a Shanty Town - page 43-49 - More Thinking Through Geography. Excellent DME activity
Task: Now put together your exam answer.  At the end, you must paste in the following sentence:

“Improving the favelas can never be a truly sustainable solution to the problems caused by rural to urban migration”

Explain why this is the case. What would have to be done to improve conditions? Go right back to the cause of the problem in terms of people moving from the rural areas. How can you limit that?

Thanks to Kevin Cooper as I have used extracts of his lesson here.
Exam Revision

Study the PowerPoint to the right. It gives you a run-down of the main issues surrounding rural to urban migration as well as shanty town growth.

Additional Work
Improving Shanty Towns in India - Presentation here

Interactive Virtual Visit to an Indian Shanty Town.