Dasgupta (2018) shows in his article on urban growth around the world, that by the year 2050 approximately 70% of the world’s population will live in urban areas. This means that cities are going to have a major impact not only on the lives of human beings but also on the planet, as there will be a concentrated amount of energy and activity in these urban parts of the world. Moreover, aside from environmental concerns there are likely to be social issues that emanate from this intense localization of the population into vast cities. As Coleman and Kerbo (2009) point out, how these areas are socially organized will be very critical to how well they are maintained and how well the inhabitants of these areas are striving to take care of their world: “Young people may be inadequately socialized because of problems in the institution of the family, or society may fail to provide enough social and economic opportunities to some of its members, thus encouraging them to become involved in crime or other antisocial activities” (p. 10). This antisocial trend is a risk that societies should be keen on averting so that these urban areas can “effectively manage their natural resources and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions while improving quality of life” (Dasgupta, 2018). The more social the inhabitants of these areas are, the more likely they are to...

From 2016 to 2017, 3.2 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions were avoided, and an estimated 4.2 billion people were served with approximately 1,776 lives saved as a result (WRI, 2018). Other optimistic trends include the greening of urban areas that can help to restore mental health in cities where concrete and lack of green space can lead to depression and other antisocial experiences for the people living there (Wolf, n.d.).
With population increasing in recent years and projected to continue to increase, the trends that are being seen around the world indicate that urban planners are going to need to take action now in order to have the necessary infrastructure in place to both help people and protect the environment. Protective steps will need to take place all over the world, in both the East and the West.

Currently, the countries with the densest populations include: India, Japan, Singapore, Bangladesh, Philippines, United Kingdom, Pakistan, Italy, and Cuba. There are many other smaller nations that…