Tag: city

AGGLOMERATION PROCESSES ON THE RUSSIAN EUROPEAN NORTH: VOLOGDA REGION EXPERIENCE

Sergey KOZHEVNIKOV

Candidate of Sciences (Economic), Senior Researcher head of laboratory, Vologda Research Center of the RAS, Russia

kozhevnikov_sa@bk.ru

Abstract

The article presents the key features of the development of urban agglomerations at presents. There are shown the agglomeration processes features which are currently taking place in the Vologda region.  It is justified that the monocentric Vologda agglomeration is being formed in the region. This is based on the research of the scientific literature, the main strategic documents and the use of the existing methodological tools. The tightness of the connection between the core and the reference territories has been proved on the basis of an analysis of key trends in the socioeconomic development of these municipalities in 1991-2016. On the basis of conducted sociological surveys of the inhabitants of Vologda and adjacent municipal districts, as well as heads of these municipalities, there were identified socio-economic, industrial, cultural and other links of these territories. There were identified the key challenges and threats for the further development of agglomeration processes and substantiated the priority directions for managing the development of the Vologda agglomeration.

Keywords: city, urban agglomeration, sociological survey

JEL classification: R12
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ZIPF’S LAW AS ASSESSMENT TOOL OF URBAN INEQUALITY

Inna MANAEVA

World Economy Chair –Belgorod State National Research University, Russia, http://www.bsu.edu.ru
In.manaeva@yandex.ru

Svetlana RASTVORTSEVA

World Economy Chair –Belgorod State National Research University, Russia, http://www.bsu.edu.ru
Srartvortseva@gmail.ru

Abstract

The paper is concerned with the topical issues of regional economics – urban inequality in the Russian Federation. Empirical investigations of Zipf’s law were studied in the foreign and Russian literature. Application of this law for assessment of urban inequality using the method of least squares was substantiated. Assessment of urban inequality within the boundaries of the RF federal districts by the indices of population, volume of own production of goods and services is carried out in the paper. The authors used the data of the Federal State Statistics Service for 2014, the investigation included the settlements with the status of a town and with the population over 100 thousand people. Zipf’s law displays over the entire territory of Russia. By the population index in the federal districts, Zipf’s factor varies within the range from – 0.7 (Northwestern Federal District) to – 0.9 (North Caucasian Federal District). As a result of the performed analysis of the Russia’s cities by the population index, Zipf’s factor is within the range from –0.3 (Northwestern Federal District) to –1.2 (Central Federal District). Analysis of the volume of production of goods and services determined the range of Zipf’s factor from –0.26 (North Caucasian Federal District) to – 0.7 (Central and Volga Federal Districts). By the index of population and volume of production of goods and services the following “primate cities” are determined: Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Yekaterinburg (population), which allows to draw a conclusion on their dominance in urban system and high differentiation of cities by these indices. The obtained empirical estimators prove that Russia has no intermediate group of cities macroregional centers. The results of the investigation can be used for creation of methodological tools to develop the mechanisms of smoothing of interregional inequality, program of economic and social development of cities.

Keywords: city, spatial inequality, Zipf’s law, population, population density

JEL classification: R12

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NEW SOCIAL RISKS AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF URBAN AREA

Lubor Hruska-Tvrdy and Ivana Foldynova

VSB-Technical University of Ostrava, 17.listopadu 15

Ostrava-Poruba, 70833, Czech Republic

 Abstract:

New social risks are key factors for social cohesion of local community and society. Currently new social risks which are caused by changes in a society appear more frequently than before. While previously the groups of underprivileged were counted in endangered groups, now the middle class can be affected as well. This report shows a spatial distribution of these risks. How to obtain this result is shown on a particular example of the city of Ostrava. This report seeks to establish future influence of industrial city cohesion. Mainly processes of industrialization and deindustrialization are examined in a detail, especially their effect on demo-social structure of the city.The results are based on the research of the project called „Industrial society in a postindustrial city“ under which there were large sociological research of Ostrava and a long term monitoring of statistical indicators carried out.All social problems lead to inability to retain basic residential standards. Social risk distribution is surveyed in Ostrava however the context of larger area (the Moravian-Silesian Region) is also taken into consideration.

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