Abstract
To Prof. Shinzo KIUCHI who retired from the University of Tokyo in 1971 after serving very successfully for the promotion of geographical science especially in urban geography.
Overall tendency of urbanization in the world today and in the late 20th century is and will be characterized by the ever-increasing ratio of urban population and urban land use in the areas concerned. Ratio of urban population in most developed countries will exceed the 90% or even the 95% threshold in the very near future as in the case of present-day United Kingdom or USA. No countries in the world today foresees a decline in urban population as a general trend.
Urbanization is, in all cases, considered as a rule in the transformation of the spatial organization of the countries or regions, although it varies in form and pattern from place to place. Every nation in the world seems to try to promote urbanization with the intention that the living standard will be raised by intensifying land use and labor in terms of urba-nization and that the living mode could be transformed into a very efficient and comfortable one by the progress of urbanization. However, there are some differences concerning the mode of urbanization and urban problems. In general, so-called developing countries are yet to pay much attention to environmental problems that developed countries are facing seriously.
This report is primarily based on the activities of the Commission on the Processes and Patterns of Urbanization, of the International Geographical Union (Chairman: Prof. Shinzo KIUCHI), which the author has been serving as Secretary. In writing this paper, the author's comment and opinion have been added to fulfill the gap of information about the present and future trends.
