Habitat for Humanity

Today, with the demographic transition from rural to urban, and a shift from an agriculture-based economy to mass industry, technology, and service-based economies, more than 50 percent of the world’s population lives in cities. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), only 100 years ago, about 20 percent of the global population lived in urban areas. By 1990, it was about 40 percent, but the tipping point occurred in 2010, when more than half of the global population moved to urban areas. United Nations estimates calculate that by 2030, the proportion will be six out of 10 people living in urban areas; by 2050, seven out of 10 people. Currently, around half of all urban dwellers live in cities of 100,000 to 500,000 inhabitants, and ...