Population Studies Revision

There are approximately 4 million people in New Zealand.
We take a census of the population every 5 years. This gives the Government information for its planning. It tells it how many people there are, where they live, what they earn, what they spend their money on.
82% of the population is European, 10% is Maori, 6% is Polynesian and 3% Asian. Just over 50% of the population is female
Most of the population live in urban areas, 1/3 live in Auckland. Less than 1/3 live in the South Island.
The main centres are Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton and Dunedin. Areas of Growth include Nelson/Marlborough, Tauranga and Auckland. Most of the South Island has experienced nil or negative growth in the last 20 years.
Originally Europeans tended to settle in the South Island but by the 1880’s the Northward Drift was evident. Rural-Urban Drift has seen people move into urban areas from Rural areas, by 1910 NZ was an urban society. People moving northward especially towards the Auckland region has emphasised the Northward Drift.
Most of this movement has taken time, many people move in Step-Wise migration, from small urban areas to larger and larger areas.
Often this has also been as Chain migration which results when one member of a family settles in an area creating a base for other members of the family to use. This is especially strong in Maori and Polynesian migration.
The Baby Boom 1945-1960 has created a bulge in the population pyramid which will see an increased demand for health services, specialised housing and welfare and increased demands on the rest of the population in taxes.
Government attempts to cope with this include changing benefit entitlements and encouraging people to save or change their way of life.
By 2020 there will be two workers for each pensioner at the moment there are four.
Differences tend to occur in Living Conditions because of peoples access to one or more of the four factors which influence it. Health Care, Education, Income and Employment. Rural areas like Northland, The East Coast or the West Coast tend to have lower living conditions than Urban Areas like Auckland or Wellington because the factors are further away (GPs, Hospitals, schools Tertiary Institutions Unemployment etc)
Because these areas have high proportions of Maori, then they are also disproportionately affected.
Within Urban Areas like Tauranga there can also be differences caused by economic factors such as employment ie Matua and Merivale.

The Monsoon is the season which brings heavy rainfall for several months each year.
Over TWO Billion people live within Monsoon Asia.
They are made up of a number of racial groups, but are mainly Chinese (1.2B) or Indian (800M).
Most of these people live in places like the Indus Valley which offer natural features like flat rich land, access to water, and increasingly urban areas.
Areas like the Gobi desert have few natural features which would attract people.
In the last 20 years the populations of Monsoon Asia have become increasingly young.
A youthful population has been created because of increasing health levels, reduced death rates especially in the young, improved hygiene and food sources and a failure or unwillingness to control fertility. Traditionally families are large.
Problems associated with a young population include providing schools, hospitals, and jobs.
Governments have tried to solve this problem by improving access to contraception or offering incentives to keep family sizes small. (India - radios for vasectomies) Where this has failed legislation has been used (China - One child policy). In Singapore this has almost been too successful. Problems have occurred because of the preference for male children.
Differences occur in living conditions within Monsoon Asia principally because of a lack of access to the 4 factors. Some countries have well developed infrastructures, high levels of education, and high incomes (Japan Korea Taiwan), while others do not. These countries often also have high population densities and/or few natural resources (Bangladesh). As in NZ the differences within cities also exist.

What is a census? Why are they taken? How often do they occur? What are they used for?
How many people are there in NZ? Where are they distributed? What factors influence the distribution of population in New Zealand?
What is meant by the term Population Density?
Using the factors responsible explain the term Population Structure.
What is New Zealand’ s ethnic composition? How has it changed over the last 150 years?
What is a Population Pyramid? What is it used for?
Population Age Structure depends on fertility, mortality and net migration. Explain each term. How can the government alter population structure by changing these?
What were the 4 waves of migration to New Zealand?
Which age groups are part of the "dependent population"?
Why does New Zealand have an "Ageing" population?
What problems are caused by an ageing population?
Why are there differences between the different regions in New Zealand? Why do people move between regions?
What patterns of migration have effected New Zealand in the last 150 years? (Rural-Urban/Northward)
What are the 4 factors which influence living conditions? (quality of life or standard of living)?

What is the monsoon?
Can you locate and name Japan, China, India, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia?
What is the Population structure of Monsoon Asia?
Why is a youthful population going to be a problem for Monsoon Asia?
What factors have influenced the growth of this young population? (refer Q7 above)
How are some countries attempting to control this growth? (China)
Where do people live in Monsoon Asia? Can you locate areas where the population is dense. What physical features do these area have in common?
Can you locate and name the major cities?
What factors influence where they choose to live? (Physical/Cultural)
Why do people move about within Monsoon Asia? How do governments attempt to control this?
What are refugees? What are the different type of refugee?
Why are there differences in living conditions within Monsoon Asia?