Estimating the Effects of Urbanization on Carbon Emissions: Evidence in the Philippines

Urbanization, or the social and economic modernization of metropolitan cities (Poumanyvong & Kaveko, 2010), has obtained unprecedented growth. As an inevitable phase of globalization, it has fuelled society’s consumption patterns, alongside incessant technological development. Mass production and industrialization, the primary thrusts of the global market, require consumption of non-renewable resources arising from the increase in energy usage. These centers of production are concentrated in urban, highly populated areas. This phase of progress, however, comes at the expense of environmental quality. Levels of carbon emissions are concentrated in areas with high population density. This hampers the natural flow of the ecosystem and a sustainable environment might not be efficiently maintained. As a result of this trend, increase in the density of carbon emissions might potentially harness catastrophic impacts in the future