Yanliu Lin

Understanding the ‘Village in the City’ in Guangzhou Economic Integration and Development Issue and their Implications for the Urban Migrant

As with many cities in China experiencing rapid urbanisation, Guangzhou is undergoing a specific form of urban development characterised by the engulfing of rural settlements: a process resulting in the so-called village in the city. This paper uses three modes of economic integration (redistribution, market exchange and reciprocity) as a framework to examine the interrelationship of various development issues and conditions of these villages. It shows that the poor integration in the spheres of state redistribution and formal market exchange pushes migrants to focus on survival strategies that relate to the self-organisation of housing, employment and education. It also makes a critical review of several (re)development projects, each relating to one or more of the different modes of economic integration. This paper concludes that new project approaches that organise a productive interplay between market exchange, redistribution and reciprocity are needed.

A conceptual framework on modes of governance for the regeneration of Chinese ‘villages in the city’

China’s rapid urbanisation has created a special form of urban built environment known as ‘village in the city’ (ViC). Various governance approaches have been applied to redevelop ViCs, which are prevalent in big cities. However, owing to the specific conditions of ViCs and the diverse contexts of urban development within and across cities, those approaches remain largely case-specific and are hampered by a lack of guiding principles. This article presents a framework on modes of governance to understand the choice of and the differences between modes of governance as well as their positive and negative consequences for the regeneration of ViCs. Case studies of various types of ViC regeneration practices in Guangzhou and Shenzhen are used to illustrate the framework’s application. The article concludes that new modes of governance that are interactive, inclusive and collaborative are called for to achieve the sustainable regeneration of ViCs.

The interplay of state, market and society in the socio-spatial transformation of “villages in the city” in Guangzhou

This paper examines the changes in the ways in which villagers have gained access to resources and services over time in what are now “villages in the city” within the city of Guangzhou. It compares and contrasts three periods: the clan-based traditional villages, the commune period and the period since the 1980s (which includes great economic success in many villages). It also discusses how migrants fit within this, as they have come to form a very large part of the population in these “villages in the city” but are largely excluded from state provision and from the benefits accruing to “villagership”.

Smart governance, collaborative planning and planning support systems : A fruitful triangle?

The scientific literature on smart cities has focused on innovative developments in information and communication technology (ICT) and on its consequences for urban life and policy making. In line with these, Batty et al. (Eur Phys J Spec Top 214:481–518, 2012) state that new technological developments are providing for new types of analysis, public participation and multi-actor collaboration , blurring the boundaries between smart cities and urban planning. We take this statement as a starting point for our discussion and put attention on the interplay between new ICT, smart cities and spatial planning. We focus in particular on the triangular relationship between smart governance as one of the areas of smart cities (Giffinger et al. in Ranking of European medium-sized cities, 2007), collaborative planning as a present form of spatial planning, and planning support systems (PSS) as a specific form of ICT dedicated to planning tasks. Collaborative planning is characterized by consensus building among distinctive stakeholders in participatory processes. Smart governance adds ICT-related components (e.g. efficient communication; data exchange) to the concept of collaborative planning. Finally, PSS involves the creation and use of tools to support professional planners’ tasks, including introducing relevant geoinformation and facilitating participation. To illustrate this triangular relationship, we examine some practical case studies from China, Finland, and the USA that suggest how web-based and model-based PSS can fulfil a supportive role, to realize smart governance in spatial planning by promoting effective communication and collaboration between various actors, and by strengthening the transparency of the decision-making process. We conclude that collaborative planning can become a form of smart governance under two basic conditions, namely of recent developments in the applicable ICT and an appropriate institutional design.

Governance Approaches in the Regeneration of Immigrant Communities: Potential Roles of Planning Support Systems (PSS)

In recent decades, governance approaches have been widely advocated in the context of immigrant communities. The interplay between state, market, and civil society results in several modes of governance in these approaches. This chapter shows that each mode of governance has its positive and negative consequences for the regeneration of immigrant communities. Planning support systems (PSS) can assist in dealing with the negative consequences. This chapter suggests that three types of PSS—namely “informing PSS,” “communicating PSS,” and “analyzing PSS”—can play a distinctive role in dealing with the specific deficiencies of each mode of governance in the context of immigrant communities.

The role of key stakeholders in the bottom-up planning processes of Guangzhou, China

The interplay between key stakeholders in urban development is one of the key concerns in contemporary international theory on urbanism and planning. This paper seeks to contribute to this concern, addressing the interplay between three key stakeholders (the state, the market and society) in the bottom-up planning processes of Tangxia Village, a typical ‘village in the city’ in Guangzhou, China. The mosaic spatial structure of Tangxia Village has been produced and overlapped by different planning processes, each created by various key stakeholders. The socio-spatial structure of the traditional rural settlement formed the basic layer of Tangxia Village, while newly added layers have resulted largely from the intertwining of regulated city development and unregulated self-development. Recently, a bottom-up process has generated a wide range of attention, as it has functioned very well in reshaping the space in Tangxia Village. This paper concludes that the integration of bottom-up processes and micro-strategies would strengthen the performance and efficiency of redevelopment strategies for Tangxia Village.

Making the ‘Invisible’ Visible: Redevelopment‐induced Displacement of Migrants in Shenzhen, China.

Gentrification in China is intertwined with urban redevelopment, which causes the large†scale displacement of rural–urban migrants from ‘villages in the city’ (ViCs). Because of the informality of ViCs, migrant renters have very insecure tenancy and during redevelopment they are treated as a negligible (‘invisible’) social group. As they are very difficult to locate after displacement, they are also literally invisible to researchers. To make the invisible visible, this study traced a sample of displaced migrants from Huangbeiling village in Shenzhen. The focus was on the displacement process and on identifying the consequences for the displaced. We found various forms of displacement during the redevelopment process. Nearby ViCs were prioritized by displaced migrants to minimize as much utility loss as possible. However, they generally suffer from decreased proximity, increased living costs, and the loss of social networks and job opportunities. Remarkably, some choose to return to the gentrifying village, enduring displacement in situ caused by increasing rents, drastic physical neighbourhood changes and declining liveability, in exchange for retaining their original social and economic networks. Large†scale urban redevelopment is causing the rapid shrinkage of informal housing. Recognizing and addressing the housing needs of this impoverished social group is a matter of urgency.

Demonstration of public participation and communication through social media in the network society within Shanghai

The rapid development of information and communication technology has led to the Internet and social media becoming a vital platform for public participation in China. The present research sought to understand the complexity of participation in the network society by taking the cancellation of the number 55 bus route in Shanghai as a case study. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used to analyze data from a leading social networking site in China. An analysis of participation patterns led to an understanding of the main characteristics of public participation in the network society, and a statistical analysis of the network revealed the features of elite participants in the planning adjustment. A qualitative approach was also used to explore the communication process, which was influenced by Chinese social capital—guanxi. The case study revealed an uneven pattern of public participation in the network society, and suggestions are provided to enhance fairness and effectiveness in this process.