http://ec.europa.eu/research/social-sciences/index_en.html

                        

 

European Project on Sustainable Urbanisation in ChinaHistorical and Comparative Perspectives, Mega-trends towards 2050

Work Project 5

Urban communities• urban government, planning and residents’ self-

government Social sustainability • provision and deprivation of public goods• social divisions – housing classes• capacity to resolve conflictTheir positives, i.e. reductions of inequalities in public

goods provision (utilities, schools, medical facilities, energy and water utilities, waste disposal), reductions of conflicts between housing classes, and increased capacities to resolve conflicts = ‘sustainable’

housing types/classes

•Walled estates of villas – owner-occupied or rented out•Walled estates of apartment blocks (and villas) – owner-occupied or rented out

•Old danwei (work unit) dwellings sold to their residents who live in them or rent them out

•Cheap apartment blocks for relocated poor, so-called affordable housing•Or Cheap rented accommodation of migrant workers or the poor but urban

registered, many in city-villages

Deliverables and milestones• State of the Art (Research results and trends) in month 24 = March

2013 will be an extensive literature review, most of the research for which has been completed

• There will also be a workshop in 2013, in China, to which other urban researchers will be invited. This will be a first airing of the results of fieldwork and will provide feedback from fellow WP and other researchers.

• In second half of 2013 the researchers will have written short versions of their field reports for Chinese planners and other key informants, for their feedback, by e-mail.

Policy brief in month 36, April 2014 will be delivered to our government and planning informants

• Feedback from the workshop and from key informants will be incorporated into final reports completed by month 48, March 2015.

Field research schedule• Delayed – due to need to arranging change in our EU agreement to accommodate

LSE collaborative agreements with researchers. Field research started May 2012. • At least two shequ (urban ‘communities’) in each city, one towards centre, one

peripheral, both mixed. 2 months in a xiaoqu (lowest level governmental ‘community’) or neighbouring xiaoqu in each shequ, each per fieldworker, but can both be in same

• Shanghai• Paula Morais and Renate Krieg now, Jude Howell later in 2012 and in 2013.• Chongqing• Zhang Hui and Luo Pan from October 2012.• Wang Xiaoxia ditto• Kunming• Preliminary visit to choose field sites done by Zhang Hui.• June onwards Zhang Hui• August onward, Paula Morais• Huangshan• Preliminary questions added in survey for Renda (People’s University, Beijing) project

data collected March by Wang Xiaoixia • Luo Pan later 2012• Wang Xiaoxia when she has finished in Chongqing

Question schedule Residents – 20, of which 8 for further interviews

depending on time NB two months in each site plus visual & graphic data on urban public spaces and housing - – not a survey, but an estimate of range of responses to same questions

• A general• B choice (or compulsion) to live here• C relation to juweihui (residents’ elected committee) and home-owners’ association• D relation to property management company (wuye guanli)• E informal associations and meeting points with other residents • F complaints about other residents – how handled• G waste management – complaints – how handled• H utilities – ditto• J sources of daily necessities - ditto• K open areas – problems, how handled• L security – ditto• M participation in residents’ websites

Qu planning office

• Implementation

• Feedback from residents

• Main difficulties

• Prospects

Jiedao (Street neighbourhood) if different from shequ, office

• Responsibilities • implementation of plans • relations with property management companies• main difficulties• prospects

Shequ office

• Jumin weiyuanhui – how organised, elections, etc• Volunteers (for mediation, surveillance, etc) – ditto• Relations with residents’ own organisations – i.e. home-owners or

looser associations• Main difficulties• Prospects

Property management office

• How funded • Problems – eg with raising and collecting fees• Main difficulties• Prospects