As a continuation of our award-winning book, 'China's City Cluster Development in the Race to Carbon Neutrality' and our recent book, '30 Years of Urban Change in China's 10 Core Cities', this book delves into China's recent progress in reshaping its cities through holistic urban transformation strategies. Building on our previous work, we expand our focus to explore the latest developments in urbanization, examining how recent strategies and policies have influenced cities and cityscapes across China and beyond.

It is evident that China is reshaping its cities through a dynamic interplay of policy reforms, technological advancements, and creative planning. The late 20th and early 21st centuries have seen a sharp increase in urbanization, with a particular focus on the development of smart, resilient, and sustainable cities. Through a thorough examination of case study examples that have undergone significant recent change, this book investigates how these goals are being achieved.

'China Under Construction: Shaping Cities through Recent Urban Transformation' offers a thorough overview of China's current urban transformation efforts, highlighting both the achievements and the ongoing challenges, through case studies and in-depth evaluations. We hope to provide insightful information about the real-world applications of urban strategies and their wider implications for China's future urban landscape by concentrating on ten selected cities. This extension of our earlier research emphasizes how critical it is to view urban transformation as a complex process influencing social dynamics, technology, infrastructure, and environmental sustainability, among other facets of city life and urbanization.

Autorentext

Ali CHESHMEHZANGI is a Full Professor and Head of the School of Architecture, Design and Planning (ADP) at the University of Queensland, where he leads the school and researches across the fields of architecture, design, and planning/urbanism. He has been the World's top 2% field leader for three consecutive years, recognised by Stanford University. He is among the top 30 global scholars in the urban sustainability research area. Ali is internationally known for his scholarly contribution and extended work on climate resilience and sustainable urbanism research. Ali has a wealth of experience, expertise, and a strong commitment to innovation and excellence in the fields of architecture, design, and planning, the three core disciplines of his School at UQ. With a career spanning over two decades, he has made significant contributions to the academic and professional communities, with a focus on sustainable and environmentally conscious design. Prior to joining UQ, Ali held several strategic leadership and senior managerial roles, such as Vice-President for International Engagement and Global Partnership, Founding Director/Head of the Center for Innovation in Education and Research, Head of the Department of Architecture and Built Environment, Founding Director of the Urban Innovation Lab, Director of a university-wide Teaching and Learning platform, Director of International Research Network for Rural and Urban Development, Head of Research Group for Sustainable Built Environment, co-director of university-wide research priority areas, Director of Center for Sustainable Energy Technologies, and Interim Director of Digital Design Lab. So far, Ali has published over 500 journal papers, articles, conference papers, book chapters, and reports. He also has 32 other academic books, three of which have received awards at the national, provincial, and municipal levels. He also has received international awards and recognition for his research on urban resilience studies and sustainability research, as well as a Vice-Chancellor's award for his impactful contribution to higher education.

Tian TANG is an independent researcher focused on analysing China's urban and regional transitions and urban sustainability research. She co-authored two books with Ali Cheshmehzangi, titled "China's City Cluster Development in the Race to Carbon Neutrality" (2022) and "30 Years of Urban Change in China's 10 Core Cities" (2024). The former received a prestigious national award from Springer in November 2023. For almost a decade, Tian has worked with several local agencies and consultancy firms, with significant research work in Sichuan, Shanghai, Guangdong, Hainan, Hunan, and Chongqing, all in China. Tian is experienced with fieldwork activities in China and currently focuses on analysing urban transitions in urban clusters and specific regions in China, while exploring global case study examples, too. With extensive collaborations with the industry, relevant institutes, and governmental agencies, Tian has developed an extensive profile in urban sustainability research. In 2016 and then from 2019 onwards, her extended work included several case study research works as an independent research associate member and industry collaborator. In 2020-22, she focused on carbon neutrality research, case study reports, regional analysis, Chinese city clusters, and ICT-driven smart-resilient urban transformations. To date, Tian has 120+ reports, papers, and conference/workshop presentations and is co-author of an award-winning book.