Sustainable Urbanism Book

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective MANY THANKS TO UC International Our partners in bothChina and Cincinnati Faculty, staff and students at the following Chinese institutions Beijing Jiaotong University Xiamen University

ENVE PLAN SAID 6099 2016

Contents Chapter 1 Research Project

03

Chapter 2 Future City Co-Lab. International Association

52

for China Planning (IACP) Conference Chapter 3 Field Trips and Culture Exposure in Beijing

61

Chapter 4 Field Trips and Culture Exposure in Xiamen

80

Chapter 5 Student Reflections

95

UC Faculty Team Mingming Lu PhD, Associate Professor. Department of Biomedical, Chemical and Engineering (BCEE), College of Engineering & Applied Science. Dr Lu’s research area include submicron particle and PAH formation mechanisms from combustion processes including diesel, biodiesel, coal, and waste derived fuel, etc.; the compositional

characterization of aerosols and

gaseous pollutants from industrial, transportation and agricultural sources.

She also makes biodiesel from waste feedstocks, such as used cooking oil, trap grease (gutter oil) and spent coffee ground.

Ming Tang RA, NCARB, LEED AP, Associate Professor of Architecture, School of Architecture and Interior Design (SAID), College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. His research has been published in international conference proceedings, peer-reviewed journals, books, and displayed in exhibitions.

He is a registered architect, and founding partner of TYA Design, which has won numerous design awards in China, Spain, Mexico, U.K. and United States.

01

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

BJTU Faculty Team Xinhao Wang

Xia,HaiShan

PHD,Xinaho Wang is a professor of Planning in School of Planning (SOP),

Professor and Dean, School of Architecture and Design. He is also Director

College of DAAP. He teaches courses in GIS, environmental planning,

of Jiusan Society in BJTU branch. His research interests focus on rail trans-

statistics, and planning research methods. His research interests are in the

portation and smart city planning, underground urban space integration plan

areas of environmental planning and GIS application in planning. Examples

and design, and green building. He teaches classes including Introduction to

are: analysis of the spatial pattern of water quality indicators; the relation-

Architecture, Introduction to Green Buildings and Urban Design.

ship between land use and water quality; GIS-based water quality modeling and flooding analysis; spatial distribution of human health and environmental indicators; and integration of 3-D imagery and GIS in planning.

Christopher Auffrey

Sheng,Qiang

PHD,Associate Professor of Planning, School of Planning, College of

Associate Professor .He is also a Senior Consultant in UCL Space Syntax

Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. He teaches courses in healthy

Ltd. His research interests include the relationship between street pattern

urban planning, sustainable urbanism, planning economics and planning

and urban vitality, commercial building design and spatial strategy for TOD

theory. His research interests include healthy urban planning, sustainable

based on the empirical research of pedestrian movement. Currently he is in

development and communication in the urban environment. He has co-au-

charge of one and participating six National Natural Science Funds. His

thored three books, Social Areas of Cincinnati, Fourth and Fifth editions,

research also expands to the use of web open-source data in space syntax

(with Michael Maloney) and Managing the Development of Intermediate

researches.

Size Cities (with Michael Romanos), and has published articles in various planning journals.

02 04

03

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Three years of collaboration,UC-BJTU Jiang, Yinan Professor. Her research interests focus on sustainable development, community development and planning and residential building. She teaches classes including Community Planning and Residential Building Design, Introduction to Human Settlement Environment, Theory of Residential Building Design and Constructing and Architecture. She is also visiting scholar in DAAP, UC between 2014-2015.

Zhang, Chun Associate Professor and Vice Chair. She is also part-time Research Fellow in Peking University-Lincoln Institute Center for Urban Development and Land Policy, Peking University. Her research interests focus on urban planning, urban form and air quality, job-housing balance and accessibility and neighborhood changes. She teaches classes including Introduction to Urban Planning, GIS. Her current publication includes Change and Regeneration of Community Urban Form, Sustainable City, Mitigation and Urban Planning et al.

04 04

01

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Sustainable Unbanism:An International Perspective Open to undergraduate and graduate students in all disciplines. This seminar and study abroad course focuses on the concept and practice of urban sustainability in a global context, with emphasis on supporting the simultaneous development of social and economic institutions while maintaining critical elements of the natural environment into perpetuity. Through interdisciplinary field study, the course examines urban sustainability issues, with special emphasis on those currently being confronted in the Beijing region of China. The course provides students with experiential learning in the application of the current theories, models and methods used in engineering, architecture and urban planning to specific, real-world issues of sustainable urbanism as they are currently being confronted in the world’s most rapidly developing country.

Chapter 1. Research Project The project idea this year is “Jing-jin-ji on the rail“. Rail refers to urban transit rail (轨道交通), and includes trolley buses, subway, like rail and even regular/high speed rails for commuting purposes. The class was divided into two groups, one focus on transportation and one on environmental impacts.

The focus of the first group is 职住平衡work-residence balance, i.e., is how to solve the spatial mismatch between jobs and homes. Students will collect information on work-residence balance studies in Europe and the US, and hope to better understand the work-residence balance in China. For the second group, the focus is on pollution, including air, water and solid waste issues. Students will collect information on pollutant abatement strategies that worked for other metropolitans, and better relate their experience in China.

02

03

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

1.1 Environmental Issues In China Zachary Spangler Sam Schroeder

Ruochen Liao Alex Watzek

The Greater Beijing Metropolitan Area is about 16 thousand square kilometer and has a

In the middle of the twentieth century, Americans living in LA breathed some of the most

population of 22 million. Currently Beijing has reached 86% urbanization, and the big-city

polluted air on the planet. The smog was so thick and dirty that many Americans believed

disease, with symptoms of over population, traffic congestion, environmental deteriora-

it was from a chemical attack from the Japanese. The problem, they found out after nearly

tion, and depriving resource, has already started to negatively affect the quality of life.

15 years of this pollution, was due to cars not having catalytic converters and the fact that

Out of these challenges, transportation and air pollution are more urgent to solve in the

LA was full of plants and refineries that added chemicals into the air. Once catalytic

public perception. Jing-Jin-Ji mega region coordination (京津冀协同发展) with multiple

convertors were put into all cars, the pollution in the air was reduced significantly. Other

administrative centers is a suggested solution for the big-city disease. After a few genera-

green technology like Flue Gas Desulfurization was used on coal plants to help remove

tions of urban planning, the strategic goals of Beijing is to establish as a center for admin-

SOx from the flue gas. There are many evident similarities like these between Los Ange-

istration, culture, international exchange and technology innovation. Due to resources

les and Beijing regarding pollution issues.

constraints on water and energy, Beijing will pursue low carbon development into a smart city.

Due to the location of LA, it naturally traps the pollution. The mountains surrounding the city and the high temperatures of the area help to trap the dirty air in the city. In the 1950’s, many people did not believe that cars were actually contributing to the pollution problem. It took fifteen years for them to learn about the correlation between cars and smog. The smog was so bad some days that parts of the city would shut down. Schools closed, athletic events were canceled, and emergency rooms had a large influx in residents. One resident even said that “It hurt, literally hurt, to breathe.”

04

05

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Protests began to spring up across the city, because nothing was changing. Automobile companies had no reason to change their design as it would add more cost and they weren’t terribly concerned about their environmental impact. Other cities were not experiencing this problem, so it wasn’t something most of America knew about or even cared about. However, the protests were effective and by the 1960’s California demanded anti-smog features on all vehicles. California was the state that had enacted the first Clean Air Act anywhere in the nation. This was later changed to become a national standard as smog plagued the rest of the country. California still has some of the most polluted air in the country, but it is 60% better than what it was.

The location of Beijing (and other highly polluted cities) is one of the biggest explanations as to why they become so unhealthy. The reason for this is due to the basin like shape of the cities. As car exhaust, flue gas, and other pollutants enter the atmosphere, they become trapped by the mountains and can’t move on. In other cities, the pollutants would become diluted as they spread across the globe – in other words, the pollutants would not be concentrated in one location. However, Beijing’s position prevents this from happening, which results in very poor air quality. An easy way to visualize what is happening is to imagine sulfur hexafluoride; a gas that is heavier than air. If this gas is poured into a bowl or tank, it is possible to float objects on the gas, like foil. The gas

Beijing, like LA, is one of the most polluted cities on the planet. Its location and population are both contributors to this disastrous situation. Being near water and mountains can trap the smog inside the city – creating a pollution hotspot. As for the population, the amount of vehicles and coal burned near the city are major sources of air pollutants. Many problems result from this, ranging from social complications to health concerns.

06

cannot escape its container as it weighs too much to float out freely, which generates a scaled down example of what the pollutants do in the atmosphere.

07

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

China’s population may be the greater

Millions of people driving to work every

This isn’t the only way the population is a contributor to smog.Coal has been used to help

reason for its smoggy skies. With a popu-

day can release large amounts of ozone,

power the city and provide heat for the people of Beijing. These plants are still emitting

lation in the billions, it’s difficult to develop

NOx and SOx into the atmosphere. The

harmful pollutants, even though most of them are equipped with flue gas desulfurization

efficient infrastructure. No other country

longer commutes to work, the greater the

technology. There are also many other smaller contributors such as pesticide spray.

has ever had so many people in such a

emissions produced. An average Chinese

small area; this means new ways of living

worker commutes a little under two hours

Health issues are a major concern in Beijing – people with pre-existing conditions are

must be developed to deal with these new

per day (round-trip) to and from work.

especially affected by the pollution. Asthma, a generally non-fatal disease, can prove to

difficulties. Innovations in planning, archi-

There may be more efficient ways to

be fatal in situations where the air quality is extraordinarily poor. Lung cancer and other

tecture and engineering can assist these

design roads and public transportation to

illnesses are also more likely due to the poisons that people are breathing. A small

efforts.

help reduce travel times.

fraction of the population even wears facemasks, which help to prevent these pollutants from entering the body. However, this brings with it new social issues. These masks are often quite unpleasing to the eye, and can be uncomfortable. An even worse social issue is that schools and other facilities can be forced to shut down due to poor air quality.

Students will still do their course work from home, but this completely removes some of the social aspects children need while growing up. It is not an ideal way to live, and hopefully a long term solution will be found – one that can make Beijing’s air clean again.

08

09

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Clean-up efforts are currently in place to

This prevents some pollution from reaching

In order to further address the air pollution

The CBD wind ventilation corridor includes

help reduce the pollution problem, and they

areas concentrated with humans. The city

issues, the Beijing Municipal Commission of

Qinghe Park, Taiyanggong Park, Chaoyang

have had great success thus far. Public

of Beijing is also planning on cutting coal

Urban Planning adopted a new plan called

Park and continues southward towards the

transportation is one of the green technolo-

use by a few million pounds in 2017 – which

“The Ventilation Corridor” to allow the wind

highway green belt.

gies having the greatest impact, because it

will be huge from an environmental stand-

to blow away the pollutant accumulated in

significantly reduces the number of vehicles

point. Finally, the city is attempting to adopt

Beijing central city. This plan includes five

In addition, apartfrom the five major ventila-

driven. There are ways to improve these

modern engineering and creative ideas to

major ventilation corridors, each more than

tion corridors, there are ten other “sub-wind

systems, though, as the subway and buses

deal with certain pollutants – like PM 2.5.

500 meters long and comprised of multiple

ventilation corridors” that are intended to

were usually extremely congested. Nothing

Sprinklers

city gardens and green areas.

contribute to the effectiveness of this new

this large has ever needed to be done in the

skyscrapers throughout Beijing, and being

past, and it is possible engineers underesti-

turned on when the AQI is especially bad.

The first two corridors are designated for

mated just how many people would use the

PM will stick to the water and fall to the

the western part of the city, and the third

public transit systems. Other green technol-

ground, helping to clean up the sky. The

corridor for the central part of the city; the

ogy includes yellow tags on vehicles –

hope is that these preventative technolo-

fourth corridor for the center business

where high emission cars are not allowed

gies will benefit the health of the city and

district (CBD); and the fifth corridor for the

into certain parts of Beijing.

environment.

eastern part of Beijing. The central wind

are

being

placed

on

tall

plan.

ventilation corridor includes Forest Park, Olympic Park, Houhai, Beihai and Tiantan Park. It is hoped that the large number of trees in these parks will help absorb pollutants and purify the air.

10

11

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

To facilitate the intended function of these corridors, the height of buildings alongside the corridors will be kept low to allow the flow of wind.

Also, this plan requires

substantial greenspace near the corridors, .and the corridors must be parallel to the prevailing wind direction.

There has been heated debate about the feasibility of the ventilation corridors, and a number of issues have been raised. First, many places near the designated ventilation corridors already have tall buildings, for example in the CBD area (CCTV tower, Jianwai SOHO and Yintai center). The costs of removing and replacing these would be enormous. Second, green space preservation is very difficult in the face of the enormous

economic

development

pressures, and will require tough policy to maintain and strong public awareness of the need for protecting it.

12

13

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Third, there a number of heavy polluting

The high volume of car traffic contributes to

Also, the government needs to move

Finally, citizens need to be better educat-

industries already exist along the ventilation

a deteriorating environment in urban area.

industrial plants out of the city center and

ed about protecting the natural environ-

corridors; and it will require huge human

There is specific data which shows that the

encourage worker to use clean and

ment.

and economic resources to move theses

pollutant generated by vehicles consists of

renewable energy. For example, solar

organize activities to encourage people to

industries away from city center. Fourth, the

carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile

energy can be used to generate electricity

plant more trees and provide easy access

wind will blow Beijing’s air pollution to the

organic compounds, sulfur dioxide as well

without producing harmful gases such as

to information about the latest environ-

towns and villages located in the south,

as PM10. For example, about 70% of air

sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide which

ment issues. The involvement of the

making an even larger area influenced by

pollution in the Indian city of Bangalore is

comes from the coal burning.

public also plays an important role in city

the region’s air pollution.

caused by transportation vehicles (Harish

To do this, the government can

planning.

27). In Bangalore, the transportation sector Because this plan still has many issues to

was estimated to account for “nearly all of

resolve, a more feasible way to address

carbon monoxide, more than 80% of

Beijing’s air pollution problem is to reduce

nitrogen oxides, 40% of volatile organic

the total emissions. For example, the

compounds(VOC), 20% of sulfur dioxide

government

more

(SO2), and 53% of PM10 in 1998” (Harish

money in public transportation and promote

28). Moreover, the highly polluted air leads

environmental friendly lifestyles. High quali-

to various health complications such as

ty public transportation can reduce depen-

lung

dence on automobiles, with its consequent

(Harish 30). Promoting high quality public

compromise of social interactions and

transportation is one of the most effective

vitality.In addition, car dependence causes

ways to address air pollution issues.

should

invest

even

cancer

and

respiratory

diseases

severe air pollution.

14

15

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Big Cities Besieged by Garbage

In addition to air pollution, waste is a big issue for the growing cities of China. According to an official government released report, one-fifth of China’s farmland is polluted.

This comes as a result of China’s rapid industrialization and lack of regulation. Pollut-

ants in the soil include cadmium, suchas nickel, and arsenic, all of which are inorganic materials.

Solid waste can include trash, household

When solid waste is disposed of at a

Soil gets polluted from both solid waste and water waste. The class examined a

chemicals, building materials, demolition

location other than a regulated facility, it

wastewater treatment facility in Beijing, where much was to be learned about the

materials, automobiles, and many other

is called open dumping or littering. These

current conditions of China’s wastewater. Their process for treating water from their

unwanted manufactured objects that do

dumpsites can be found all across the

sewers includes chemical, biological, mechanical processes, which purify dirty water

not bio-degrade naturally. Normally, the

globe. In the Beijing area, they are more

and make it available for reuse. Currently, Beijing wastewater plants are running at

government service to pick up waste

often found in rural areas outside of the

maximum capacity, at over one million cubic meters per day. Sometimes the city has

from dumpsters and trashcans, handles

city. This is because these areas are

to operate at 50% over capacity just to keep up with the amount of water that is

solid waste. However, this is an expen-

often out of sight, and therefore they’re

demanded. If the water is left untreated, the waterways of the city will become back-

sive process, and it sometimes comes at

out of mind for those who regulate such

logged with human and industrial waste. Yet still, there are more than 300 million rural

a fee not just to the government, but also

matters. The course Sustainable Urban-

residents who do not have access to safe drinking water. Storm water isn’t something

to the citizen. Be it cost or convenience,

ism in China examined the illegal dump-

the city can currently tackle, as there is not nearly enough money to expand its system

there are many reason that citizens

ing in Tongzhou. The course visited sites

to include that. However, as the city continues to grow they will need to expand their

choose to dump their solid waste rather

discovered on the web and in person.

system to ensure the water is safe for residents and wildlife.

than have it properly disposed.

Researchers used a GPS to locate coordinates on the ground.

16

17

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Six different sites were targeted. Upon

These dump sites affect the environment

Cancer villages are areas where cancer

A sustainable future for China will have to

visiting the sites, it could be determined

because they can seep into groundwater

rates have risen dramatically due to

include recycling efforts. Managing the

that the illegal dumping was occurring

and are carried into rivers, lakes, and

high pollution levels. Heavy metals in

rural areas will be crucial to protecting the

frequently. At one sight there was even a

wildlife habitat. They can also end up in

food can develop organ damage in

health and wellbeing of the residents not

truck, which was being used to dump solid

drinking water and food production. Soil

humans and weaken their bones. Since

just in the urban areas but also on the

waste on sight. Some of these sites were

pollution can be a huge problem because

2013, seven million Chinese residents

outskirts, where industry and agriculture

along the subway line, while others were

of the impacts on public health and food

have relocated because of environmen-

can be found. Even if the pollution is

in the more rural areas. One thing all the

production. Toxins travel in water, affect-

tal concerns. These people are called

unseen it can still present issues. Educat-

sights had in common was that they were

ing water sources and other soil. This is

eco-migrants due to they have been

ing the residents of the dangers of pollu-

close enough for people to dump, but they

how the chemicals and metals are found

forced to move because of environmen-

tion and the benefits to proper waste

were located on land, which was not

in the food that is then consumed by

tal concerns which create health issue

management will be important to ensure

currently developed. Some of the waste

humans. There is very little regulation or

for them.

the

was construction material, while other was

control of these dump sites, as most of the

improved. It was observed that many of the

plastic and product waste.

cleanup efforts have revolved around

illegal dumping occurs in rural or lower-in-

tourism. Thus, the clean areas are the

come areas. It is possible that it’s the

ones close to Olympic Park and the

preference of educated people to adopt

Central Business District. Dump sites hurt

better methods of waste disposal. It will

communities, as they reduce pride, create

take time and both public and private inter-

disease, and makes the community dirty.

est to see that solid and water waste is

health

of

these

communities

is

handled correctly. There will be financial benefits to recycling, as it will create jobs for those who collect and sort the material.

As Beijing and its surrounding region continue

to

grow,

incorporating

these

lessons will be fundamental to its sustainability.

18

19

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

1.2 Jobs Housing Balance

References

Definition

Overview

"LA Smog: The Battle against Air Pollu-

“新华社三问北京通道吹霾：依据何在？大

Job-housing balance is a data that refer to

To learn about the Jobs Housing Balance,

tion." LA Smog: The Battle against Air

拆大建？殃及周边?” 新华社. Web. Feb

the approximate distribution of employ-

our group researched and evaluated three

Pollution. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.

23. 2014.

ment opportunities and workforce popula-

places: London, England, New York City,

tion across a geographic area.

USA, and several major California cities.

"Los Angeles Sees Health Benefits as Its

“北京：6条城市通风廊道吹雾霾.” 新京报

( h t t p : / / w w w. p l a n 4 s u s t a i n a b l e t r a v -

From our research we tried to reach

Smog Haze Clears." WSJ. N.p., n.d. Web.

. Web. Nov 21. 2014.

el.org/key_themes/jobs_housing_balance/)

conclusions

Learning the job-housing balance defini-

Balance and what use it may play in China

“北京将打开5条通风廊道,向城市送风吹雾

tion, we knowing that the it is a indicator of

and the Jing-Jin-Ji plan.

霾.” 新浪新闻. Web. Feb 20.2014.

the city sprawl. Also, To keep this balance

18 Jan. 2016.

Mahadevappa, Harish. "A Study on Air

the

Jobs

Housing

is a tough problem to deal with.

Pollution by Automobiles in Bangalore City." Management Research and Practice

about

China’s Cancer Villages. VICE. 2015. 1. 15.

4.3 (2012): 25-36. Web. 12 Mar. 2016.

China’s Choice. The Guardian. 2014. 4. 18.

“Beijing

to

Get

Ventilation

Corridors.”

Shanghai Daily. Web. 22 Feb. 2014.

Wong, Edward. One-Fifth of China’s Farmland Is Polluted, State Study Finds. NY Times. 2014. 4. 17.

20

21

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

London, England London is a good example of dealing with

Instead, the place for political functions was

London has great job-housing balance in

London’s greenbelt policy suggests that

city sprawl.

located in the ancient city. All new develop-

its outer county due to it greenbelt policy.

Beijing needs a policy for restricting

ment centered around the old city and the

A greenbelt is a green area around the

sprawl. While central Beijing still will

First, in Greater London Plan, the city is

ringroads became the defining development

city preserved primarlity for agriculture

attract people for jobs and services from

developed into two centers. One is concen-

elements of the city structure. In that period,

development. It creates a buffer between

around the region, the greenbelt restric-

trated on the new development, which is

industrial development and the layout of

the city center and suburban areas. At

tions may limit new town development, and

called the new town, the other is the histori-

industrial land were most important for

the same time, the green area length-

incentivize the development of jobs and

cal center that needs to be protected. In this

Beijing, leaving a harmful impact on the

ened the commute distance for the com-

services for their residents in existing and

plan, planners attempted to transfer part of

city’s urban structure contributing to many

muters from outside the city to the inside

future new town developments.

the city function to satellite towns outside

of the city’s current environmental issues.

the city. In this way, the two centers actually

city. The greenbelt restricts the sprawling development of the city, but also creates

reduce the density and pressure on the city.

Today, the main concepts of the 2014

a barrier for outside commuters.Conse-

After the People Republic of China was

Beijing Master Plan are closely aligned with

quently, the satellite city would not be

established, Liang Sicheng proposed a plan

Liang’s proposals. The 2014 plan address-

just a bedroom community, like Yanjiao

based on the Greater London Plan, but

es the problems of uneven development of

district in Beijing, but also provide a

because of the influence of the Soviet

the central area and protects the historical

balance inside the new town.

Union, the Chinese government did not

sites in Beijing.

In Beijing, the Jing-Jin-Ji plan seeks to

adopt Liang’s proposal.

decentralize municipal services in order to resolve major problems with congestion.

22

23

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

New York City, USA The New York commuter shed is the largest

In Manhattan’s Central Business District

Many think that this obviously has import-

in the United States with 23.6 million

there are two million jobs, with four

ant consequences both for Manhattan and

residents that live in the almost 14,000

hundred thousand in the borough. Over-

for the outer boroughs of the city. By

square miles (36,260 km2) that make up

all, 22% of the commuter shed’s jobs are

joining these different numbers, many

New York and its surrounding region. In this

in Manhattan. By comparison, in Chica-

conclude that, there is a great job density

commuter shed there are thirty five coun-

go’s only 11% of the commuter shed’s

in Manhattan, yet people have to travel

jobs are in the CBD and in Los Angeles, it

there to work, which means that a lot of

is only 2%.

transportation is used. Furthermore, this

ties, yet Manhattan’s Central Business District has the world’s second highest work density.

statistical data has many believe that there Therefore, the problem is not with respect

is a lack of jobs in the outer counties,

The City of New York has a balanced 1.16

to job distribution, but to where people

meaning that there is constantly more in

ratio of jobs to resident worker. While

live. The outer counties have nearly as

Manhattan.

Manhattan has an extreme imbalance (2.8

many

jobs per resident worker); most inner and

Manhattan there are almost three work-

This difference in the data is due to most

outer suburban counties nearly reach parity

ers for every resident. Most people

Manhattan workers actually living there.

at 0.87 and 0.97 respectively. While the

actually live close to where they work. In

This

outer counties have the greatest portion of

Manhattan, only fifteen percent of the

percent, with eighteen percent of the rest

the employment in the New York region,

people that work there do not live there.

commuting only from the inner counties. Of

Manhattan still has almost a quarter of the

The real problem is in the other boroughs

those that commute, about a quarter use

total employment.

of New York City, where only half of

mass transit, yet two and a half times this

residents work in their boroughs.

amount use an automobile or a light

residents

as

workers,

yet

in

number

is

about

seventy

three

vehicle. Therefore, as one can see, New York City is surprising in that it is actually dispersed with regards to its job, residence

24

and commuting statistics.

25

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

California, USA

If the job-housing balance is less than one,

California has some of the worst traffic

then workers are commuting, sometimes long

congestion in America. According to research

distances, to get to work. Traffic congestion

from the Texas Transportation Institute, the

and its resulting social and environmental

Los Angeles area has the worst traffic

impacts, is a primary reason that job-housing

congestion in the nation, with San Fransisco

balance is of interest. Benefits of job-housing

having the second worst. In fact, four of the

parity is reduced congestion, reduction of

top ten cities with the worst traffic cingestion

vehicle-related pollution, reduced costs to

in America are in California (Schrank and

business and commuters, reduced public

Lomax,2017) (Los Angeles, San Fransis-

infrastructure spending, greater family stabili-

co/Oakland, San Diego, and San Jose). In

ty and improved quality of life. In an ideal

California the average commute time is 28.4

job-housing parity situation also would permit

minutes, compared to 25 minutes nationally

more people the opportunity to walk or bike to

(Southern California Association of Govern-

work, resulting in increased fitness. Because

ments,2007).The Southern California Associ-

of this, urban planners use job-housing

ation of Governments estimates California

balance

loses $10.5 Billion annually in costs incurred

to

design

cites

with

reduced

commute time.

Job housing imbalance can be caused by

number of jobs available to places to live

several factors. Dense-urban centers can

California has some of the worst traffic

The job-housing ratio for the five most popu-

in a particular area. The ideal balance is

make it too expensive for people to live in

congestion in America. According to research

lous cities in California. (Note: the “Bay Area�

to have a parity between the number of

an area. Also, the difference between the

from the Texas Transportation Institute, the

includes

places to live in the area and the number

quality of education in these urban neigh-

Los Angeles area has the worst traffic

Jose)(Schniepp 2007). One on the things that

of employment opportunities in that area.

borhood

congestion in the nation, with San Fransisco

can mitigate congestion caused by job hous-

The way residences and employment

regions can also contribute people choos-

having the second worst.

ing imbalance is an extensive public transpor-

opportunities are defined does vary from

ing to live away from their jobs.

author to author.

26

by commuting (time, gas). One reason for

Job-housing balance is the ratio of the

relative

to

the

surrounding

this congestion is a lack of job-housing parity.

San

Francisco

and

San

tation infrastructure that allows people to commute to work.

27

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Job-Housing observation in Beijing

Most of the congestion in California is due to

Most of the congestion in California is due to

commuting from home to work and vice

This is the case in many California cities,

versa; however, only 16% of trips and 20% of

where housing prices are extremely high.

vehicle miles traveled result from trips to and

Due to their very high housing prices many of

The Jobs Housing Balance has several key

With this in mind, using the Jobs Housing

from of work. This is because the time that

these cities experience significant spatial

issues. While it does a good job of compar-

Balance as a metric does not work well in

people commute tends to be concentrated

mismatch.

The reverse can also be true,

ing the amount of working population with

cities with a high percentage of commut-

round peak hours.( National Household

where business that require a high degree of

the amount of jobs in a given area, the Jobs

ers or where jobs in an area do not

Travel Survey,2001) Thus, one effective

education can be in relatively poor areas.

Housing Balance makes an assumption that

provide a wage that matches the cost of

strategy to ameliorating the effects of a lack of

people live and work in the same area. This

living.So while the Jobs Housing Balance

job-housing parity could be aimed at reducing

assumption means that the Jobs Housing

is a good metric to use when considering

the number vehicles on the road during peak

Balance does not account for spatial

transit, it does not adequately describe

hours.

mismatch or distances commuted.

how people commute and the only information it provides are where more jobs

It is possible to have a situation where many

or more housing is needed to create this

of the people who live in one area commute to

balance without representing who will

work in another area while those who live in

actually live or work in these places.

that area commute to the first area. This is

Additionally, creating a good Jobs Hous-

known as spatial mismatch. This leads to

ing Balance may be difficult or even

areas that appear to have a good job-housing

impossible depending on the existing

balance but that have all of the problems

conditions.

associated with a lack of job-housing parity.

This can occur in a where the real estate is very expensive and jobs do not pay enough to live there.

28

29

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

The use of the job-housing balance metric for

At the same time, for people with lower

Additionally, even if only the commuting time

A major housing development in Tongzhou.

urban planning in China offers some utility,

incomes, are willing to commute long distanc-

is decreased, the amount of pollution would

One example of a Jobs Housing Imbalance our

but may have its drawbacks, as well. As we

es to work because they cannot afford the

decrease since vehicles would be used for

group observed. This large housing complex is

learned when discussing the concept with

incredible high housing price in the city.

less time. We observed several major traffic

well removed from the city center and there are

Xiamen University’s students and professors,

During our trip, we observed a major job

jams while traveling in Beijing, even outside

few job opportunities nearby.

it is difficult to achieve the balance. The

housing imbalances in and around Beijing. In

of peak commuting hours. So, although the

reason is that frequently more than one family

Tongzhou

Jobs Housing Balance has several draw-

A second example of a Jobs Housing Imbal-

member works, and they may work in different

complexes spreading as far as we could see

backs,

planners

ance is the Central Business District. Many

place. To shorten one worker’s commute may

while in the Central Business District there

decisions to better solve issues of housing

jobs are located in the Central Business District

mean that the other may have a longer

were very few residences. These observa-

and commuting.

but there is very little housing and the housing

commute. contributing to job-housing imbal-

tions indicate an imbalance and the need for a

that exists is very highly priced making it

ance elsewhere.

large amount of daily commuting. The Jobs

impractical for most workers.

we

observed

large

housing

it

can

help

influence

Housing Balance can help urban planners Also,

consideration

of

the

job-housing

determine the best placements for new devel-

balance as a planning tool in China must take

opments in order to attempt to decrease the

into account the socio-cultural implications. In

amount and distance of commutes. This is

China, with the elimination of “Danwei”(

particularly important in large cities such as

community with both living and working),

Beijing where there are already major issues

many people choosing their house according

with commuting such as time and pollution.

to the housing price, location, and social

By decreasing commuting, less pollution

factors. A house means a lot in China, as it is

would be created by cars.

not only a place for living, but also a symbol of wealth and status. As such, the location of the house relative to jobs may be secondary.

30

31

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

BJTU workshop

32

On May 6, our gracious hosts allowed us to

However, we were able to understand the

He asked me if I could tell him something that

present our research from the past semester.

BJTU students who presented entirely in

his professor would not know about Ameri-

The conference titled “Youth Forum on the

English. Their topics discussed a wide variety

cans, and after thinking about it, I told him

Road and Belt Initiatives between China and

of sustainability issues that Beijing is facing.

that we drink cold water. He stepped back,

the U.S.� This event included talking about

These students were looking to the future of

while arching his eyebrows, and suspiciously

environmental issues for one group, and the

Beijing and what things they can do to help

asked me if we drank cold water in the winter,

work life balance for the other group. Both of

prepare it for the issues it is facing. They

as well. I told him we did, and the surprise on

these issues involve sustainability in urban

discussed environmental issues, home life

his face was hilarious.

environments such as that of Beijing. Follow-

balance issues, and other similar topics to

This moment with him is a great representa-

ing our presentations, other Chinese groups

what we researched in America.

tion of how the night went, with our cultures

spoke, including some of our good friends at

Many interesting topics were brought up in

mixing throughout all of the presentations.

BJTU.

the other presentations, much of it very

Western ideas were brought up in our talks,

The night began with Yu Ding, the deputy

relevant to the research we had done on

many comparisons to American cities and

director of BJTU sharing his Academic report

sustainability.

Following the presentations,

technologies were made and suggested to be

with the audience. He was followed by Dr Tao

wine and delicious deserts were served while

brought to China. Living on opposite sides of

Yang, who shared a second academic report.

we said our goodbyes to the friends we had

the planet means that we also develop our

Unfortunately, both of their academic reports

made during our time there. One moment in

cultures differently, and by sharing what we

were mostly in Chinese making it difficult for

particular that stands out to me was when a

know from home, we can help make China a

some of us to fully understand what the topics

waiter came up to me and told me he was

better place for everyone.

were over.

studying English in his college.

33

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

References David Schrank and Tim Lomax, The 2007 Urban Mobility Report, Texas Transportation Institute, The Texas A&M University System, September, 2007, pp.32-33.

1.3 London’s Pollution: An Overview of Air and Water Pollution in England’s Largest City,what Beijing can learn from

Alex Watzek

Southern California Association of Governments. The State of the Region 2007, Los Angeles, California, December 2007. Pg 68

After an estimated 2,000 years of settlement, London continues to be one of the largest and most significant international cities in our global community. The greater London area covers an

National Household Travel Survey, 2001, http://nhts.ornl.gov/

impressive 611 square miles, with a population exceeding 8.6 million as of 2015. However, along with this booming commerce and growing population comes the dangerous side effect of civiliza-

Schniepp, Mark. California County Economic Forecasts: 2007-2030. California Economic

tion: pollution. London has had a history fraught with the damaging health and ecological effects

Forecast for California Department of Transportation, October, 2007.

of environmental contamination. In recent decades, English citizens and lawmakers have sought progress through legislation and sustainable initiatives. Though the water quality of London has shown improvement, further steps must be taken to restore the health of the ecosystem and reverse the damage that has been done.

As other cities across the world face similar developments and the challenges inherent therein, London has emerged in the global spotlight as a pacesetter for urban innovation. China in particular has recently begun focusing efforts on reducing the environmental impact of its largest cities; Chinese politicians and engineers have looked to London for lessons and inspiration on environmental policy.

34

35

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Image 1: This photograph, taken in 1954,

Regulation tightening has helped the river

illustrates the severity of the smog within

partially recover from this damage, allowing

London during that period. Citizens often had

the natural reintroduction of salmon into the

to protect themselves from the dangerous air

river and reducing the levels of dangerous

by wearing clothes or masks over their face

pollutants, including toxic metals, in the water.

when going outside.

As of now, the River Thames houses an

Recent developments in the environmental

estimated 125 species of fish, demonstrating

health of London have again called into ques-

a drastic improvement in the river’s habitabili-

tion the industrial practices within the city.

ty. New obstacles, however, have arisen to

Aquatic biomass remained scarce throughout

remind London that the city’s pollution

most of the 20th century. Efforts from the 1970’s to the 1990’s to restock the river with

dependence

on

plastic

packaging

and

London’s tives: Air

Sustainable

Initia-

imported fish proved to be only temporarily

products presents a new dilemma: How can

effective, causing short-lived increases in

plastic usage be minimized, and how can

aquatic life, before eventual decline once

society

again. Even in recent years the River Thames

Additionally, smog remains a serious threat to

One of the largest contributing factors to

These recent initiatives include Low Emission

has had low-points in its biodiversity; efforts to

public health and continues to contribute heavily to the recently publicized global

London’s air pollution is vehicle emission.

Zones (LEZs), Congestion Charge Zones

catch and count salmon in 2005 turned out

warming of the planet’s atmosphere.

Traffic-related air pollution in London is large-

(CCZs), further investment in public transpor-

futile – it appeared that no salmon were left in

ly considered to be one of the worst cases in

tation, and Ultra Low Emission Zones

the world. To work toward meeting the

(ULEZs). The basic focus of these initiatives

pollution reduction goals of the European

is to reduce vehicle emissions within the city

Union,

by

the river.

High levels of heavy metals in the river in the 2000’s also raised concerns about the quality of the water.

38

problem is far from resolved. Society’s heavy

sustainably

dispose

of

plastic?

London

legislators

have

begun

imposing

fees

introducing new initiatives and regulations to

vehicles,

therefore

reduce air pollution.

emission vehicles.

upon

high-emissions

encouraging

lower

39

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

However, numerous analysts and researchers

The authors of the study attribute this

Two basic steps should be taken to combat

have recently started criticizing these initiatives,

failure of Low Emission Zone legislation

these developments: impose regulations to

claiming that they are ineffective and target the

to the increasing prevalence of diesel

discourage the purchase of diesel vehicles

wrong culprits. A study published in August of

vehicles within Europe. A large proportion

by consumers and restructure emission

2015 titled Effects of Air Pollution and the

of commercially available diesel vehicles

tests to prevent cheating. Additionally,

Introduction of the London Low Emission Zone

have been found to be greatly in exceed-

further

on the Prevahence of Respirtory and Allergic

ance of the limitations imposed upon

company testing procedures and potential

syptams

them by the EU. A recent study, titled

cheating-software should be considered.

in

London

into

automotive

provides air quality data that demonstrates that

Real-World

these legislations have not led to any significant

Modern Diesel Cars, found that numerous

Though LEZs and CCZs have not yet been

improvement in air quality. This study also

diesel vehicles exhibit far higher levels of

successful in improving air quality, they

studied the health of children in the target areas

emissions during real world driving than

have provided one major benefit: increased

of the LEZs, since one of the aims of the

they were previously shown to emit during

funding for public transportation infrastruc-

initiative was to decrease the prevalence of

laboratory tests (Franco, SĂĄnchez and

ture. A large portion of the income from the

respiratory conditions caused by air pollution in

German). In light of the recent discovery

LEZ and CCZ fees has been invested into

children. The researchers found that respiratory

of automotive companies cheating emis-

the public bus and train infrastructure of

symptoms have not improved within the LEZs.

sions tests (e.g. Volkswagen and Opel),

London. This infrastructure improvement

The results of this study emphasize the need for

these results are likely due to the industry

will ideally encourage Londoners to forgo

a different or stricter approach to the issue of

skirting emission regulations (Sorokan-

their automobile commute in favor of a

vehicle emissions (Wood, Marlin and Mudway).

ich).Because of the large contribution of

public transport route. This shift could

Image 2: This illustration displays the extent of

vehicle emissions to the air pollution in

remove a significant number of cars from

the LEZ effective area surrounding London, in

London, tighter regulation on vehicles

the road during congested hours, alleviat-

which drivers of targeted vehicles must pay a

should be the city’s next top priority.

ing some of the effects of polluting vehicle

fine to drive.

40

Schodchildrenin.East

investigation

Exhaust

Emissions

From

emissions.

41

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

According to statistics from the UK’s Depart-

The Thames Tideway Tunnel project is an

ment of Environmental, Food, and Rural

ongoing development intended to alleviate

Affairs,

actually

water pollution within the River Thames.

decreased from 2014 to 2015. Although it was

recycling

in

London

The project involves building a 15-mile

a minor difference (from 34% to 33.9%), many

sewer which will run beneath the River

activists have expressed that this small

Thames. The purpose of the tunnel is to

decrease represents a large failure in

catch the estimated 20 million cubic meters

London’s recycling policies. “London could

of sewage per year that would otherwise

and should do more,” says Antony Buchan of

drain into the Thames during periods of

the London Waste & Recycling Board

sewer overloading. The sewage will then be

(LWARB). Out of the UK’s worst-performing

rerouted to Beckton Sewage Treatment

municipalities in regards to recycling rate,

Works, after which the newly clean water

London boroughs hold 9 of the list’s 20 spots.

will be returned to the environment. The sewage flow will also be utilized to generate

Many experts, including Biffa’s (a UK waste

renewable energy. The tunnel will be incred-

management

Peter

ibly beneficial in its prevention of sewage

Dickson, believe that London’s recycling rate

flow into the Thames, and it will likely

could be improved significantly with a few

contribute to a significant improvement in

Image 4: This image depicts many of the

simple developments: mandatory installation

the water quality of the river (Sorokanich)

sustainable methods that can be employed

of recycling collection in business and

(Thames Water Utilities Limited). There are,

in a sustainable urban drainage system

multiple-occupancy

however, skeptics about the feasibility and

(Hidrología Sostenible).

company)

director

buildings,

widespread

public recycling bins, and a higher landfill tax

scope of the project.

for discarded waste (Fitzgerald).

44

45

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

1.4 Xiamen University,the Xiamen Campus American consultant Dr. Mark Maimone has

The SuDS would also provide several

here are two campuses at Xiamen University. We went to the new campus at Xiamen Univer-

commented on the project, stating that the

additional benefits to the city, including

sity which houses the College of Environment and Ecology. The College of Environment and

Thames Tideway Tunnel is not the most

increase resilience to flooding and drought,

Ecology has programs in Environmental Engineering, Environmental Science, and Ecology.

effective solution to the problem (Maimone

improving urban biodiversity, and even

Everything there was recently built. The campus seems significantly bigger than the Univer-

and Cammarata).

He has pitched the

wider social benefits. One SuDS initiative

sity of Cincinnati but the enrollment in this campus is lower.

concept of a sustainable urban drainage

that has recently shown potential and

The first thing we did was have lunch in the cafeteria with the students. The lunch was very

system (SuDS). The objective of this system

gained public support is China’s ‘sponge

American (chicken fingers) and we also had iced coffee which was excellent. Then we went

would be to prevent water runoff into sewers,

city’ project. China has chosen 16 urban

to the library which is the largest library in Asia when measured by the size of the building.

thus preventing sewer overload. The system

districts to act as pilot sponge cities; these

The inside of the library had simple manila colored walls and was built around a circular

would involve replacing impermeably paved

districts will utilize vegetation and strategi-

atrium. The first floor had a lounge to watch television and a lounge to study. The library had

surfaces surrounding the river with permeable

cally placed gardens to replace storm

7 floors. Currently several of them are not occupied and are available for future expansion.

materials and installing swales, green roofs,

drains and other water-diversion infrastruc-

After the library most of the students went to class but two students took us to the driving

and reservoirs to further capture rainwater.

ture (Harris).

A SuDS may be an ideal

range on campus. There we drove golf balls. We played for about an hour then we picked

Dr. Maimone claims that this method would

alternative to future sewage projects within

up the balls. They had a cart that you pushed that had a combine like device in front of it that

be much less expensive than the Thames

London and other cities throughout the

picked up the golf balls. This was even more fun than hitting the balls in the first place. After

Tideway Tunnel project and would also have

world (Anglian Water Services Limited).

this we returned to the hotel and took a break.

a much smaller carbon footprint.

46

47

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Conclusion

References

The problem of pollution in London is one

Lawmakers and law enforcement should

Drainage Systems (SUDS) Adoption Manual. Huntingdon: Anglian Water Service Limited,

that has persisted for centuries and one that

take measures to ensure that the automo-

2011.

society has only begun to appropriately

tive industry is meeting environmental

address. Recent events have proven that

standards, without employing illegal tactics.

Franco, Vicente, et al. REAL-WORLD EXHAUST EMISSIONS FROM MODERN DIESEL

simply imposing charges upon polluting

Additionally, further regulation should be

CARS. International Council on Clean Transportation Europe. Berlin: Hewlett Foundation,

products may not be enough to cut down on

imposed upon plastic products and packag-

2014.

their footprint. To decrease vehicle emis-

ing, to build upon the success of the 5p

sions within large cities, including London,

bag-charge legislation in England. Finally,

HidrologĂ­a Sostenible. Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems â&#x20AC;&#x201C; SUDS. <http://www.hidrolo-

diesel vehicles should be more heavily

greener alternatives should be explored for

giasostenible.com/sustainable-urban-drainage-systems-suds/>.

regulated,

companies

sewage and water treatment projects, as

should be held accountable for their failures

and

automotive

sustainable drainage systems offer a prom-

Sorokanich, Bob. "The Facts Behind Every Major Automaker Emissions Cheating Scandal

at meeting vehicle emissions standards.

ising array of benefits, including lower costs

Since VW." 25 May 2016. Road and Track. Road and Track. <http://www.roadan-

and carbon footprints.

dtrack.com/new-cars/car-technolgy/a29293/vehicle-emissions-testing-scandal-cheating/>.

Thames Water Utilities Limited. Thames Tideway Strategic Study. Reading: Thames Water Utilities Limited, 2013.

Thames

Tideway

Tunnel

.

26

January

2016.

<http://www.thameswater.-

co.uk/about-us/10115.htm>.

48

49

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

tWood, Helen E., et al. "Effects of Air Pollution and the Introduction of the London Low Emis-

Howard, R. (2015). UP IN THE AIR: How to Solve London’s Air Quality Crisis: Part 1. Capital

sion Zone on the Prevalence of Respiratory and Allergic Symptoms in Schoolchildren in East

City Foundation. Policy Exchange.

London:

A

Sequential

Cross-Sectional

Study."

http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/jour-

nal.pone.0109121, 2015.

Knight, C. (2011, September 5). Salmon In The River Thames: The Result Of Restoration Or Recolonization? Retrieved May 2016, from Science 2.0: http://www.science20.com/anthro-

Department for Environmental and Rural Affairs. 2010 to 2015 government policy: environ-

physis/salmon_river_thames_result_restoration_or_recolonization-82285

mental quality. Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government of the United Kingdom.

Tideway. (2016, March 29). The Tunnel. Retrieved May 2016, from Tideway: http://www.tideway.london/the-tunnel/

Enviropedia. (n.d.). Changing Air Quality & Clean Air Acts . Retrieved from Air Quality: http://www.air-quality.org.uk/03.php

Transport for London. (2016). Ultra Low Emission Zone. Retrieved May 2016, from Transport for London: https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/ultra-low-emission-zone

Gray, R. (2010, October 13). The clean up of the River Thames. Retrieved May 2016, from The

Telegraph:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/wild-

life/8059970/The-clean-up-of-the-River-Thames.html

Maimone, Mark, and Marc Cammarata. "CSO Control: A Green Approach – Philadelphia’s Green City Clean Waters Program."BlueGreenUK.com. CDM Smith, Dec. 2012. Web. May 2016.

Hardach, S. (2015, November 12). How the Thames River was brought back from the dead.

Retrieved

May

2016,

from

BBC

Earth:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/earth/sto-

ry/20151111-how-the-river-thames-was-brought-back-from-the-dead

Fitzgerald, James. "Why Is London Rubbish At Recycling?" Londonist. N.p., 3 Mar. 2016.

Web. July 2016 Harris, Mark. "China's Sponge Cities: Soaking up Water to Reduce Flood Risks." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited, 1 Oct. 2015. Web. July 2016.

50

51

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Chapter 2. Future City Co-Lab. International Association for China Planning (IACP) Conference

Future Cities Co-Lab, Beijing

Jiaotong University and University of Cincinnati

Scientific Visualization in Spatial Decision Making presented at

"Governance and Planning in Transitional China"

The 10th International Association for China Planning (IACP) Conference Peking University, Beijing, China, June 30 - July 3, 2016

52

53

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Planners have a long history of using

IIn this self-organized session presenters

The first presentation is on visualize

He has an education background of both

tion models and three-dimensional (3D)

scientific visualization to spatial decision

ing

planning.

Geographic Information Systems, simulavisualizations in research and practice projects, though few have met the challenge of integrating the digital technologies to support planning and decision-making.

will demonstrate different ways of linking

making. The research presented within this session is intended to realize the potential

of quantifying demographic, social, and cultural data into an information modeling

process. The cases we present vary in

scale from a building to a city, and use several different digital technologies, such as Building Information Modeling (BIM), Geographic

Information

System

(GIS),

parametric modeling (PM), Hydro-Ecology Modeling,

Space

Syntax

Environment Simulation.

and

Urban

various key urban indicators for supportmunicipal

officials.

The

second

presentation describes data visualization

using BIM and GIS to improve the quality and efficiency of various construction projects. In the third presentation, PM is

integrated with GIS in an urban design project to demonstrate different develop-

ment scenarios. The fourth presentation uses GIS in Hydro-Ecology Modeling.

The

fifth

presentation

simulates

the

experience inside a train station by space

syntax.

The

last

presentation

simulates the urban environment and

environmental

engineering

Before

he

joined

and

city

Tsinghua

University, he has been worked for Beijing Institute of City Planning as a senior

planner for eleven years. Familiar with planning practices in China and versed in

the international literature, Dr. Longâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s academic

studies

creatively

integrates

international methods and experiences with local planning practices. He has published over one hundred journal papers

and led over twenty research/planning projects.

design decision. Individual abstracts are included below.

Ying Long

associate professor in School of Architecture,

Tsinghua

University,

China.

His

research focuses on urban planning, quan-

titative urban studies, and applied urban modeling.

54

55

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Integration of GIS and Parametric Modeling

GIS data are collected and processed as

The strength of GIS is embedded in its

Xinhao Wang, Ming Tang

input to GIS for impact analysis. The research is defined as a hybrid method

sic connection between physical features

Parametric Urbanism, pioneered by Zaha

Hadid & Patrik Schumacher Architects with support coming from advanced computational technology, has been the interest of

architects and urban designers in recent years. This new design thinking has been used in projects ranging from urban devel-

opment to building design. This presenta-

tion demonstrates a study investigating the

data processing of Parametric Urbanism and data exchange with a GIS-based decision support tool.

spatial analysis functions and the intrin-

input to PM and the output of PM is used as

(buildings, parcels) and their properties (height of building, size of a parcel). The

which seeks logical urban forms and

integration of BIM and GIS results in

analyzes itsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; sustainability and performance

solutions to help turn information into

in terms of environmental, social and

various representation for City planning,

economic impacts. We applied this hybrid

architecture, engineering and construc-

model in Yizhuang, Beijing and Shenzhen.

tion

The results provide meaning information to decision makers to develop, compare, and

Integration of BIM and GIS in Prepar-

professionals.

research

looks

to

Ultimately,this

build

upon

the

ing Planning and Design Solutions

strengths pre-defined in the BIM method

system by exploring, collecting, analyzing,

Qian Huang, Chun Zhang

lessly integrating vital geo-spatial com-

scenario-based analysis and parametric

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is

way people explore the possible planning

tation of a particular design. Not only the

the ideal urban forms with georeferenced

lates associated numerical information

obstacle in integrating BIM and GIS

materials used. Geographic Information

performance and functionality interoper-

select development scenarios. The study is an example of plan for the future urban

and visualizing urban information with GIS modeling method.

and capture the benefits of GIS by seamponents in the equation and altering the

often used to produce a digital represen-

and design solutions in order to generate

physical appearance, BIM also calcu-

building models.

such as the type and amount of building

comes

System (GIS) is another type of spatial

ability.

from

data

The main technical model,

computing

modeling tool.

56

57

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Urban Environment Simulation and Design Decision Based on Digital Technology

usual urban environment simulation and planning and urban design is difficult. The

main reason is the lack of direct relevance in environment simulation conclusion and

urban design elements. It is difficult to people`s

Ocean Center and Xuzhou Rail Transit Development

project,

Chapter 3. Field Trips and Culture Exposure in Beijing

illustrating the important role of urban

Establishing the relationship between the

effectively

and illustration, such as Tianjin Bohai Comprehensive

Zhongzhong Zeng, Haishan Xia

communicate

According to some projects` comparison

“the

causal logic thinking” when doing environ-

environment simulation in urban design

decision-making process. The study aims to explore the relationship between urban design

elements

and

the

simulation

environment, making urban design truly adapt to the urban climate environment and making the urban space healthier, safer,

After surviving a five hour delayed flight out of Chicago requiring a new plane to flown in as well as a 13 hour flight, we arrived in Beijing, made it through customs, and found Ruiyuan waiting for us as he had flown separately. Ruiyuan was with two students from Beijing Jiaotong University (BJTU) who had waited at the airport for five hours for us with a shuttle bus. The BJTU bus took us to our hotel in Tongzhou and we settled in for our first night in China.

and more comfortable.

ment simulation with “the image logical thinking” when designing. The research is

based on data thinking and it summarizes the urban climate environment and urban

design elements` mechanism of interaction .Through the description of digital simulation process, the research build relationship

between digital simulation and design

elements and propose urban design methods and decision-making process of climate adaptation.

60

61

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Jobs-Housing Balance Survey Our first morning in China. We ate breakfast at the hotel before meeting the group of second year Urban Planning students from BJTU who we would be helping gather data about

commuting in Tongzhou. As we were leaving the hotel to catch a bus, we paused to watch a wedding party arrive with fireworks being set off as they approached. We took the bus to a

mall to conduct a survey with a partner from the BJTU group. We spent about 45 minutes at the mall soliciting patrons for responses and exploring the mall. Each group had several surveys which we asked patrons to fill out.

The surveys had questions about income,

distance and time commuted, method of transportation, as well as general demographic

questions such as age, gender, family, and occupation. After all the groups had completed their surveys, we all walked to a nearby restaurant for lunch. After lunch we continued onto our next stop, the Han Meilin museum.

62

63

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

The exterior of the Han Meilin museum with a large sculpture by the artist.

It was quite an incredible museum, one of three in China dedicated to the broad work of Han

Meilin who masterfully crafts art in nearly every medium and style. His work included cast metal sculptures, wood carvings, calligraphy, sketching, photography, graphic design, tapestries, paintings, and pottery glazed in a traditional style. It was incredibly inspiring to see

examples of such wonderfully crafted art in so many styles. There was a separate hall of the

museum dedicated especially to teapots crafted in the traditional method using tools of the period.

64

65

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Beijing Ancient Observatory After departing the museum, we parted ways with the BJTU students who had to return to campus as they had classes the next day. Our group continued on to the Beijing Ancient

Observatory, a corner tower of the old city walls which was used as a major observatory in

the 1600s. The designs of Tycho Brahe were brought from Europe and used to construct many of the instruments used here though several new devices were commissioned specially

by the Emperor. After observing the original instruments still in place on the tower, we were shown exhibits on Chinese constellations and star maps among others. We then had a brief

respite with tea and conversation before deciding to continue on to Galaxy Soho, a well-known building design by Zaha Hadid.

An interior image of the staircases in the atrium of Galaxy Soho.

Galaxy Soho Galaxy Soho was a very impressive building. We spent quite a while walking around the lower courtyard before eventually finding our way inside to further explore the buildings.

Galaxy Soho is a set of four oval shaped buildings which taper as they rise and are connected

by multiple skybridges. The design has a very horizontal language defined by the floorplates which curve on the edge to form part of the organic exterior. Inside, each building has an atrium with offset staircases and wrapped lighting. The design of the complex was very sleek

and elegant but so few businesses were leasing space that it felt abandoned and empty.

Once we had explored the building thoroughly and found some interesting views looking out

from the skywalks, we went back outside to find some dinner. We ate noodles at a small

restaurant on the lower level of Galaxy Soho before getting on the subway and, exhausted, traveling back to our hotel.

66

67

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

The Gao Bei Dian Beijing

also

has

a

large

wastewater

treatment plant - but not large enough. The population of Beijing is incredibly large, and

as a result there is a lot of sewage. An impressive

1

million

cubic

meters

of

residential wastewater per day is treated

here. Unfortunately, the plant is not large enough for the amount of influent it must process.

Most

wastewater

plants

are

designed to have a capacity of much more

than they can handle, in order to be prepared

for

any

future

growth. The

Gaobeidian plan is currently running over

capacity – serving 2.4 million people makes

it one of the largest wastewater treatment plants in the world, and this can cause numerous

other

issues.

For

example,

sometimes the waste is not treated correctly because they can’t add the right amount of chemicals to keep up with the flows.

68

Residential water demands have grown

Some green technologies being used

population but only 7% of the fresh water.

pavers (like in Xiamen’s IEU – which is a

on and build new wastewater plants

where applicable, which stops the water

goals. Gaining access to clean water has

system all at once. Spread it out this way

mostly due to the population and location

treated at any given time. Using rain

places we visited contained signs on the

ly used in the most urban areas. Rain

was not for drinking. China has been

they not only absorb large quantities of

to help prevent this water from reaching

the water, they are filtering it and will in

water is entering the plant, it is less likely

Even though this water will still need to be

plant a lot of money.

enters the grass (unlike some of the

due to China having 20% of the world’s

across Beijing include using permeable

Currently, plans are in progress to expand

permeable parking lot) and pavement

throughout Beijing to help meet new water

from entering the storm water sewer

commonly been a big issue in Beijing,

will reduce the amount that needs to be

(being so far from the ocean). Many

barrels and rain gardens are also common-

bathrooms warning us that the sink water

gardens are especially useful because

preaching some green water techniques

water, but also clean it. As the plants drink

the wastewater treatment plant. If less

time release it back into the environment.

to reach capacity and would save the

treated, it won’t hurt the ecosystem if it

In Beijing, there is relatively little rainfall between September and April – generally

less than one inch of rain in each of those months. From May to August, Beijing tends to have over 6 inches of rain per month. Not surprisingly, 60% of Beijing’s water comes

from two summer months, and this can cause issues with water shortages. It is not sustainable when people take water out but

nature does not put it back in, and unfortu-

nately this is an issue that those in Beijing

must live with. Groundwater reservoirs are commonly used to help store the water for these times.

production waste water).

69

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Dumps Sites in Tongzhou

It is important for people living in Beijing to know about this, and the Chinese government

Watching the video about dumps site around Beijing, we were stunned by the waste prob-

is a big problem for China. Beijing generates 30,000 tons of garbage per day and the landfills

lem of Beijing. It is so unbelievable that Beijing, the capital of China, has this bad situation in dealing with the waste. Beijing is surroundedby hundreds of dump site that are in Wang Jiuliang’s documentary, Beijing Besieged by Waste.

should rethink how it is addressing this issue. For the third largest country in the world, waste capacity is about 20,000 tons. They remainder is dumped on the ground outside of landfills..

That is why Jiuliang Wang is finding these “informal” dumps around Beijing. This is a serious

problem because the pollutants threaten people’s lives. Rivers, lakes, and land are been

contaminated, which not only harms the ecosystem but also harms the health for several generations of people. This information was heartbreaking and terrifying to us so that we really want to see what is going on these dumps.

70

71

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Tongzhou, one of the districts in the east

What we found was that Tongzhong is also

It was hard to find the sites just using the coordinates and pictures to find the precise

center of Beijing as part of the decentraliz-

site on Wang JiuLiang’s maps. Thus, we

in vacant lots; some are being built on; some seems like dumps. However, they could not

of Beijing, will become the administrative ing plan.

On May 4th, our third day in Beijing, we planned to visit the site. In the morning, we started working. Because the Google

Maps did not work in China, we needed to find another way to locate the dumps site.

Although we were in Tongzhou, the site

was still far from us. All the sites were more than one hour away, and were in

different directions. At the end, we decided to divide into two groups: one group

went to Songzhuang Township, the other went along the Metro Line 8.

the area containing some of the dumps were able to visit those sites during our trip in Beijing. We searched the map on

the internet, but we didn’t find it with detail

information, so we used some coordinates

what we found on the internet, to relocate the precise location. We used Baidu map

location on the map because the Tongzhou district is changing rapidly. Some are located

be clearly distinguished in the satellites map. Thus, all the information collected could give us directions so we could investigate in the person.

Songzhuang, is one of the largest “artist towns” in Beijing. With the development of Tongzhou District, Songzhuang is becoming more and more popular. At the same time, Songzhuang is one of the important centers in Tongzhou.

and Google maps to find and mark the dumps on the map.

Then we scaled to the Tongzhou area, to

see details. Comparing the picture and coordinates from Wang Jiuliang, we saw several dumps site disappears on the map.

Garbage in Tongzhou

72

Soangzhuang Artist towns

73

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

We were using a GPS and arrived the end

There was just a wall built between the

protect private land - the dumps site

did they know about the dumps site, but

of the road. Branches formed a barrier to

location. We looked for another route to get to there. On the map the construction

seems like the management office in front

of the dump. We intended to approach the site through those buildings. When we

arrived there, the situation was much

The picture we took in the site

different than what we had assumed. Actu-

The dump site we found is in the south of

There was a construction material compa-

sat in the yard; a little boy ran over, and

town. It is not easy to get there. We took a

our way to the site, we find other dump-

Several families are living in the yard.

Songzhuang artist district, in the Houtun

bus first and arrived on the main road of

the town and we need to walk through the town. There are some low buildings and

the air was dusty. Also, lots of trucks with

yellow tags drove by. It was hard to get across the road because there are no traffic signals . Our initial impression was that this area is not well developed.

When we arrived in town, there are not so many people and it was very quiet.

74

ny mixed among the villagers’ houses. On sites.

ally, there is a villager’s house; older men

some woman walked back and forth.

dump site and their house. We asked them

they knew nothing about it. We went back

to the farm land and crossed it carefully.

When we arrived at the site, is did appear to be a dump site anymore, but did not have some residue that had not been

cleaned. We compared the picture we collected from the website, and found out some features, such as the high voltage

line, is the same one in the picture. Finally, we found the same site that Wang reported in his documentary.

One of the dump sites is located

behind some residents’ backyards. It seems like a vacant space behind the buildings but there is waste on the ground.

Surprisingly, there were crops planted in

the yard. It is obvious that the soil is polluted or will be more seriously polluted

by the waste, but the villagers’ still take the risk of growing food there.

75

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Although the city keeps developing, the

People built their houses and are living

Silk market

positive. Some small towns around the

the pollution. This problem cannot be

The silk market has a long history, starting

When we bargained for the good price,

the Jianguomen area. It is quite famous in

good price to make you happy!â&#x20AC;? Finally, in

some souvenirs at a good price. We went

good price.

addition to selling fashion apparels and

appealing to travelers from around the

shoes, belts, sportswear and silk fabrics,

designed to serve foreign visitors, have

tional

interesting that this place has developed it

prospects for small villages is not very city, like this one, do not get much attention

from

the

government. As

Wang

described in his passage, those villagers sacrificed their land to waste and got the

subsidy. However, after the land was abandoned, no one takes care of the

cleaning. What is worse is the garbage has been cleaned and no one knows that is a dumps site before.

there unaware of the potential risks from solved rapidly but need several decades

and a huge amount of money, which makes it tougher. The government can

ignore this issue because it is easy to

hide, but the consequences are serious and will harm the future generationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s health.

originally as an outdoor market located in

they usually said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;okay, okay! This is a

Beijing as a place for foreigners to buy

there we bought some Chinese gifts in

there, and found many retail vendors. In

Beijing has become more international,

accessories

handbags,

world. Some place, like the Silk Market,

the new Silk Street has introduced tradi-

greatly expanded in recent years. It is

calligraphy, paintings, hand-knit dresses

own special culture that only can happen

such

Chinese

as

hats,

handicrafts,

antiques,

showing the great Chinese character. In

there.

addition, to appeal to foreigners, there are various novelties.

Some T-shirts have

funny English words that have different meanings in Chinese.

The funny thing was that many of the

vendors can speak English, but when we

went to the different stores they all said the same things.

76

77

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Beijing CBD job-housing

Beijing TV Center with a triangle on the

which is the city’s largest employment

Nikken Sekkei. The most famous one is

important international financial center,

Headquarters building is one of the

All the city’s tallest building are gather

designed by Rem Koolhaas and Ole

Tower III, which is the tallest skyscraper in

building for us. Its distinctive shape can

high density, it is very crowd during rush

time, it is a great example for architec-

The subway is a good choice for workers,

through for the design of skyscrapers.

people feel uncomfortable. Thus, it is

together on the top brings great chal-

facilities in the CBD area.

construction. Ultimately, this building

world famous architecture. The Beijing

cost.

After

learning

about

the

balance, we went to the Beijing CBD,

top is designed by Japanese company

center. Beijing CBD is becoming an

the China Central Television (CCTV)

attracting people from around the world.

iconic

here. The China World Trade Center

Scheeren. It was the most attractive

Beijing is located there. Because of the

be seen from miles away. At the same

hour on the nearby 3rd and 4th ringroads.

ture students in terms of being a break-

but it is extremely crowded, makingsome

The two huge inverted “L”s connecting

important to improve the public transit

lenges for structure technology and

At the same time, the CBD has attracted

was successfully built, but at very high

landmarks

of

Beijing.

It

was

Snother architectural gem in Beijing CBD

With the mixed function in one building, it

SOHO in Chaoyangmenand now, Guang-

for Chinese young professionals. It is also

is the Guanghualu SOHO. We saw Galaxy hualu SOHO in the CBD. All the SOHO

building are very modern and charming.

SOHO means small office and home office, which is designed for young people just starting their careers.

meets the need of a convenience lifestyle helped

to

maintain

the

job-housing

balance. This kind of building is becoming more

and

more

popular.

Its

success

suggests the need for the development of buildings and architecture design focused on specific needs.

Yintai Center is a group of building with

grid windows on the façade, designed by American architect John Portman.

78

79

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Chapter 4. Field Trips and Culture Exposure in Xiamen

The island features overlapping peaks, blue water, white clouds, green trees and bright flowers. The air on the island is fresh. All of these features attract more and more people to visit. The entire place is free from any sorts of vehicles and is particularly quiet. All these render an atmosphere of a fairyland.

Gulangyu Island

Today, Gulangyu is regarded as one of the China’s major scenic spots because of its long history and special characteristics. The main sites of interest include the Sunlight Rock,

Piano museum, Shuzhuang Park, Gangzihou Bathing Beach and Memorial Hall to Zheng Chenggong, which are visited annually by millions of people from all parts of the world. For

people living in the hustle and bustle of today's metropolis, citizens on this island seem to lead a quite peaceful relaxing, healthy and placid lifestyle.

Gulangyu, separated from Xiamen by the 500-metre-wide Egret River, with an area of 1.77 square kilometres, enjoys a beautiful title, which is “The Garden on the Sea”. The original

name of the island was Yuan Zhou Zi. In the Ming Dynasty it was renamed as Gulang, mean-

The Mooncake Gambling

The 300-year-old custom of mooncake gambling dates back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The inventor, Zheng Chenggong (1624-62), a general of the Ming Dynasty

(1368-1644), stationed his army in Xiamen. Zheng was determined to recover Taiwan, which was occupied by Dutch invaders since 1624. When every Mid-Autumn Festival came, the soldiers always missed their families, but they were not allowed to go back to their home-

towns. In order to relieve homesickness among the troops, General Zheng and his lower officer Hong Xu invented the game---mooncake gambling.

ing ''drum waves”, because the holes in the southwestern reefs hit by the waves make sounds like the drum beating.

80

81

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

The gambling game has six ranks of

In ancient China, to win the imperial

Xiamen people believe that the person

winners in ancient imperial examinations,

official career which was the dream of

game will have good luck in the next

awards, which are named according to the

and has 63 different sizes of mooncakes.

From the lowest to the highest, the titles of six ranks are Xiucai (the one who passed

the examination at the county level),

Juren (a successful candidate at the

provincial level), Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examina-

tion), Tanhua, Bangyan and Zhuangyuan

(respectively the number three to number one winners in the imperial examination at

the presence of the emperor). Game players throw the dice one by one. Different pips they count win the player a

relevant "title" which is mentioned above,

and each title is corresponding a certain

type of moon cake. The lucky player who gets the pips to make it the title of "Zhuangyuan," will be the biggest winner

in the game, and gain the largest moon

examination was the only way to enter an

most learners, since the examination

system was established in the Sui Dynasty (AD 581-618).

Since then, the moon cake gambling has become

a

popular

traditional

activity

among local people. On every Mid-Au-

tumn Festival, family members will automatically gather together to gamble moon cakes, people will argue about who will be

the winner. When walking along streets in this tiny island during this time, you will

hear the pleasant silvery sound of the dice

rolling. People are cheering of winning or

losing; the sounds are everywhere. Also cake companies will produce various

kinds of gambling cakes to cater to the market. But among all of them, the green bean moon cake is the most original one.

who wins "Zhuangyuan" in the gambling

coming year. And as time goes by, the Mid-Autumn Festival has become the second most important holiday in Xiamen

besides the Spring Festival. Nowadays,

the moon cakes are not the only award in the gambling game. For example, money, daily necessities, household appliances

can also be won during the activity. In

order to make it more fun, people add additional rules. If the dice read "six," then

the gamer can forget all those original rules. People will turn off all the lights, and

then the gamer can seize as many prizes as possible in the darkness. It requires a

combination of good memory, high speed

and a strong body. Changes of prizes have made the game even popular among younger generations.

cake.

82

83

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Zheng, originally named Sen, he was a

At the same time, Zheng Chenggong start-

In the early years of the Qing Dynasty,

who occupied the Chinese territory Taiwan.

native of Nan’an County, Fujian Province.

Zheng created an army to resist the oppression

coming

from

the

Manchu

nobles. He chose Xiamen and Jinmen as

the military bases and set up his own army.

He led the army and gathered the people

The sunlight Rock

along the southeast coast fight against the

The sunlight Rock is also called “Huang-

Zheng Chenggong, the national hero

fests his braveness in both political and

You can also see the beautiful view of

a critical role in the development of

yan”. It is located on the top of Longtou

Mountain (which means the dragon’s

head) which is the highest peak in this

area. The Dragon Head Mountain stands against the Tiger Head Mountains of

Xiamen on the opposite shore. There is a folk story says that the dragon and a tiger can guard the Xiamen port and

bring good luck to this city. On the top of

the rock, people can get a panoramic

view of Xiamen. When you stand on the

top of the sunlight rock, you can see the old building’s red rooftop embedded in

the surrounding greenery in Gulangyu Island. You can see the memorial hall of

84

Manchu noble. This brave behavior maniwho liberated Taiwan from the Dutch.

military aspects. Zheng Chenggong played

Xiamen

Chinese history.

city

further

away

from

this

ed a struggle against the Dutch colonists, In

February,

1662,

Zheng

Cenggong

forced the Dutch to sign a treaty to surren-

der. Finally, Taiwan returned to her mother-

land. Since then, as a precursor in developing Taiwan, Zheng Chenggong adopted

many policies and methods to stimulate

the economic growth of Taiwan as well as

promote Taiwan and the national unity.

According to the tour guide, the statue of

Zheng is facing toward the direction of

Taiwan, and this statue protects Xiamen

Island. Standing on the highest moun-

people from “attacks” by typhoons. It has

wind blowing in your face, embrace the

Xiamen.

bath in sunlight. At the very first time,

integrity of China’s territory. It was consid-

of this mountain, he felt the view was

people’s resistance against the western

Japan,

carved in Chinese history and his spirits

tain of Gulangyu Island, you can feel the

already become the “statue of liberty” in

magnificent view of Xiamen, as well as

Zheng’s recovery of Taiwan maintained the

when Zheng Chenggong came to the top

ered as the first great success in Chinese

even nicer than the Sunlight Mountain in

colonists. The contribution of Zheng will be

Sunlight Rock. It has already become

will be passed down generation by genera-

so

he

named

this

rock

as

the most important spots in Gulangyu

tion.

Island.

85

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

The Island of Music

On May 19, 2002, Gulangyu was awarded

Because various countries came here to

It is known as the piano island because people here love the piano. As early as 1913,

of Musicians.This area has nurtured many

they also built buildings that feature differ-

students in schools run by foreigners started learning the piano. The enthusiasm for

music later spread to more ordinary people on the island. Many piano families have nurtured many accomplished musicians. These famous musicians contributed a lot to the whole world’s musicdevelopment. The number of the pianos owned is tops in the nation, though there are only 20,000 people.

“the Island of Music” by China Association

world-known pianists such as Yin Chengzong, Lin Junqing, Xu Feiping, Xu Xing’ai.

Gulangyu has the only piano museum in China, which attracts hundreds and thou-

sands of tourists and piano fans. The museum has a comprehensive collection

of pianos ranging from different size to different countries.It is a great place for people to learn the piano revolution history.

Recently, the national Young Piano Competition is held in Gulangyu every two years. The

piano museum and people’s passion about

music make this island even more unique and appealing.

Beginning from the middle of the 19th

century, Britain, America, Japan, Germany, France and Dutch troops invaded the territory of China. Gulangyu at that time was

one

of

the

semi-colony cities.

86

famous

colony

and

set up consulates, and seized territory, ent forms and styles. In these buildings,

there are not only the European-style houses built by colonists,but the South-

east Asian style houses of the many overseas Chinese who have returned back to

China. Also there are many buildings that have been influenced by the surrounding

foreign-style houses. These buildings are

heavily influenced by the construction technique from Europe, America, and Southeast Asia and so on. The materials

of the houses generally have come from

overseas, for example, stones and red

bricks. Because of its special period in history, the building on the island are of

great variety. They combine to contribute to a unique architecture style in Gulangyu.

Because of that, the island is called “the world architecture museum.”

87

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

The streets and buildings on Gulangyu

Passion Fruit

Beach and Stores

are spiraling high up, some are lowly

The passion fruit is an interesting fruit

We walked from our hotel to the main

sour. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an excellent source of vitamins

walked through the campus to get to the

The water was warm enough so that

potassium and folate. The tour guide

sometimes intermixed with large rocks.

into the sea.

fruit since she was a child since it is very

the view across the bay to the mainland

throwing Frisbees on the beach.

container ships were traveling through the

The beach was crowded.

Island are built on the mountains. Some

zigzagging. The buildings are covered in

green all the year round. Those buildings all have their features and they

define the street very well. The view differ as one walks along the street.

Nowadays, many old buildings are under reconstruction. People want to make

them look new but at the same time, the renovation makes the old buildings lose their own spirit and characteristics.

88

Then

Toward the end of our walk on the beach

we watched the sunset across the bay.

from Gulangyu Island. It is a little bit

campus of Xiamen University.

A and C. Also, it contains plenty of

beach. The beach was a sandy tan beach

people could swim and some of us waded

told us she has been eating this kind of

Xiamen is on an island and from the beach

were on jet skis and a few people were

nutritious.

and other islands is very beautiful. Many

walked for about 2 miles down the beach.

Out on the water people

We

straight between Xiamen and the mainland.

89

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

In contrast to many beaches that have

From the beach we walked to an area with

Xiamen is a popular vacation area for

had a line of that was a mixture of

streets were lined with many little shops

people who appeared to be from outside

collecting the drift wood and garbage off of

Many people were selling trinkets along

it in a pile down the beach. Every few

concentric rings of plastic flowers or

tures that jutted out into the water. They

chance to throw hoops at the items and

were exposed, some completely, at low

there were a number of these stands I

shelled sea creatures including barnacles.

in the game.

into the water.

seaweed at the high tide line, this beach Around the campus many were students

but as we traveled down the beach,

the Chinese but we did not see many

driftwood and garbage. There was a man

playing music; some using their own

of Asia.

the beach in to a pickup truck and dumping

the beach. They had guys who set up

hundred meters there were concrete struc-

other plastic things.

You could buy a

were covered by the ocean at high tide but

got to keep what you â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;hoopedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. Although

tide. They were coated with miscellaneous

did not see anyone actually participate

These structures released treated sewage

fewer students were there. People were instrument and while others were play-

ing music on speakers. One of the most distinctive things about the beach were the large number of weddings held

there. In some places every few meters

there seemed to be couples having their wedding photographs taken.

Although, treated, these

areas smelled badly.

narrow streets for pedestrians.

The

and restaurants. There were guys dancing with signs. Although in Chinese, the

message was clear, buy things from my

shop and they had a price on them as well. The area was very crowed, even in

the middle of the night. Another time we were there we had the chance to visit the

shops and buy gifts but this night we just

ate dinner. We went to a restaurant on the second floor of a shop.

It was themed

after an old-styled Chinese school. They

gave one of us a yellow bandana. This represented

the

most

well

behaved

student, and in the tradition of an old

school, this person was in charge. In this restaurant it signified person who was in

charge of the water. We had numerous seafood dishes, this included several

soups, shellfish, and noodles with oysters.

The food was very good. While we were

there, workers in the restaurant stopped to take our pictures. to the hotel.

90

We took a taxi back

91

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Bike rides By the beach in Xiamen there are bike

There were sections of the bike trails upon

during our walk on the beach so some of

would use freely.

bikes had big heavy frames, only one

parking areas.

well. That being said, Xiamen had bike

we stopped at an abandoned construction

beach.

way. Then we returned to the hotel and

rental places.

We had noticed these

us decided to go back and rent bikes. The gear, and brakes that did not work very trails that ran between the road and the

Shops were located on the trail

from time to time.

We biked along the

beach for about an hour.

which cars and other motorized vehicles

The School of Archetechure and Civil Engineering

From their questions, we got the impres-

this was the only way they could reach

In the late afternoon we presented to

Municipal Commission of Urban Planning.

some sections of the trail. Along the trail

at Xiamen University.

They had to because

Tour buses also used

site. We also saw several parks along the prepared for our presentations.

some professors and graduate students

The professors

and students who attended accommo-

dated us by speaking in English. Samâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s group presented first.

The professor

and students asked them questions then we presented and they asked us ques-

tions as well (some questions were in English and others in Chinese).

92

sion that the professors were unim-

pressed with the plans of the Beijing They seemed especially unconvinced that

the air corridors, would be effective. They also

expressed

skepticism

about

the

plans to move the Beijing Municipal Center to Tongzhou.

They worried that

people who worked for the Beijing municipal center would stay in Beijing and commute to Tongzhou and

residents of

Tongzhou would commute to Beijing.

93

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

Dinner at XMU After the presentations the host treated us

The food was generally very good. One of

fancy had a large round table. In the

soup that was similar to oatmeal but made

to dinner at the university. The room was

center of the table was a lazy susan so we could pass different dishes of food easily.

We sat with the professors and had dinner. There were many different dishes,

at least 20 different types of food. Most were seafood and some were very exotic.

For example, we ate sea cucumbers, Jelly

fish, and fishes of all sorts of different forms.

Chapter 5: Student Reflections

the most memorable dishes was a sweet with rice and taro. This soup was available at other places as well but it was best

at this dinner. Fruit juice was the bever-

Classes in school let me learn about the culture, architecture and environment of cities

from different professors and different perspectives. The China trip let me learn what I didn’t know before. The great part of this program is I made lots of friends.

Ruxing

age served along with the meal. At dinner

we mainly spoke amongst ourselves.

Everyone around us spoke in Chinese.

I wanted to make the most out of my brief time abroad so I tried to push myself to be adventurous and not say ‘no’ to opportunities for learning and to be on the lookout for

opportunities for serendipity. I tried to find ways to learn something new every day. I decided I would eat as adventurously as possible because I wanted to have the full expe-

rience and because I don’t know when I will next have the opportunity to eat authentic Chinese food.

Logan A BJTU student asked me if I could tell him something that his professor would not know about Americans. I told him that we drink cold water. He stepped back, while arching his

eyebrows, and suspiciously asked me if we drank cold water in the winter as well. I told him we did, and the surprise on his face was hilarious.

Zach

94

95

SUSTAINABLE URBANISM An Internation Perspective

The 798 art district of Beijing was one of the most beautiful places I have been to, in a

Going to China was one of the most amazing things I have ever done, and it has inspired

seeing untouched factories and ancient paintings was something I never thought I would

things that can only be experienced in person.

different way than the Great Wall and Forbidden City. It was like stepping into the past; do in China. Upon reflection, it was one of the best parts of the trip.

me to travel more in the future. Not only to learn more about new cultures, but to do Zach

Zach This trip makes us think more about the relationship between our city, our history and our

natural resources. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s necessary and critical for city planners to create a balance between all these elements and features, and between new and old.

Ruochen

I learned a lot of new things when we came to several great universities to share different information about urban planning and the environment, I'm impressed by the teachers and the students' passion and hospitality. Because of this trip I had a real chance to get close with American students.

Ruochen

I am attracted to this course because it faces all majors and uses professional knowledge

from all aspects to discuss the problem of sustainable urbanism.Through this course, I have come to know a lot about American culture, too. I learned how to view problems with multiple perspectives.

Ruiyuan Because we were there for a class, we saw and did things that most Americans would never see or do. The food was amazing. It is hard to recall what I ate because at almost every meal I was having something new.

I enjoyed interacting with the Chinese

students.I have never been to a water treatment plant in America so cannot compare the plant I saw in Beijing to one of ours. We learned about the challenges of treating wastewater from one of the largest cities in the world.

Thomas

96

97