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Through a study of the behaviour of already debt-ridden local governments in response to the Made in China 2025 policy, this paper explores whether local governments prioritized State interests over local interests, when their financial involvement was required. Deploying a panel data analysis for more than 280 prefectural-level cities, this paper finds that, despite having been subject to an "Administrative Subcontract" arrangement under which the Central Government appoints top local officials, local economic/debt interests were prioritized over national policy implementation under fiscal decentralization. Instead of promoting infrastructure development, the Made in China 2025 policy provided an opportunity for local governments to raise capital via Local Government Financing Vehicles (LGFV) primarily for debt refinancing, despite the State's numerous attempts to control the growth of local government/LGFV debt. Some policy implications concerning i) the effectiveness of national policy implementation on local levels under "Administrative Subcontract" and ii) the debt situations of prefectural-level Chinese cities and their effects on China's economy in general are then discussed. • National policy required local government investment under fiscal decentralization. • Local leadership faced with dilemma between career prospects and mounting debt. • Prefectural-level cities prioritized local interests over State interests. • The Made in China 2025 policy triggered further accumulation of local debt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smart cities for the elderly are crucial for advancing inclusive smart cities amidst urbanization and population ageing. While the age-friendliness of smart cities is increasingly emphasized, differences across various fields of age-friendliness in smart cities remain unclear. In the context of smart city construction gradually shifting to a people-centered approach, it is also urgent to carry out refined assessment and heterogeneous analysis of the perceptions and needs of different groups of citizens. This paper delves into the evaluation of age-friendliness in smart cities (AFSC). And the heterogeneity of age-friendliness of various fields of services in smart cities is explored, as well as the AFSC deviation in perceptions between elderly people and non-elderly people. First, the main fields and evaluation indicators of AFSC are identified. Then, the AFSC evaluation model is established which is combining the improved Analytic Hierarchy Process (IAHP), the CRiteria Importance Through Intercriteria Correlation (CRITIC) and improved Fuzzy Comprehensive Evaluation method (IFCE). Finally, a case study is conducted in Nanjing, China. The results show that the AFSC of Nanjing has a score of 61.41, which indicating a favorable level. Furthermore, heterogeneity analyses showed that there are significant variations in age-friendliness across different fields within the city: smart life and consumption, smart recreation and entertainment, smart transportation and mobility have a favorable level of AFSC, while the other fields are deficient. The overall AFSC score for non-elderly citizens is significantly higher than that of elderly citizens, and elderly citizen' perceptions of AFSC vary according to elements of their personal physical condition and elements of their personal socio-economic status. In addition, the study proposes differentiated enhancement of AFSC in all fields, accurate enhancement of AFSC by identifying specific elderly citizens, and integrated enhancement of AFSC by adopting multi-dimensional measures. This study reveals age-friendliness in different fields of smart cities, clarifies the perceived heterogeneity of age-friendliness of smart cities among different groups of citizens, and enriches the intersection research of smart cities and age-friendly cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both state-led and market-led institutional arrangements have been experimented in China to form collaborative governance among diverse stakeholders in participatory urban regeneration. Relatively less is known about how institutional arrangements as structural constraints impact the formation of collaborative governance. Building upon Giddens' structuration theory and collaborative governance theory, this paper develops a novel framework that converges on the reciprocity between structural and agency elements and applies it to two residential regeneration cases in Shenzhen. The findings reveal that in residential regeneration, the state-led institutional structure has a greater capacity than the market-led structure to create relational links for community participation. Various factors, including variations in land property rights, path dependencies and institutional certainties, explain the findings. The formation of collaborative governance relies on the shaping effect of structural elements on agents' behaviors in institutional design, including well-designed rules to regulate sanctions, constitute common meaning and premium-allocated resources in accordance with stakeholders' responsibilities. These findings contribute to a better understanding of collaborative governance and help improve participatory urban regeneration policymaking in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is gradually and directly making rural collective land available on the land market. It is important to understand how stakeholders collectively treat and manage this land, and if this collective action leads to effective and sustainable results. This paper, however, revises Ostrom's framework of collective action by constructing the joint analysis of social capital, trust, and cooperation performance, in order to better capture the distinction between voluntary action and enforced action of stakeholders towards a sustainable goal. We analyze the role of voluntary collective action through higher-order structural equation modeling (HSEM), applied to a database consisting of 324 households in Jiangsu Province, China, collected in 2022 and 2023. The results suggest that social capital effectively promotes villagers' trust in policy implementers by establishing new institutions, increasing actors' trustworthiness, and improving channels of information exchange, and the first two means are more effective than the latter. We also demonstrate the significant positive effect of trust on cooperation performance, with trusting relationships with familiar groups and the credible behavior of policy implementers affecting performance outcomes of collective action. Moreover, social capital drives cooperation performance through the mediating effect of mutual trust that it breeds. With this revised framework and verified hypotheses one can thus create more effective policies to avoid inequality and informality in the land marketization process in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although mega-city regions have attracted wide attention in China, recent 'metropolitanization' at the multi-city scale is poorly understood. To tackle the void, this paper examines the emergent 'metropolitan plans' (dushiquan guihua) since 2019 and identifies a paradigm shift in metropolitanization from 'territorial urbanization' to 'multi-city regionalism' in China. We find that 1) as a fuzzy and dynamic concept, the metropolitan region has been mainly employed as a policy object for state rationalities and has been upscaled from a city region scale to a multi-city scale; 2) regarding planning practices, the new metropolitan plans function as an overall collaborative framework to support priority tasks for city regionalism in a shorter term rather than formulating long-term spatial strategies; 3) as space of governance, the recent state-orchestrated metropolitan region reflects the newest round of state rescaling process to cope with domestic uneven development and urban issues through 'urban unification', and its materialization heavily relies on concrete cross-boundary projects delivery and coordination through soft governance. These findings not only provide conceptual clarity and relational understandings of the metropolitanization process but also exemplify the distinctiveness of the Chinese metropolitanization approach in terms of scalar logic, planning style, and associated governance mechanisms. This paper furthers the understanding of the divergence and diversity of metropolitan planning and governance practices in different political-economic circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The change in urban construction land (UCL) and rural residential land (RRL) and their coupling relationship are the main manifestation of urban-rural construction land transition (URCLT) and the mapping of urban-rural factor flow. It is of great significance to systematically understand and master its laws for expanding the theory of land use transition (LUT) and adjusting the man-land relationship between urban and rural area. This paper constructs a theoretical model of URCLT, analyses the spatial and temporal characteristics of urban and rural construction land (UARCL) scale, elasticity and structure transition in Shandong Province from 1996 to 2015, reveals the transition process and coupling mechanism of UCL and RRL by using the method of geographic detector. The research shows that the UCL and RRL in Shandong Province have evolved along a coordinated track of increase and decrease as a whole, but with certain periodic fluctuations, resulting in insufficient elasticity and structural transition of URCLT. The rationalization degree of UCL growth was reduced, the low synchronization and non-synchronization of RRL reduction predominates, while the dominant type of urban-rural human-land relationship changed from urban-rural (UR) increase or decrease coordinated to both urban (U) and rural (R) increase uncoordinated. The URCLT had obvious spatial differences. The UARCL in the "blue-yellow" economic zone and the provincial capital urban agglomeration was active, but was dominated by uncoordinated transition, and the non-synchronization reduction of RRL was dominant. The factors influencing the transition of URCL were complex, diverse and unstable, and the transition mechanism was the interaction process of self-regulation of population, industry and land elements within the urban and rural system and intervention of external natural environment, science and technology and institutional policies. Highlights • The paper constructs a theoretical model of URCLT. • The paper reveals the transition process and coupling mechanism of URCLT. • The factors influencing the URCLT were complex, diverse and unstable. • URCLT was driven by the interaction of natural background, economic development, social progress and policy innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract With the development of urbanization more focusing on quality and human-orientation in the transitional period, the mixed characteristics and challenges in peri-urban China are emerging. The emergence and promotion of Area Development PPP (ADP) as an effective and innovative development model in peri-urban areas offer a feasible way to address the development needs. This paper is trying to explore and examine this innovative model firstly by identifying the three main features of the mixed land development in peri-urban China in terms of properties, functions and the development patterns. Secondly, this paper tries to describe and review the practice and spatial pattern of PPP (Public Private Partnership) and ADP projects in China. Thirdly, this paper takes Gu'an Industrial Park PPP project as the typical case to further verify the effectiveness of the ADP model. Finally, this paper attempts to answer the question how to realize the mixed land use by discussing the rationale and key points of the ADP model in combination with the theory of urban growth coalitions. The research shows that the ADP model can be a successful solution for quality peri-urban development in terms of mixed land use. This model may lay the foundation for in-depth comparative study and provide useful references for other developing countries in their peri-urban development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract China has witnessed substantial and surging internal migration over the past three decades, and the ascendant trend of migration will continue within the New Urbanization in China, shaping drastically China's population redistribution, and inducing surge of crowded cities and "hollowing village". This paper analyzed the spatial-temporal patterns of migration at provincial level during 2000–2010, and found: (1) the migration pattern demonstrated increasingly strengthened polarity in migration pool and source regions/provinces and migration flows. (2) The interregional/interprovincial migration population was higher than the intraregional/intra-provincial, and the gap between them strengthened with time. (3) The migration population grew with time, but the migration distance almost kept unchanged. To analyze the determinants of migration, this paper adopted an improved gravity model which introduced environment variables and included five types of variables, and found: (1) the path dependence variable had the most significant impact on migration, and the wages of staff and workers followed in 2000 and 2010. (2) The wages of origin provinces exerted a strong "push" to migrants, larger than the "pull" from the destination provinces in 2000, and the "push" changed to smaller than the "pull" in 2010. (3) Natural environment gradually became an attractive factor that migrants took into consideration, and the obstruction of distance to migration gradually reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban village regeneration has been considered an effective way to achieve the vision of transforming the arrival cities in China to affordable cities. However, the existing research into urban village regeneration does not pay enough attention to the group of rural migrants, and the dynamic process of their participation is indistinct. With a theoretical underpinning of the conception of Arrival City and Affordable City and the ladder theory of participation, this paper attempts to understand the practices of rural migrants' participation in urban village regeneration and, more importantly, to unpack the underlying mysteries of the transition process from arrival cities to affordable cities in China. The paper finds that rural migrants are involved in urban village regeneration indirectly, as opposed to directly or not participating at all. Before a regeneration project take places, they are expelled and ostracised by the alliance of "government-developer-villager" because of their informal identities. After the project, middle-class migrants lived in the regenerated urban villages but suffered from social exclusion. Most of the migrants gather in the newer urban villages or form new arrival cities in the urban periphery, resulting in potential social conflicts and a vicious cycle of "regeneration – migration – regeneration – migration". The vision is realised only in the environment and discourses from the alliance, but not in terms of rural migrants. China's urban transition from arrival cities to affordable cities is incomplete and one-sided. This transition, guided as it is by the existing mechanism of urban village regeneration, undermines social equity and causes social conflicts, which is not sustainable. These findings and proposed corresponding suggestions can serve as valuable references for the practices of public participation in urban regeneration that are underway in developing countries or where there is eagerness to transition effectively from arrival cities to affordable cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is experiencing rapid progress in industrialization and urbanization. Characteristic towns (Tese Xiaozhen) are one of the important drivers for China's urbanization, industrialization and agricultural modernization in the 21st century. Each of the towns has its own characteristics. At present, however, it is unclear for them about (i) what characteristics should be promoted, (ii) how urban land should be planned and (iii) which industry should be focused on. The public infrastructure and services in towns are usually under-developed, compared to cities. This paper first explores the designation of a brand-new type of new towns in China, i.e. “characteristic towns”, to meet the need of the current urbanization in China. The paper focuses on the principles of “agglomeration” and “livability”, in socioeconomic and cultural contexts. This is exemplified by a case study of Zhejiang's version of characteristic towns. The findings suggest that the success of cultivation of towns is closely associated with agglomeration and livability. In the short term, identifying characteristics is the core element in the development. For the longer term, a comprehensive integration of industrial policy and land use policy is needed to ensure continuous capital investment and revenue generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing literature on migrants' subjective wellbeing (SWB) in Chinese cities has highlighted the crucial role of social ties, yet the pathways by which social ties influence their SWB remain poorly understood. Using Guangzhou survey data and multilevel linear regressions, this paper examines the extent to and ways in which migrants' social ties with neighbours enhance their SWB, with a particular focus on the distinction between the main effects and buffering effects of their neighbourhood ties. Results from multilevel models reveal that neighbourhood ties enhance migrants' SWB in a direct manner, but no evidence shows that neighbourhood ties lessen the negative impacts of neighbourhood deprivation. Results also illustrate that the association between neighbourhood ties and SWB is stronger for locals than for migrants. This paper contributes to our understanding of migrants' SWB by disentangling the positive effects of their social ties with neighbours and investigating the role of migrants' neighbourhood ties in relation to stress arising from neighbourhood deprivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regional innovation systems (RISs) characterized periodical and is suitable for analyzing the Chinese economy which has entered the new normal. However, few scholars analyze and identify the stage of RISs from the perspective of life cycle. This paper divides the life cycle of RISs into four stages: initial stage, growth stage, maturity stage, and decline stage. Based on the analysis of the characteristics in every stage of the life cycle in the RISs, this paper constructs entropy weight disturbing attribute model to identify the stage of 31 provincial innovation systems in China. The research results show that all the RISs in maturity stage belong to the eastern developed regions, and innovation achievement capacity is significant. The RISs are widely distributed which are in the growth stage. The innovation efficiency capacity, innovation growth capacity and innovation network capacity of RISs which are in growth stage are in a high level. The provinces with the innovation system in the initial stage are mainly in the backward areas of the west, and the innovation growth capacity is better than other innovation capacities. Mastering the evolutionary stage of the RISs is helpful to promote the implementation of innovation-driven development strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid urbanization in China has induced profound changes in the relationship between urban and rural areas, especially in urban agglomerations. This paper contributes a better understanding of the mechanisms of urban-rural interactions in urban agglomerations by considering the perspective of the spatial organization of urban-rural integration (SOURI). Using the Chang-Zhu-Tan Urban Agglomeration in Central China as an example, this study used a spatial autocorrelation analysis to quantify the agglomeration and diffusion patterns of the population and firms as proxies to reveal the spatial organization pattern of urban-rural integration (SOPURI). The results showed that 1) the spatial proximity and centralization trends of SOURI were obvious in 2005–2015 in this region; 2) the urban districts of prefecture-level cities, especially Changsha, played an important role as the main centres; 3) due to diffusion effects from the central urban districts, a few county-level cities and county towns began to appear as sub-centres; and 4) the function of towns needed enhancement. Furthermore, a model of an urban-rural multi-level polycentric network was proposed to guide the optimization of SOURI in urban agglomerations with an emphasis on the three-level centres of city-town-village and networking linkages. Following the model, optimization policies for the Chang-Zhu-Tan Urban Agglomeration are discussed. • Spatial proximity of urban-rural interaction is still prominent. • Centralization trend of spatial organization of urban-rural integration is obvious. • Agglomeration effects of cities play a dominant role in urban-rural integration. • Functions of small towns need to be further improved in urban-rural integration. • Urban-rural multi-level polycentric network is an effective model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Nationwide migrations have drawn much attention from both geographical and social sciences. Compared to census-data-based studies, data collected from broadly used location-awareness devices enable us to describe migrant patterns with timely and fine spatial resolutions. Using a mobile positioning dataset, this paper first analyzes the spatial patterns of mobile-data-based active population estimation (MAPE) and aims to uncover the socioeconomic factors associated with migrant patterns based on the MAPE change around the Chinese Spring Festival of 2016. Time series analysis presents obvious regular patterns and characteristics of MAPE before and during the holiday. Results from a geographically weighted regression (GWR) model show that MAPE differences are significantly associated with the development of secondary and tertiary industries, wage levels and foreign investments. Spatial disparities of the GWR model coefficients reveal that areas in China have different degrees of association with the explanatory variables. Explanations of this spatial nonstationary phenomenon are further detailed with the perspective of a geographical background. Finally, associated social and economic development strategies among cities in China are analyzed, and policy implications regarding the newly emerged data and their insightful findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors influencing public acceptance of hazardous chemicals factory in China. By using structural equation modelling approach, perceived risk, perceived benefit, perceived fairness, trust in government and positive affect tag are examined as impact factors. Data is collected from the local public and the general public by internet-based questionnaires. The results show that NIMBY effect is significant to hazardous chemical factory because for the local public who live nearby, perceived risk has the greatest impact on the acceptance, but perceived benefit is not significant, and positive affect tag has significant influence on both perceived risk and perceived benefit. While for general public, perceived benefit is significant to the acceptance, but perceived risk not is statistically significant and positive affect tag influences perceived benefit only. The results also indicate that perceived fairness and trust in government affect the acceptance of both groups, and trust in government affect perceived fairness, perceived risk and perceived benefit. This study contributes to the management of sitting problems of hazardous chemical factory by providing understanding of impact factors on the public acceptance. Recommendations for improving public acceptance are offered at last. Highlights • For the local public, perceived risk has the greatest impact on the acceptance, but perceived benefit is not significant. • For general public, perceived benefit is the most significant impact factor influencing the acceptance, but perceived risk is not significant. • Perceived fairness and trust in government affect the acceptance of the local public and general public. • Trust in government affects perceived fairness, perceived risk and perceived benefit. • The public acceptance can be enhanced through the improvement of trust in government and perceived fairness in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Numerous machine learning-based land change models have been presented by researchers over the last two decades. To date, however, far less have simulated multiple land use classes and specific land use subclasses at the same time. In some areas of the world, it is important to simulate both of these dynamics to understand fully the drivers and consequences of land change. One important example is the process of urbanization in China, as urban policies have been developed that guide urban expansion, rural protections, and urban subclass development. This paper presents a new model integrating geographic information systems (GIS) with artificial neural networks (ANNs) to predict multiple transitions among land use types and urban subclasses in the Zhanggong District of Ganzhou city in China. We show that the model produces satisfactory goodness of fit values-based on location, quantity and spatial configuration-between simulated and observed land use maps for 2015. Our simulated future maps produced by the model for 2020 and 2025 demonstrate that transitions from farmland and forest to urban will remain the main pathway of urbanization although we predict that the rate will slow after 2025. The goals of urban planning should be aligned with land use planning according to "Combining multiple laws and regulations" in China. Taking into account the current and future land use transitions will enhance the accuracy and timeliness of land use policy making and urban land planning. For the sustainable land use in Zhanggong District, we argue for a strengthened regulation of the land market by government and believe that planning officials should guide the spatial distribution of land supply actively. Furthermore, improving the production, living and ecological functions of land resources are the key points to optimize urban land use functions and the allocation of land resources. We discuss how our model can be adapted to other areas to benefit land use management and urban planning in China. Highlights • GIS and ANNs were used to predict multiple land use transitions and urban subclasses. • A case study demonstrates that the model performs relatively well validated with several measures for goodness of fit. • The simulated maps suggest that farmland and forest are the most common candidates for urban expansion. • The methodology can be adapted to other study areas to benefit land use management and urban planning in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Urban residential land supply is both driven by and significantly influences urbanisation processes, the optimisation of which are necessary to address housing issues. At present, China's urban housing system has three major problems, namely a shortage of affordable housing, rapidly increasing prices for regular commodity housing, and an under-supply, relative to market demands, of high-end commodity housing, calling into question the effectiveness of existing land supply policies. This paper first reviews policies governing residential land supply and then considers these policies in light of findings from semi-structured interviews conducted with key actors and a survey of households in Hangzhou, a city of more than nine million in eastern China. These analyses show that although the Chinese government has undertaken steps to reform land use allocation and increase housing affordability in its cities, significant opportunities for reform remain in both affordable and commodity housing sectors. Results from this study aid in formulation of a framework for residential land supply and a dynamic model for reform for Chinese governments to undertake to integrate housing provision across a range of household income and housing type classifications. The model demonstrates how reformation of the residential land supply system through improvements to the elasticity of residential land supply, optimisation of land supply for affordable housing, deregulation of land supply for and taxation of high-end commodity housing will significantly ease housing stress within Chinese cities. Finally, international experience indicates that the Chinese government can leverage revenues to acquire or otherwise support construction of additional affordable housing, with the increased volume of activity helping to arrest housing price inflation while achieving socialist ideals. Highlights • Current Chinese national government policies are insufficient to resolve urban housing shortfalls. • Demand for affordable housing far outstrips supply in urban China. • Limits on land allocation for villas increases competition for regular commodity housing. • Competition for regular commodity housing decreases access for moderate-income households. • A dynamic model for integrated housing provision across affordable and commodity sectors is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public rental housing (PRH) projects are the mainstream of China's new affordable housing policies, and their integrated sustainability has a far-reaching effect on medium-low income families' well-being and social stability. However, there are few quantitative researches on the integrated sustainability of PRH projects. Our study tries to fill this gap through proposing an assessment model of the integrated sustainability for PRH projects. First, this paper defines what the sustainability of a PRH project is. Second, after constructing the sustainable system of a PRH project from the perspective of complex eco-system, the paper explores the internal operation mechanism and the coupling mechanism among the ecological, economic and social subsystems. Third, it identifies fourteen indices to represent the sustainability system of a PRH project, including six indices of ecological subsystem, five of economic subsystem and three of social subsystem. Fourth, it qualifies the weights of three subsystems and their internal representative indices. In addition, an assessment model is established through expert surveys and analytic network process (ANP). Finally, the paper carries out an empirical research on a PRH project in Nanjing city of China, followed by suggestions to enhance the integrated sustainability. The sustainability system and its evaluation model proposed in this paper are concise and easy to understand and can provide a theoretical foundation and a scientific basis for the evaluation and optimization of PRH projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China has undergone a dramatic transition echoed the unprecedented urbanization and economic growth since the late 1970s. The current research on urbanization has overlooked the transformation consistency between urban and rural areas. Although the Chinese central government has focused on improving rural residents' livelihood, it is still far from achieving coordinated urban–rural development. This paper provides a comprehensive assessment of China's urban–rural development transformation (URDT) based on three indicator systems, namely the urban–rural development level (URDL), the urban–rural structure level (URSL), and the urban–rural coordination level (URCL). Findings from this investigation show that universal and intense URDT has taken place in China over the last two decades. This has been accompanied by growth of URDL and URSL and deterioration of URCL. There are, however, obvious spatial disparities in the different aspects of URDT. The western and northeastern regions of China have experienced slower transformation than other regions between 1990 and 2010. Correlation analysis among the sub-index shows that coordinated urban–rural development needs a certain initial socioeconomic level and moderate changes of URDL and URSL. This paper suggests that more attentions should be paid to rural areas and lagging areas in central and western China. Given the regional disparities of URDT, the most effective way to achieve urban–rural integration in China is by taking the overall considerations of development policies of both region and urban–rural areas aimed at various urban–rural development transformation characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the level of urbanization in China now exceeding 50%, its collective rural land system is under increasing pressure, creating conditions in which there is increasing conflict between the efficient use of land for agricultural purposes and its retention as security for the rural population. This paper first examines the fundamental nature of China's collective land system by analyzing the collectivization history of China, then provides a comprehensive appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of the collective land system's role in history and the challenges it faces in modern times. The main changes needed for the current collective system are identified as (1) the establishment of a new transfer mechanism for potential collective construction land, (2) the completion of land rights verification and consolidation work, and (3) the endowment of villagers with more rights to enjoy the distribution of land incremental value. The paper's main contribution is to question the relevance of collective rural land system in contemporary China, where a shift is now taking place from one of pure economic development to one involving more social concerns, and propose potential viable amendments to integrate the need for both perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land system science provides a theoretical lens for deepening our understanding of interactions between social and environmental systems. Synthesis and integration of land system science and land use transitions are vital for advancing Global Land Project, and providing a platform for integrating knowledge from multiple fields and for translating explorative research into solution-oriented research. In the context of growing urbanization, the adoption of rural vitalization and urban-rural integrated development strategies has an impact on land use transitions in rural China. Thus, this paper has two major goals. The first is to unite the theory of human-environment interaction territorial system with Chinese rural development strategy to provide a theoretical framework to explain land use transitions against the context of rapid urbanization, including a "conflict-coordination" theoretical model of regional land use transitions, the perspectives of structural change and functional change of land system, and coupling pattern and process to adjust and control land use transitions. The second goal is to deploy the theoretical method in an attempt to advance rural development strategy via adjusting and controlling land use transitions. By using human geography to reinvigorate land system science, this paper calls for integrated theoretical approaches to comprehend land use transitions and associated regional development strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current literature about the effectiveness of land consolidation especially hollowed village consolidation (HVC) is dominated by static studies interpreting the failures and success of certain project in a specific stage. However, HVC as a complex progress takes time to take effects with social learning modifying perceptions of those affected. Based on survey data on residents' characteristics, living conditions and perceptions, and K-means Clustering Method and ANOVA analysis, this paper depicted how farmers' perceptions of HVC are changed. Under the guidance of social learning theories, this research found that farmers' acceptance of HVC gradually increased with the progressive integration of the rural community in regional development. However, inter-group differentiation could be detected, with their household characteristics. The authors argue that the decision makers should pay attention to the three-stage authority and policy foci development process in HVC program implied by social learning theory. The decision maker should respect the development procedures and underpin the key driving factors affecting rural households' satisfaction at a every stage thus ensuring the effectiveness of HVC: (stage 1) sufficient publicity, participation promotion, and stakeholder integration should be highlighted before implementation; (stage 2) communal administration, community activities, industrial development and sector integration should be given more attention to achieve better construction performance in the developing stage; and (stage 3) self-innovation, mutual coordination, community awareness, common well-being are key factors for sustainable development of newly built key settlements/communities. • Land consolidation with resettlement as a complex progress takes time to take effects, in which social learning modifies perceptions of those affected. • The paper describes the rural households' dynamic perceptions and reveal the mechanism behind changes using K-means Clustering Method and variance analysis. • The strategies with diverse focus should be mapped out in every phase of the program to ensure its effectiveness, delegating the authority from government, to local community and local residents gradually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spatial reconstruction of rural settlements is one of the important methods for coordinating the relationship between people and land in rural areas and promoting rural revitalization. Based on the theoretical framework of rural settlement space reconstruction from the perspective of rural livability and population flow, this paper took Longxi County in the loess hilly region of Longzhong in China as an example. Based on cross-sectional survey data of 213 administrative villages in 2020 as evaluation units, we analyzed rural livability and population flow intensity, and identified the types of rural settlement spatial reconstruction. The results show that: (1) The spatial differences in the rural natural environment, residential environment, economic and social environment, and overall livability of Longxi County were significant. They have significant river and road directivity. The livability of villages along the river in the middle of mountain area was better than that of villages along the hilly and mountainous in the south and northwest; (2) The population flow of Longxi County was classified into three types: cross-regional population flow, population flow within the county and population flow within the town. The trend of cross-regional population flow is significant. However, the activity of cross-regional population flow was not high, mainly with low and medium levels. The villages with strong population flow were also highly integrated, and vice versa; (3) Based on the evaluation results of rural livability and population flow, we divided the 213 administrative villages into four types of reconstruction: agglomeration and promotion type, potential advantage type, restricted expansion type, and layout optimization type. Then, we optimized and reconstructed them according to local conditions This paper provides a scientific basis for the spatial reconstruction of rural settlements in the loess hilly region of Longzhong in China. In addition, it provides a theoretical reference for coordinating the relationship between people and land, and realizing rural revitalization. • Rural livability and population flow are the keys to rural settlement spatial reconstruction. • The evaluation index system of rural livable ability is constructed and the spatial reconstruction type of rural area in Longxi county is identified. • This paper discusses the spatial reconstruction mechanism of rural settlements and puts forward the reconstruction strategy of rural settlements. • To provide theoretical reference for coordinating rural man-land relationship and realizing rural revitalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the relationship and mechanism between home ownership and residential satisfaction in urban China using a large-sample survey data from Hangzhou city. It is found that home ownership does impact residential satisfaction. The paper identifies important differences in residential satisfaction across gender, generation, and economic status. Females seem to value owning a house much more than males. The older generation and high-income people have a higher residential satisfaction of owning a home than their counterparts. The research also identifies and examines the specific channels linking home ownership and residential satisfaction. Homeowners have a higher sense of belonging, more participation in social affairs and more right to education at a nearby school for their children than renters, and thus increase the likelihood of residential satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientific and technological knowledge are increasingly becoming predominant in developing regional competitiveness and shaping the role of innovation in development. This paper focuses on the topological and spatial features of urban innovation networks in China. Using published papers and applied patents in biotechnology field from 2000 to 2012, we analyze the evolution of scientific knowledge networks (SKNs) and technological knowledge networks (TKNs). Four major findings are derived: (1) SKNs are much more complicated than TKNs in terms of size, ties, average degree and other indicators; (2) the two networks meet the scale-free networks, and the correlation analysis confirms the preferential attachment and dis-assortative traits in SKNs and TKNs; (3) spatial and temporal evolution of central nodes and networks structure show the hierarchical diffusion and contagious diffusion in both the networks; (4) multi-dimensional proximity (social, organizational, cognitive, geographical) well explains the knowledge spillover and innovation in SKNs, but it fails to explain them in TKNs. Moreover, social and organizational proximity weigh higher than the other two. The central nodes analysis helps cities better understand their position in networks. We find that comparative analysis of SKNs and TKNs contribute to recognizing the gaps of each city in innovation, which could assist in determining urban innovation policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The social and spatial patterns of ageing population in urban China illuminate the influence of the socioeconomic transformation associated with the dual economic system. Guangzhou, one of China's megacities, is used as a case study in this paper. Data from the 2010 National Census were used to examine the spatial differentiation and the related factors of ageing communities in Guangzhou. Using social area analysis, the study identified six categories of ageing communities: traditional inner-city communities, traditional danwei residential communities, commercial housing ageing communities, danwei compound ageing communities, immigrant ageing communities, and rural ageing communities. The paper analyses the reasons and processes leading to the clustering of the elderly population in each category of areas associated with distinctive spatial patterns of ageing differentiation. These patterns suggest that the socio-spatial differentiation of ageing communities is a joint outcome of urban development, housing policies, personal status and family relationships. The dynamics of both ageing in place and ageing with migration had a dual impact on the spatial, social and ecological patterns of ageing communities. The spatial differentiation of ageing communities in the study area should be taken into account when formulating urban planning and public policies. In addition, a dynamic public facility and service allocation system is also necessary to meet the needs associated with evolving socio-spatial urban restructuring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Guangdong Provincial government in China envisages co-operation between, and development of, the three cities of Shantou, Chaozhou, and Jieyang. To these ends, it has sought to mobilise the region's untapped resources through policies encouraging these cities' integration and growth. However, the policy and rhetoric of inter-city integration has not yielded concordant material outcomes. Instead, the three separate municipal governments have engaged with the policy agenda not in pursuit of co-operation and integration, but rather to take advantage of otherwise unavailable opportunities to boost their individual economic competitiveness. This paper examines the disjuncture between the rhetoric of inter-city co-operation and the material reality of competition in the Shantou-Chaozhou-Jieyang city-region. The paper takes significance first, in its critical exploration of the grounded and political processes underpinning the formation and implementation of the city-regional integration policies proliferating in China recently. The paper's second point of significance lies in its contribution to broader literature on city-regionalism and state rescaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The large-scale rural land acquisition projects for non-agricultural purposes has cast a long shadow on rural households' livelihoods in China. In this paper, by applying Sustainable Livelihood Framework and vulnerability approach, and based on our longitudinal study (2008–2017) on a land acquisition case in S village, Jining city, Shandong province, we discuss the dynamism of households' livelihood changes before land acquisition and in decade after land acquisition. It is found that households' different vulnerabilities and livelihood restorations in decade after land acquisition, are the results of their different capabilities of building various livelihood capitals. Another evident finding is that land acquisition as it is increasingly practiced with China's rapid urbanisation process has triggered risks to most rural households' livelihoods. The implications of the research indicate the necessity of local governments to guarantee for sustaining rural households' livelihoods after land acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban sprawl has attracted continuous attention from scholars since the 1970s. Though abundant studies exist, little is known regarding either the sprawl of small and medium-sized cities or the difference in sprawl degree among cities of different sizes. Taking a case of Chinese cities, this paper aims to compare sprawl degree among cities of different sizes. Using land use data and population census data from 2000 to 2010, we quantified urban sprawl by two metrics to reflect the characteristics of sprawl in quantity and morphology, respectively. We observed that small and medium-sized cities, in general, sprawled the most followed by large cities, while mega cities sprawled the least. There were also regional differences: the Eastern region had similar characteristics with the whole sample, while large cities in the Central region and mega cities in the Western region had a relatively high sprawl degree. The low commuting cost and land price in small and medium-sized cities may contribute to their high sprawl degree. In China, some institutional and economic development factors, including the loose urban planning, favorable national policy, industry-oriented growth pattern and land finance system, also have some explanatory power. According to our findings, we suggest that the sprawl of small and medium-sized cities should draw further attention by scholars and governors, especially how to deal with the sprawl problem in these cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To overcome the problems caused by the uncertainty of spatial regulations, a series of reforms have been proposed in China, although they are considered insufficient. In our study, we first analyse the inherent logic behind the spatial regulations in China from the perspective of two models (“interest politics” to “legal order”) and the context of the turn between these two models. The endogeneity and credibility thesis is adopted to explain why spatial regulation reforms that attempt to shift spatial regulation from “interest politics” to “legal order” are partial failures. This paper focuses on a case study of a "multi-plan combination" and argues that "multi-plan combinations" are spatial regulation reforms that changed “interest politics” in the current planning system to the “legal order” through uniform spatial regulation rules. The "multi-plan combination" reforms are not successful as the reform of “multi-plan combinations”, which are dominated by the Chinese central government and designed exogenously without endogeneity within governments and among the social public. Therefore, the reforms are ultimately empty institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informal land development has become a key issue in relation to land use planning in many countries. A new type of informal development, the informal gate community, has emerged and has become a new form of suburbanization in China's cities. Empirical studies about this new form remain scarce, as discussions on the slum-styled urban village still dominate the existing literature about informal development in China. The paper aims to explore the facts and factors in the new type of informal development. Looking at Beijing as a case study, analysis shows that informal gated communities have a high quality of life and good services, with public facilities and public transit. The existing institutional discrimination against migrants is a major reason why people choose informal housing, although the soaring price of formal housing is an important factor. The village-owned enterprise plays the role of business manager for the village's informal development. Its collaborations with government intuitions and state-owned enterprises blur its informal development activities and give buyers more confidence in buying informal housing. Conflicting responses to the informal development from state and local governments results in ambiguous and loose controls of informal development. As a result, local governments, villages, and residents have formed a strong informal development coalition. This coalition has created an invisible institutional barrier, making it more difficult for the state to prevent informal development. In addition, the ongoing political decentralization, economic liberalization, and market-oriented reforms seem to be bringing new challenges to the control of informal land development. For future policy, a more just and inclusive governance system is imperative for managing the suburbanization process in China's cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the National General Land Use Plan (1997–2010) came into effect in 1999, there has been no research investigating whether the farmland protection planning embedded within the top-down general land-use plans has contributed to promoting intensive utilization of urban land. This paper aims to assess the impact of farmland preservation efforts in the plans on the changes in urban land-use intensity, by focusing on two policy tools – prime farmland preservation and farmland conversion quotas. The study developed an approach to categorize and measure the change in urban land-use intensity by combining the changes in population density (in terms of population per unit of urban land area) and economic density (in terms of GDP per unit of urban land area). An ordinal dependent variable was generated based on the categories of changes in urban land-use intensity and a multilevel ordinal logit model was used in this study. The study indicates that (1) the farmland conversion quota system did not contribute to promoting urban land-use intensification between 2000 and 2010; (2) the prime farmland preservation had very limited impact on the intensity of urban land-use intensification. The prime farmland preservation would not influence urban land-use intensity when it was not high enough. The increase in the prime farmland preservation ratio in prefectural-level regions could lead to urban land-use intensification but only when the prime farmland preservation ratio was above 93%; and (3) the central government's supervision of local land-use played a significant role in promoting urban land-use intensification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the causal link running from spatial structure to productivity in Chinese prefecture regions. Specifically, we investigate whether mono- or polycentricity leads to higher productivity in the context of China. We use satellite-derived data of night-time lights as a measurement of spatial structure to avoid potential measurement errors. While our descriptive statistics show that Chinese city-regions at the prefectural level have a weak tendency towards polycentricity from 2000 to 2010, regression models reveal that a more monocentric spatial structure performs better in terms of labor productivity, a result that a stricter two-stage least square estimation supports. Thus, we advise caution for urban plans and policies encouraging polycentric urban development, which may come at the loss of economic efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared to Western countries, China's provision of affordable housing mainly focuses on supply-side subsidies. In China, the provision of affordable housing highly depends on local governments' impetus. While this, on one hand, ensures the stable provision of such housing, on the other hand, the model is disadvantageous since local governments have great discretionary power in the construction of affordable housing. Driven by economic interests, local governments often construct high-capacity affordable housing communities in remote locations, thus potentially distorting the ambitious aims and principles of China's affordable housing scheme. The empirical findings of this paper confirm that this particular spatial distribution of affordable housing has negatively affected the social interactions and life chances of its users. The key reasons behind these negative effects were found to be primarily economic motivations of local governments to construct such housing, including reducing their losses in land finance, maintaining high housing prices in central areas, pushing the price of urban land, and promoting urbanization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the constraints to achieving optimal infrastructure sustainability for mountainous townships in Southwest China. Although such townships are relatively less developed, it is well recognized that investment in infrastructure projects in less developed townships plays a vital role in China's sustainable development mission. While the benefits of infrastructure investments are usually measured by means of economic performance, their long-term sustainability performance is largely overlooked. It is therefore imperative to understand the constraints that impede infrastructure sustainability and what corrective actions can be taken. The constraints are identified in this study via exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Twenty-one townships in the mountainous regions of Southwest China were investigated by means of a questionnaire survey. The study reveals that the major constraints include four dimensions: “Economic Capacity”, “Governance and Management”, “Policy Instrument and Public Participation”, and “Local Geographic Characteristics”. Identification of these constraints provides a valuable reference for local governments to take adequate measures to ensure that their infrastructure sustainability can be improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The “China Dream” is an “Urban Dream”. Urbanization is an inevitable requirement for promoting social progress. The Chinese government sees sustainable urbanization as an engine of modernization and economic growth. And the country's urbanization has followed a unique course and is perhaps the greatest human-resettlement experiment in the world history, unprecedentedly transforming the Chinese society in a very short period of time. Yet problems have arisen during the historical process, China's unique path to urbanization has avoided many of pitfalls existing in the developing countries in Africa, Asia and South America. This paper attempts to conclude the good jobs as well as problems in China's urbanizing process which might provide successful experience for the underdeveloped nations and regions to promote urbanization. The most brilliant achievement of urbanization in China is that thousands of years' agriculture-dominated country has ended and a new urbanized country has formed, which only consumed several decades. The country's urban infrastructure, living conditions and public service for urban residents have made great improvements. The fostering urban agglomerations are considered to lead the country's socio-economic transformation and possess the greatest potential for the urbanization and economic growth in the coming decades. In general, the traditional land-centered urbanization in China is a typical “incomplete urbanization” and “low-quality urbanization”, presenting impressive characteristics of “four highs and five lows”—high investment, consumption, emission and expansion, and low level, quality, harmony degree, inclusiveness and sustainability. Undoubtedly, the traditional urbanization of China is increasingly difficult to continue and the transformation process should be speeded up as soon as possible. The country should actively explore a people-oriented new-type urbanization way, i.e. an intensive, efficient, rural-urban integration, harmonious and sustainable urbanization model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper constructs a comprehensive evaluation system of human settlements focusing on housing conditions, urban natural environments, social economy, and public infrastructure. Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis are used to analyze and rank the 2003–2013 human settlements index and create five clusters for 35 major cities in China (including municipalities, provincial capitals, and Prefecture-level cities). On the basis of four years of a spatial analysis of the human settlements index, we find that living conditions of 35 Chinese cities have significantly improved; severe air pollution persists in China, with large differences between the north and the south; weak correlation between urban human settlements and the growth rate of economic development; and the infrastructure of China's mega cities is overloaded. The results confirm and quantify growing geographic disparities and deep structural urban challenges that are associated with rapid economic growth and social change, leaving many cities in China to struggle with worsening pollution, excessive demand on existing infrastructures, and housing prices that rise faster than disposable incomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regulated exit from public rental housing (PRH) after lease expiration plays a crucial role in fair allocation of the PRH units in China. There were incidents of exit difficulty happened previously which undermined the PRH allocation and its principles of fairness and efficiency. However, very few studies have directly investigated the determinants of tenants' intention to exit. This paper adopts the analysis framework based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to explore the factors influencing tenants' intention to exit PRH from a variety of aspects including personal and family characteristics, satisfaction with allocation process, housing management, and understanding of exit policy. The research finds that the factors such as education level, family income, household size, floor area, allocation satisfaction and understanding about PRH policies have statistically significantly positive effects on intention to exit PRH. While tenants’ satisfactions with housing management, environment and neighborhood would inhibit intention to exit. As the study reveals, more attention is needed to provide skill training, build appropriate exit mechanisms and implement exit policies strictly to encourage the intention to exit and promote PRH exits in an orderly manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses changes to ecosystem services (ESS) over the past thirty years in a small part of the hinterland of Xi'an, a city of nearly nine million population in Shaanxi Province, China. Using field survey and interviews with local farmers, the study provides micro-scale exemplification of the transformation occurring around major urban growth centres in China in response both to urbanization and agricultural modernization. The effects of urban growth upon agriculture are illustrated by wholesale changes in the type of production, increasing the value of provisioning services by replacing traditional cereals cultivation with fruit, which reflects the impact of the dynamic urban market. Five different types of ESS are calculated and analyzed, taking into consideration changing land management practices associated with the principal new crops in the study area, cherries and grapes. The widespread adoption of cherries as the main cash crop has also afforded farmers an additional source of revenue from tourists visiting the area to see the Spring-time blossom, pick the fruit and obtain a ‘rural experience’ by interacting with farmers and eating local food. The increased wealth for farm households has prevented the ‘hollowing’ of villages close to the expanding metropolitan area, but longer distance commuting to work in the city is now common for younger rural residents. Detailed calculation of the changing pattern of EES reveals the significant effects not only of the introduction of new crops but also the role of particular land management practices. Further analysis of these practices is proposed to obtain better understanding of the balance between positive and negative changes to EES. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an anti-intensification phenomenon in China's economically developed areas with highly intensive cultivated land use. Deconstructing characteristics and trends of anti-intensification will help achieve sustainable production that maximizes social and economic benefits. This paper constructs an anti-intensification cultivated land use (ACLU) evaluation system to measure the ACLU state and mechanism on multiple spatial scales. Jiangsu Province in China, with a developed economy, is used as a case area to discuss ACLU's changing trends and characteristics from 2000 to 2015. Results show that Jiangsu's ACLU at the macro-regional level manifested in the input intensity has gradually slowed down. Meanwhile, the utilization level has shown a significant downward trend, and the output dimension has a negative feedback effect. At the micro-patch level of 1 km, within the 90% confidence interval, around 47.12% of the cultivated land showed an anti-intensification downward trend, and approximately 22.03% of the cultivated land showed an anti-intensification upward trend. Generally, ACLU has strong spatial agglomeration and scale attenuation law, and small scale can better reflect its changes and development trends. Besides, ACLU influencing factors show differences in different locations, regions, and scales, which may be closely related to the ACLU's complex driving mechanism oriented by man-land relationships evolution. Identifying anti-intensification phenomena and characteristics can provide new ideas for differentiated cultivated land protection, construction, and restoration measures. [Display omitted] • Anti-intensification of cultivated land use (ACLU) may threaten food security. • ACLU is a necessary stage of the sustainable intensification process. • This paper quantifies ACLU's trends and characteristics based on 1 km grid units. • 69.15% of the cultivated land in Jiangsu has a significant anti-intensification trend. • ACLU has strong spatial agglomeration and scales attenuation law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite massive new town development in megacities in China, none of the prior studies examined commuting disparities of residents of different income groups living in various types of new towns. Based on established literature on urban structure and commuting and income disparities in commuting, this paper has examined the roles of income and new town types in commuting distance, mode, and time differences. Based on Beijing's new town development context, we categorize its six major new towns into residential, national park-driven industrial, market-based industrial, and satellite new towns. Using descriptive analysis and regressions on 595 new town residents, we find that high-income commuters tend to have longer commuting distances and times and are more likely to drive to workplaces. Those living in the residential new town tend to have longer commuting distances and times. Results also show the transportation resource differences in different types of new towns. Those living in the residential new town are more likely to commute by public transit. Results also show the transportation difficulties for low-income residents who live in satellite towns. Though high-income commuters living in those towns have significantly longer commuting distances, they do not necessarily have longer commuting times than low-income people living in these towns. This study has several implications for future research and policy implications for new town development in China and other transit-dependent cities in Asia and Global South. • This paper examines commuting disparities across different types of new towns and income groups in Beijing. • High-income commuters tend to have longer commuting distances and times and are more likely to drive. • Those living in the residential new town tend to have longer commuting distances and times. • Those living in the residential new town are more likely to commute by public transit. • Results also show the transportation difficulties for low-income commuters living in satellite towns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Literature in population and development studies has examined the positive effects of rural-urban migration on the livelihoods and living standards of migrant workers. Less attention has been paid to the rural households trapped in poverty despite having family members working in the city. Drawing on a survey of rural households in the north of Jiangsu province, China, this paper examines how migration and an urban income affect the consumption patterns of poor rural households. The results confirm that among the rural poor, households with migrating members tend to have higher disposable incomes than immobile households. However, considerably higher living costs in the city compel these migrant households to be frugal and often split the family between the city and the rural home to minimize total household expenditures. Their incomes are often depleted by the costs of essential goods and services, such as housing, education, medication, transport, and other daily necessities. The findings reflect that many of China's poorest rural households are on the horns of a dilemma—having a job in the city mitigates poverty but often leads to the misery of family separation and the need to endure harsh living conditions for family members in the city. This urges policy changes to facilitate family migration and enhance rural welfare and resource provisions, especially in healthcare and education. • Migration affects the consumption patterns of poor rural households. • Urban livelihoods mitigate poverty but cause family separation and substandard living. • Policy recommendations to facilitate family migration and enhance education and healthcare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Affordable housing projects are becoming increasingly important in China, and they have remarkable social impacts. Yet, there is lack of appropriate methodologies for ex-post assessment of those social impacts. This knowledge gap will be filled in by this paper through proposing a new methodology, containing 24 assessment indicators in 3 categories, i.e. socio- economic effects (SE), mutual adaptabilities (MA) and social risks (SR). Considering inter- relationships among categories and indicators, the Analytic Network Process (ANP) method is adopted to determine the respective weight of each category and indicator, followed by the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation–based assessment model. Then, the proposed methodology is exemplified with an affordable housing project in Nanjing city of Eastern China. The results show that the project has produced quite positive social impacts, and reveal the improvement directions at category level, where SE should be the emphasis and SR has the largest potentiality. At indicator level, reducing crime cases around the studied project, providing better communication and water supply facilities of the studied project and improving the outbound public transport of the studied project are pressing issues. Finally, this paper is concluded with possible future works. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: With a background of rapid urbanization and an already vast population in China, promoting land use efficiency to curb urban sprawl has significant influence upon sustainable urban development. As the “world’s factory”, improving industrial land efficiency is pivotal in optimizing urban land use. Using a binary logistic analysis based on the data from 2000 to 2011 in Hangzhou, this paper analyzes whether the policy from the central government to promote industrial land leasing publicly at the end of 2006 reduced underdevelopment and idled land use behavior. It has been found that the industrial land use is more influenced by industry sub-type, the year of the land lease and land size than policy intervention. In light of strong government intervention, a lack of equity with a bundle of conditions for land development without strictly implementing measures that do not conform with land leasing contracts leads to one-on-one negotiation, relatively low land leasing prices compared to the secondary market land price, and low land use efficiency. Thus, this paper suggests that government intervention should focus more on promoting a more market-oriented environment with strict supervision during land development, rather than on specific conditions on each industry sub-type and factory. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Based on a representative survey of migrants in Fujian Province, a major migrant destination in China, this paper provides a more accurate and objective picture of the new generation migrants and their differences from and similarities to the first generation migrants. While the paper confirms some common understanding of the differences between the first and the second generations of migrants in the literature in terms of their individual characteristics and personal attitudes, it demonstrates that the differences between the two generations are often exaggerated by some popular perceptions of their socioeconomic status and their readiness for integration into the destination cities, and that there are still some remarkable similarities between the two generations in these aspects. The results of statistical modelling also suggest that the generational change per se plays insignificant roles in determining migrants' situation in the cities. The paper argues that two structural factors, namely the existence of rural–urban disparity and the dominance of labour-intensive industries in the economy, constrain more fundamental changes in the generational transition of migrants in China, and that the above understanding of the new generation migrants has important policy implications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The promotion of creativity is a crucial element in China's attempts to upgrade its economic structure. In this context, creative spaces, located in derelict industrial sites, have become prominent symbols of China's so-called Second Transition (Bottelier, 2007). The basic hypothesis of this paper claims that the development of these sites not only implies a restructuring of inner city brownfields, but also new modes of urban governance. Altogether eight creative spaces in China will be compared over time. The empirical research is based on qualitative interviews and an extensive evaluation of policy documents. This paper argues that the governance of creative spaces can be described as a path from informal experiments at the local micro-level to the development of a comprehensive toolset of mainstream policies at the municipal level. This happened in face of the shifting acknowledgment of creative industries from the national level. Consequently, Beijing and Shanghai became spearheads regarding the legalization of creative spaces. This paper further shows that within the institutional milieu of creative spaces, the local state acts as a very pragmatic key decision maker. In conclusion, the local state plays several decisive roles in the course of the development of creative spaces: a transformer of land use rights, a regulator in developing a legislative framework, a mediator between former operator and real estate developer, an investor and distributor of public funds, a supervisor and manager of the local economic development and last but not least a supervisor of creative spaces. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: China already has more numerous and larger cities than ever before. If the current trend holds, by 2025 it will have a predicted 1 billion of urban population and 8 megacities, each containing 10 million residents or more. China is facing enormous challenges when it comes to balancing rapid economic development with social development, sustainable use of resources and environmental protection in its fast-growing urban areas. Of the 10 most polluted cities in the world, 7 are in China. To meet these challenges, China has become a vast living laboratory for experiments on sustainable urban development. This paper reviews the use and development of city concepts and approaches regarding sustainable urban development in China. The large number of different concepts used appears to be partly due to institutional reasons and partly because they involve gradual changes in national policies. However, the data indicate that the concepts are generally becoming more comprehensive in relation to sustainable development, including social and heritage aspects. The most common barrier to the development of sustainable cities in China is still lack of clear visions, targets and indicators for sustainable development. More holistic approaches are needed for integrated urban planning, such as that used in Tangshan Bay Eco-city, a joint project between Sweden and China. This paper proposes the use of metabolic thinking and eco-cycle models derived from the discipline of Industrial Ecology to support urban planners in developing more sustainable and resource-efficient urban pathways. This will require closer cooperation between academics and practitioners and better monitoring of projects. Finally, it will be important to identify ways to scale up successful interventions in the urban area, rather than just moving from one innovative pilot project to the next. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper tries to explain one paradox: why does the division of planning power in China's metropolitan cities become more administratively centralized in the context of political decentralization? This paper argues that centralization of planning responsibilities to the consolidated metropolitan city government enables the local government to effectively mobilize land-based financial resources for fast economic development, which is a responsibility coming with the decentralization process and has been a dominating criterion when local government performance is evaluated. The centralization trend reflects an issue-oriented rationale for structuring metropolitan government and planning, which is similar to its western counterpart, but conditioned on China's view of active planning. A case study of the Yongzhou City is included to help understand the economic forces and fiscal motivation that has driven China's metropolitan government and planning reforms, and the spatial development strategies enabled or strengthened by the centralization. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Rapid socio-economic development in China has increased social inequalities in various areas. So far, there has been considerable literature which studied objective residential disparities, but little research has investigated the differences in residents' satisfaction. Using large-scale 2006 residential survey data from Dalian, this paper examines the degree of disparities from three aspects: residential location, housing characteristics, as well as residential satisfaction. Results suggest that significant income-based disparities in residential environment do exist in Dalian. An investigation of the most vulnerable group yielded results consistent with existing knowledge of inequalities. It is shown that a higher ratio of low-income residents live in less livable neighborhoods and smaller housing space, while having a lower rate of homeownership and satisfaction than other groups. Further, the paper examines how housing reform in China influences residential disparities. Results indicate that low-income residents are faced with housing affordability problems under the market system as they have a lower ratio of owning commodity housing. However, the housing market provides them the much needed housing supply and choices, and is thus likely to increase their likelihood of satisfaction. For the high-income group, although their housing space increases greatly through the housing market, it may not outweigh the various locational and pricing advantages often associated with the past work unit housing. It is found that owning commodity housing has a lower probability of residential satisfaction for them. As home ownership does not necessarily improve the residential satisfaction level for low-income residents, it is suggested that adequate provisions of low-rent housing together with strict implementation of income criteria to be eligible for applying subsidized housing might be helpful to reduce residential disparities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: China has recently seen the proliferation of regional plans. This paper tries to understand the development of regional plans from the perspective of state restructuring and changing regional governance. In contrast to conventional wisdom, which predominantly describes China''s decentralization, another aspect of ‘recentralization’ is highlighted here. The paper focuses on a case study of Yangtze River Delta Regional Plan. It is argued that the latest regional plans are used by the central government to coordinate diverse local interests to achieve a more balanced development. However, complex politics between different levels and divisions of government make this plan an impossible project to deliver central regulation on contemporary city-regions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]