CSSN-Opportunities, challenges coexist in urban development

Opportunities, challenges coexist in urban development

Author : Source : Chinese Social Sciences Today 2016-01-26

On Dec. 26, Shanghai Jiaotong University (SJTU) released the 2015 Indices of Urban Development in China. Data shows that under the “new normal,” most metropolises are in a stable state of development. The report ranked cities in terms of population, economy, living standard, culture and intelligence. Moreover, it aimed to give a comprehensive account of the status quo, trends, challenges and coping strategies of metropolises. “In the next five years, urban agglomeration will continue to multiply, greater attention will be paid to living standards, uncertainties surrounding urban industrial transformation will loom large, and ‘humanistic spirits’ and ‘intelligence’ will become the central themes of China’s urbanization,” said Liu Shilin, director of the Institute of Urban Science at SJTU. However, emerging metropolitan areas face a number of difficulties, “such as lack of creative spirit and rigidified administrative mechanisms,” said Liu Xinjing, a research fellow at the institute.

Editor: Yu Hui