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Driving renovation: A comparative research project in urban regeneration across cities in China
Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal,
17
(2),
172-189
(2023)
Abstract
Post-industrial sites in Chinese cities are being redeveloped as catalysts for urban regeneration, often tuning into the creative cultures of these cities to provide platforms for creative enterprises to flourish. The success of these projects in driving the development of China’s creative economy, however, has led to many imitative redevelopment projects, creating a blueprint for the format of industrial zones and cultural parks in cities. Many recent urban renewal projects have placed great emphasis on commercial and practical aspects of implementation and creative practice but have failed to respond to the different contexts of each location within the design and planning, and therefore performed poorly in providing opportunities for developing local enterprise or addressing social welfare needs. A recent funded research project has been conducted by an international cross-disciplinary team that is seeking different opportunities for developing relevant creative industries while retaining cultural and industrial heritage. The project focuses on regional culture and, with use of new methodologies, studies its impact on urban regeneration. By working with participants who are both site users and developers, this paper explores the research conducted so far and offers initial findings. Findings include that regenerations should integrate the characteristics of historic industrial sites with the new requirements of the creative industries. The major stakeholders whose impact on urban regenerations have also been identified and the most important factors for successful transformations from heavy to creative industry are discovered to be local geography, history, culture, politics, economy and ethnography.
Keywords: industrial heritage; ethnographic research; participatory methods; post-industrial; urban regeneration
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Fang Bin Guo Dr Fang Bin Guo holds BA/MSc/PhD degrees in industrial design. He is a reader and teaches a BSc in product design engineering, and supervises PhD students’ research at Liverpool John Moores University, UK (LJMU). His major research incorporates high design education, human-centred design in contemporary digital and maritime industries and urban regeneration, in particular the study of human factors and cognitive ergonomics and its application in new product development.
Emma Roberts Dr Emma Roberts PhD, BA (Hons) is Associate Dean for Global Engagement and Reader in History of Art and Design at Liverpool John Moores University, UK (LJMU). She also heads the BA (Hons) History of Art and Museum Studies course at LJMU. Emma is the author of several academic books (Art and the Sea [2022], Jamaica Making [2022], Who Do You Think You Are? The Asia Triennial Manchester [2018], The Public Sculpture of Cheshire & Merseyside [2012], The Liverpool Academy: A History and Index [1997]) as well as numerous journal articles and conference papers. The Public Sculpture of Cheshire & Merseyside was nominated in April 2013 for the William M. B. Berger British Art History Prize for the best British art history book.
Xiaochun Zhan holds a BA and MA in architectural interior design. She is currently pursuing her PhD at Liverpool John Moores University. Her research primarily focuses on urban regeneration, specifically within post-industrial areas, and explores the influence of environmental psychology and emotional design on transformation. Xiaochun has authored several articles in prestigious international journals, including the Journal of Urban Design and Tourism Recreation Research. She has also been invited to present her research at major academic symposia in the field of human factors research, such as the International Conference on Human Factors and Applied Ergonomics, and has been published by Springer in conference proceedings.
Kevin Johnston has been a Senior Lecturer in Marketing, Strategy and Media at the School of Engineering at Liverpool John Moores University since 2002. Formerly, he was Senior Lecturer in Marketing and Strategy at Derbyshire Business School, University of Derby, UK. Kevin holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (2006), a Diploma from the Chartered Institute of Marketing (1994), a Master’s degree in business administration, University of Bradford, UK (1990) and BA (Hons) (1987) in computer science from the University of Kent at Canterbury, UK. He is part of the international AHRC/Newton Fund team that received £250,000 in funding to work with Chinese partners to research the urban regeneration of former industrial areas.
