China Intern Report

7/27/2019 China Intern Report

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Summer Internship Report

China Academy of Urban Planning and DesignPSU-China Innovations in Urbanization Program

By Collin RoughtonOctober 2011


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Introduction

TheopportunitytoliveandworkinChinaforasummersparkedmyimagination,shiftedmyperspective,

andpushedmetothinkaboutthelocalandglobalimpactsofChinasunprecedentedrateofeconomicgrowth

and urbanization in fresh, tangible ways. The experience was both deeply disconcerting and highly

inspirational,andIwouldnttradeitformorepracticaldomesticworkexperienceifIcould.

Workexperience

Ispent8weeksasaninternatCAUPDsBeijingoffice.IwasassignedtotheHousingdepartment,where

IresearchedthehistoryofsocialhousingpolicyintheUnitedKingdomandproducedtwocasestudiesofresort

developmentsintheUnitedStates.

Thefirstfewweeksattheofficewerealittlefrustrating.Mysupervisoraskedmetoreadtwofull-lengthtextbooksandover1,500pagesofgovernmentdocumentsonBritishhousingpolicy,butneverquiteanswered

myquestionsaboutwhyCAUPDwasinterestedinBritishhousingpolicyorwhatkindofproductmightcome

frommyreadingassignment.Ifeltliketheywereunpreparedformyarrival,andingeneralwerentquitesure

whattodowithme.

I found out later that urban

planning in China is considered a

matterofnationalsecurity,sothereis

a reluctance to share detailed

informationaboutplanningprojectsto

foreigners. This, combined with the

languagebarrierandshortdurationof

ourstay,iswhymostofusendedup

developingcasestudiesonprojectsin

othercountriesthatmightberelevant

to things theyre working on. (Side

note:Ialsolearnedthatthe

transportationplannersareinaseparatebuildingacrossthestreet,whichisgoodforfutureinternstoknowif

theyre really hoping to focus on transportation. At least at the Beijing office, there is no transportation

planningdepartmentwithinCAUPD.)

Eventually I made a presentation to a handful of co-workers that attempted to relate some of the

lessonsfromBritishhousingpolicytoeffortsbytheChinesegovernmenttodevelopastablerealestatemarket

The office is super nice.


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andleveragehousingproductionasaneconomicdevelopmentstrategy.Ialsotriedtoconvincemyco-workers

that additional intervention was required in the housing market to increase affordability and avoid the

marginalizationof thepoor. Itturnedout tobea reallyinterestingprojectforme,andIlearnedagreatdeal

aboutatopicIpreviouslyknewnothingabout.

My second assignment was researching resort developments in Colorado andFlorida. Of particular

interesttomysupervisorwasalargehousingdevelopmentnorthwestofMiami,whichappearedinoneofhis

bestpracticesbooksonresortdevelopments.ManyAmericanplannerswouldlikelyconsiderittheworstkind

ofsprawl5,000cookie-cuttersingle-familyhomesploppeddownnexttoafreewayonramp,builtaroundfive

(!) 18-hole golf courses. Portionsof the ecologically sensitive Florida Evergladeswere also filled during the

developmentprocess. Mybossexplained that theCommunist Party hoped tobuild a similar type of resort

community outside Beijing. Itwouldbeoriented towards top officialswho are beginning todesire second

homesawayfromthehustleandbustleofthecity.Hewasparticularlyinterestedinthefloortoarearatiosused

inthesouthFloridadevelopment.Iwasparticularlyinterestedinconvincinghimthatitwasabadmodelto

emulate.

ThisgatedcommunityinFlorida,developedby theProfessionalGolfAssociation[ofAmerica],wasin

mybosssBestPracticesguide.Oddlyenough,Igrewuponlyacouplehoursfromhere.

MysupervisorhadnoideathatIgrewup inFlorida,orthatpartofwhat initiallygotme interestedin

urbanplanningwasmydesiretopreventthekindofluxurygolfcoursedevelopmentsliketheoneinhisbook

frombeingbuilt.Theassignmentchallengedmetothinkcarefullyabouthowtocommunicatemyviewsonthe

topicinawaythatwaspersuasiveandrespectful.

My approachmostly involved telling stories and asking questions. Since my department was also

interestedinskiresorts,Itoldthestoryofthe1990sVailSkiResortexpansionandsubsequenttorchingofone

ofthelodgesbytheAnimalLiberationFront(theygotakickoutofthis).Iaskedquestionsabouthowmuch

watergolfcoursesrequiredonanannualbasis,andhowmuchwaterwasavailable(northernChina,wherethe

developmentwasproposed,isexperiencingseverewatershortages).Iaskedaboutthedistributionofcostsand


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benefits,environmentalimpacts,andwhetherornotitwasreallypossibleforgolfcoursedevelopmentstobe

sustainable. Isawitasmyroleasanoutsidertopresentadifferentperspectiveinafirmbutgentleway. I

havenodoubtthatmybosswilldeliverwhateveritishisbossandultimatelywhatthePartywants,butmyhope

isthatperhapsIplantedaseedortwo.

Finally, Imade a presentation about the livable streetsmovement in the United States,progress in

planning forpedestriansandbicyclists,andhowsomeof these ideasmight be transferredto thestreets of

Beijing.

Reflections

PlanninginChina:thoughtsontheprocessandthebeneficiaries

IfCAUPDatallreflectswhaturbanplanningislikeacrossChina(anditmaynot),theprofessionappears

tobemostlyabout1)makingzoningmapsfornewcitiesinAutoCAD,2)avarietyofactivitieswedcallurban

design,and3)realestatedevelopment.Allofitmustworkwithintheobjectivesoftheparty(relentlessGDP

growth)andbringgloryandprestigetogovernmentofficials.Nearlyallworkisphysicalplanning,anditsmore

ofanartthanascience.Publicengagement,asinnearlyallareasofgovernmentdecision-making,isnotapart

oftheparadigm.

Despite the fact that CAUPD is a state-

ownedenterprise,thefirmdoesnotfunctionatall

like a public agency in the United States. In

additiontoassistingwithplanninginmunicipalities

acrossChina,CAUPDalsoworksasaconsultantfor

private companies seeking to develop luxury

condominiums,resorts,andotherprojects thatdo

not have a clear public benefit. The group of

AmericaninternsinBeijingnoticedthatnearlyallof

our departments seemed to be primarily working

on luxury housing or some sort of eco-tourism

project aimed at attracting wealthy domestic and

foreign travelers. We learned that CAUPD is

transitioning frombeinga hybridofpublic/private

organizationtocompletelyprivatecompany.

Overallmyimpressionwasthatplanningin

Chinese planners are really good at makingpretty maps and visualizations.


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Chinatendedtobenefitthoseatthetopofthepyramidrealestatedevelopers,thenewuppermiddleclass,

and high-ranking government officials. Mao Zedong would not be pleased. Yet in trying to compare the

beneficiariesofplanninginChinaandtheUSIrealizedthatitsextremelyeasytobecriticalofthewayasystem

works inanother place, and lazy not tocontinually reexamine the dynamicsofonesown system. Despite

differencesinprocess,planningeffortsintheUSoftenbenefitthesameclassofpeople.Ifoundithelpfultobe

remindedofthis,eventhoughitssomewhatuncomfortabletorecognize. This isoneof thebigthingsI took

awayfromtheexperience.

PedagogyinUSPlanningEducation:TowersintheParkurbanism

OneofthethingsplanningstudentsintheUSaretaughttohateisthemodernistvisionoftowersinthe

parkurbanism.ItwasfascinatingtoseethatinChina,aslightlytweakedversionofthismodelhasactually

beenadoptedandimplementedonagrandscale.Widelyspacedconcretetowersriserepetitivelyfrompatches

ofinternalgreenspacesandurbanfreewaynetworksalloverBeijing,Shanghai,Tianjin,andShenzhen.Attempts

atfullgradeseparationbymodeviatunnelsandbridgesexistatmanylocationstofacilitatetheefficientflowof

people. AtplanningexhibitionhallsinBeijingandShanghai,renderingsandphysicalmodelsof currentand

futuredevelopmentlookominouslysimilartoLeCorbusiersPlanVoison.

Left: Rendering of an award-winning housing complex recently completed in Beijing. Right: Amodel of a (built) section of Shanghais existing urban fabric.

WhileIremaincriticalofthesuperblocks,highlyrepetitivestructures,andriversofhigh-speedtraffic,on

somelevel itworks. ThecriticaldifferencebetweenthemodernistvisionandBeijingsurbanform, Ithink,is

that insteadofthetowersbeingstrictlysingle-useasCorbusierproposed,usesaremixedatavery finegrain.


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Its sortofRadiantCitymeetsNeighborhoodUnit. AnarticleI read recentlydescribedlargeChinesecitiesas

high densitysprawl, which I think captures the feelingnicely. However, thedensities arehigh enough to

supportworld-classpublictransitandadiversityofmarkets,shops,andrestaurants.Publicexercisefacilitiesare

also integrated into the streetscapethroughout the city. Soeven though the street isin someways a very

unpleasantenvironment,itisverywellusedbypedestrians.

WhileImnotreadytoacceptthismodelofurbanismasideal,itdefinitelygotmethinkingaboutthe

puzzleofurbandesignformegacitiesindevelopingcountriesinadifferentway.Obviouslytheyhaveadifferent

setofchallengesandconstraints,butexperiencingthedistinctivefeelofseveralChinesecitieswith15+million

peoplehelpedmerecognizeandbreakoutofmydogmatism.Theexperiencedefinitelystrengthenedmyview

thaturbandesignisanextremelyimportantbutoftenoverlookedpartoftheplanningprocess.

Transportation

Beijinghassomereallyinterestingandconflictingthingsgoingonwiththeirtransportationpoliciesand

street design approach. On the one hand theyre building an extensive, efficient, world-class public

transportationsystematarapidpace.Beijinghasarichheritageofutilitarianbicycling,andasaresultnearly

everyroadinBeijingcontinuestobebikeable.Iwasalsoblownawaybytheuseofcargotricycletohaulall

kindsoffreight.Widesidewalkscompletewithaidsforthevisuallyimpairedalsolineeverystreet.Officials

haveeveninstitutedsomerelativelyaggressiveauto-tamingpoliciesinrecentyearssuchaslimitingthenumber

ofdayseachcarmaybedriveninaweekbasedonlicenseplatenumbersandbanninglargetrucksfromthe

majorityofthecity.

Left:MeridingmyBeijingbike,a1970sFlyingPigeon(builtinneighboringTianjin.) Right:Atypical

arterialinBeijing.


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Ontheotherhand,thedesignofmajorarterialsandextensivenetworkofurbanfreewaysmakesBeijing

feel extremely auto-dominated. In the hierarchy of road users, private cars are clearly at the top, and

enforcementpracticesreinforcethestatusofdrivers.Ithinkpartofthishastodowithnationalpolicydesigned

tostimulategrowthintheautoindustry,andthefactthatthosemakingthepoliciesaremorelikelytobeableto

affordacar.

The impacts of favoring automobileswere immediately apparentwhen I arrived inBeijing. The air

pollutionisnothinglessthanhorrific.Insteadofinvitingpublicspaces,thestreetsfeellikeracetracks.Theyre

noisy,ugly,anddangerous. Formethe lessonis clear:theautomobileisatremendouslydestructiveforce in

urbanenvironments andmust beaggressivelymanaged. Itsnot enough for a transportation system tobe

multi-modal; it must recognize thenon-transportation benefits of streets as public spaces, and that means

makingdrivinglessattractivethananyothermode.

Sincethisis gettingsortoflongandIvealreadysharedmymost importantreflectionsinsomedepth,Ill

keeptherestofthemtobulletpoints:

Accesstoinformation

I couldnt believetheamount of information that was inaccessible on the Internet withouta virtual

privatenetwork(VPN).IthinktheimpactofgovernmentcensorshipismuchgreaterthantheChinese

peopleacknowledgeorimagine.SometimesItendtogetallpostmodernandrelativisticaboutstuffbut

seriously,blockingpeoplesaccesstoinformationandusingfearto restrictwhattheycanandcannot

sayismorallywrong.IfeelthatmorestronglythaneverafterlivinginChina.

ChinaSpeedandthewhole-heartedembraceofmodernization

ChinaSpeed,andtheembraceofsweepingchangeingeneral,isamazingtowatch.Youcanreallyfeel

theexcitement about therapid transitionChina ismaking. Thepublicexpectsrapidandcontinuous

change,andtheyhavegreathopeforthefuture.Ofcoursethetradeoffsinvolvedwithdesigningand

buildinga high-speed rail line in six months is that sometimes the trains crashand kill hundredsof

people,whichisverytragic.Andofcoursethepublicdoesntreallygetasayinwhatthefutureholds.

Imcertainlynotsayingitsacceptable,justexcitingtowatchincontrasttooursystem.

ModernpropagandaattheShanghaiPlanningExhibition.Prettymuchsumsuptheapproach.


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SearchfortheFormula

ManyoftheChineseplannersIinteractedwithseemedtobeconvincedthatthereonebestsolution

existsformostsituations.Theyalsotendtothinkofsolutionsinquantitativeterms,likeafloorarea

ratiothatwillunlock the secretsof idealurban form. I foundit really interestingthatthey did not

considerthecontextofagivensituationtobeallthatimportant.Ithinkthismighthavesomethingto

dowiththenatureoftheireducationalsystem,whichtendstofocusmoreonmemorizationandmath?

Food

Previousinternreportshavecommentedthatthefoodgetsoldquickly. Ifoundthistobecompletely

inaccurate.ThefoodinBeijingisincredibleanddelicious.Chineserestaurantsputantonoftimeand

effort in their culinary creations. Roast duck, traditional Beijing noodles, spicy-eggy-tofu-stew, and

Sichuangreenbeanswithporkweresomeofmyfavoritedishes.Yourenevermorethan100yards

from a stand selling exotic, succulent fruit like mangosteens, yum berries (yep), dragon fruit, and

lychees. Youcangetsteamedbuns,dumplings,andotheramazingstreetfoodforthesamepriceyou

cangetasnackfromavendingmachineintheUS.Disclaimer:Itsnearlyimpossibletoeatvegetarian.I

thinkIateabout50poundsofpork.AndeverythingssoakedinoilandMSG.Butthatjustmakesitmore

delicious!

From Left: Me about to eat a scorpion, fresh fruit, and the most amazing mobile BBQ ever.

PeopleProbablymy favorite partwas gettingto know someofmy co-workersatCAUPD. Theywere really

warmandtaughtmealotaboutChinesecultureandhistory.IespeciallyenjoyedtheinsightIreceived

fromtheChineseinterns(ofwhichthereare100persummerattheBeijingbranch!)andfromourhost

GaoHan.


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Conclusion

Overall,Ihadafantasticexperience.IfeelextremelyfortunatethatIhadtheopportunitytoexperience

Beijingforasummer,especiallyduringthisparticularmomentintime.IdrecommendittoanyMURPwithan

adventuresome spiritwho is curiousaboutwhat planning is like ina radically different political andcultural

environment.

Clockwise from top left: Veggies for sale on the street, an amazing load, the CCTV towerfrom the perspective of the neighbors, and preparing to demolish a communist-era apartmentbuilding.

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