DENMARK AND CHINA

COLLABORATE ON URBAN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

MEGA CITIES: Danish architects and Chinese universities collaborate to develop sustainable solutions to intense urbanisation in China

Over the next 20 years, more than 400 million Chinese are expected to move from rural to urban areas. To cities already packed with millions of people, but which will soon become mega-cities with populations similar to medium-sized countries. In a few years, Tokyo’s 25 million population will be surpassed by Shanghai with 40 million. At the same time, the Chi-nese government has set the objective that living conditions must be significantly improved. Homes must have their own bath and toilet, electric lighting, heating in winter and cooling in summer, and have connections to the transport network. All of this creates immense pressure on the consumption of natural resources.

Resources

Prior to this year’s Venice Biennale, a unique collaboration was established between four recently established Danish architectural firms and four of China’s most prominent universities. The question they aim to answer is: How can China fulfil its ambitious project to create better living conditions for its population without exhausting necessary resources?

The collaboration, involving Chi-nese universities in Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai and Xi’an, entitled Co-Evolution, has resulted in four visionary proposals for sustainable city development addressing a wide range of economic, environmental, social and cultural problems associated with the rapid urbanisation taking place in China. The projects are not only innovative and holistic in relation to sustainable development, but also take account of the unprecedented scale and speed of China’s urban development.

Method

The projects were presented in Venice and attracted considerable attention, especially because of the close collaboration on an interdisciplinary level between architects, engineers, city planners and sociologists –something that is not always easy to implement when different cultures meet.

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Magic Mountains
Team: Architectural firm Cobe and Chongqing University
The project proposes a green, new business district which resembles the city’s natural skyline and is formed as mountain tops. The organic forms are dwellings and densely built urban centres connected via a system of paths. The valleys are green and contain systems for water treatment and energy supply. The dense built-up area also reduces total energy consumption.

City wall
Team: Architectural firm Transform and XAUAT University, Xi’an

The project proposes a new city wall for Xi’an around the existing wall. Xi’an, which contains China’s most historically important city buildings, is experiencing heavy pressure from mass tourism. The project shows how the inner city can be relieved while preserving the impression of a dense city core. The new wall will provide the city with transport, hotels, parks and information centres.

Performative Urbanism
Team: Architectural firm Cebra and Tsinghua University

The project is based on exploiting around 10 million m3 of polluted soil from a previous industrial area, which will be used in the production of bricks for a green new local city which will be energy self-sufficient and create local jobs.

Shanghai SubCity
Team: Architectural firm Ef fekt and Tongji University

The project combines urban living with exceptional natural surroundings. To ease the pressure on Shanghai, the local authorities are planning a number of peripheral sub-cities around Shanghai. The project proposes a densely built new SubCity in a beautiful eco-park setting. The project is designed to look like a giant ’Che’ –the Chinese character for car. The recreational park surrounding the town will supply the inhabitants with renewable energy and water. The park also functions as a giant geothermal plant which heats the town during winter and cools it during summer.