{"id":39824,"date":"2026-03-17T18:02:40","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T10:02:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/?post_type=school_news&p=39824"},"modified":"2026-03-19T17:45:02","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T09:45:02","slug":"building-climate-resilient-cities-the-future-of-urbanisation-and-sustainability-in-china","status":"publish","type":"school_news","link":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/school_news\/building-climate-resilient-cities-the-future-of-urbanisation-and-sustainability-in-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Strategic Research Theme: Urbanisation, Sustainability and Governance"},"content":{"rendered":"

An innovative focus on the interface between two of China\u2019s most pressing challenges \u2013 urbanisation growth and climate change impacts \u2013 can lead to effective solutions to help resolve both issues, and multilateral collaboration will be the key to success, explains the team behind this Strategic Research Theme of the Faculty.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

As China\u2019s development continues to gather pace, so too do the challenges facing the country, in particular urbanisation and climate change. \u00a0For the first time in history, the majority of Chinese people \u2013 estimated at 67% \u2013 now live in urban settlements. \u00a0The flow of the population from the countryside to cities is putting the country under increasing pressure on two fronts. \u00a0On the one hand, larger populations concentrated in cities mean higher energy consumption and more carbon emissions. \u00a0On the other hand, the speed and scale of climate change in the wider Asia-Pacific region is compounding the threats to China and the surrounding region\u2019s environment, economy and society by making it more difficult to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and counter the impacts of climate change. \u00a0Bridging the gap to find solutions to both of these interconnected issues is the challenge being addressed by the Strategic Research Theme (SRT) Urbanisation, Sustainability & Governance<\/em>, one of the four SRTs that the Faculty of Social Sciences (FoSS) has introduced to drive its research development and strategic directions.<\/p>\n

China: Leading in both Fossil Fuels and Renewables <\/strong><\/p>\n

Since the beginning of this century, China\u2019s CO2 emissions from fossil fuels have risen steadily, accounting for 31% of the global total in 2021, more than double the level of the next biggest single emitting country, the United States (14%). \u00a0In coal consumption as well, China leads the world, accounting for 54% of coal use globally in 2021, compared with 13% in India, the next biggest consumer.<\/p>\n

On a per capita level, however, the US is the largest polluter, at 14.2 metric tonnes per person in 2021, almost double China\u2019s 7.3 metric tonnes per person.\u00a0 While China\u2019s use of wind, solar and hydropower is increasing, coal consumption is increasing too.\u00a0 In the northern part of China, which is the country\u2019s coldest region, coal has long been entrenched as the main fuel source, as this is also the region where coal mining is concentrated.\u00a0 China\u2019s President Xi Jinping has committed to reaching carbon peaking by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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A New, Dual-Approach Strategy<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Historically, the phenomena of population growth in China\u2019s cities and the increasing impact of climate change have been investigated separately, but the connectedness of the issues indicates that the most effective response will be one that addresses both urbanisation trends and climate change mitigation. For example, while flooding in China\u2019s seven biggest urban centres, which are home to more than 750 million peoples expected to increase by up to 19-fold by the year 2050, China\u2019s cities are also increasingly considered promising sites for climate action for the very fact that their high densities and agglomeration economies are seen as well suited to technological innovation and behavioural change. This dual approach is at the heart of the ground-breaking strategy proposed by Professor George C.S. Lin, Chair Professor of Geography and Associate Dean (Research) of the Faculty of Social Sciences, and Professor Wai-Fung Lam, Professor of Politics and Public Administration and Director of the Centre for Civil Society and Governance, and their team in their SRT.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince climate change affects every aspect of our lives, addressing it requires joint efforts from all sectors of society,\u201d the team writes in their SRT outline.\u00a0 \u201cGovernments, the private sector, civil society, and individuals must collaborate to create systemic and lasting change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Building on FoSS Expertise<\/strong><\/p>\n

The team sees the Faculty of Social Sciences\u2019 established expertise in the fields of urban governance and sustainability as a strong foundation for leadership, and it aims to enhance the Faculty\u2019s reputation in these areas.<\/p>\n

The SRT outline states: \u201cThe overarching goal and objectives are to develop this Faculty as a world leading centre of excellence in the research, training and education, knowledge exchange and transfer and community engagement in the area of urbanisation, sustainability and governance.\u201d<\/p>\n

From this base, the team will build upwards and outwards, encompassing local and regional expertise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are going to identify successful pathways \u2013 local trajectories \u2013 of carbon emission reduction, or what we call sustainable urbanisation,\u201d explains Professor Lin.<\/p>\n

The collaboration network established by Professor Lin goes beyond academia to encompass government leaders, planners, practitioners, industry and business sectors, NGOs and ordinary people, as part of a wide-ranging information-sharing and networking ecosystem.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have mobilised a team \u2013 multidisciplinary, multi-institutional and international \u2013 for a proposed project of HK$75 million for five years, involving seven key cities and regions in China,\u201d says Professor Lin.<\/p>\n

The plan also reaches into the future pipeline of talent and aims to train a new generation of students and professionals in urban, sustainability and governance fields.<\/p>\n

A Wide-Ranging and International Team<\/strong><\/p>\n

The team will harness blue-sky research as well as practical, policy-oriented knowledge creation to produce strong and effective impacts at the local, national and international levels.\u00a0 Professor Lin plans to create blueprints for success based on proven pathways, including research outputs, the organisation of a public policy forum and a wide-ranging white paper on the subject of implementation and governance of nature-based solutions to building climate resilient societies.<\/p>\n

The depth and breadth of input positions the SRT for success and Professor Lin is confident that the results will be impressive and impactful.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe could make a significant difference,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Contributing writer: Liana Cafolla<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","school_new_categories":[],"school_news_tag":[],"thought_leadership_category":[794],"department_category":[],"class_list":["post-39824","school_news","type-school_news","status-publish","hentry","thought_leadership_category-research-insights"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/school_news\/39824"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/school_news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/school_news"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"school_new_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/school_new_categories?post=39824"},{"taxonomy":"school_news_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/school_news_tag?post=39824"},{"taxonomy":"thought_leadership_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/thought_leadership_category?post=39824"},{"taxonomy":"department_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.socsc.hku.hk\/tc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/department_category?post=39824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}