Chinese Cities

The Courses

Here is a detailed overview of what will be discussed during the courses

1 / Tuesday 27 January 2026

城市 - from the ancient to the new

We introduce the general spatial organization of China, some major urban and architectural traditions with example of ancient housing typologies for a few major cities. We also examine the successive generations of planning imaginaries that lead China's urbanization since the last century.

Main Reading :

Wu, Fulong. "Introduction: leaving the soil" in Creating Chinese Urbanism: Urban Revolution and Governance Changes. (p.1-21) London: UCL Press, 2022.


Additional readings :
  • Graezer Bideau, Florence. "Planning: From Model to Modules." in Realtime: Making Digital China (p. 41-59), EPFL Press 2020.
  • Ang, Yuen Yuen. How China Escaped the Poverty Trap. Cornell University Press, 2016. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctt1zgwm1j.
  • "Neville Mars - The Chinese Dream: A Society Under Construction"
  • "Brendan McGetrick & Jiang Jun - Urban China Work in Progress"

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2 / Tuesday 3 February 2026

地 - Land: governance and territorial reforms

We dive into China's governance models and land reform policies, particularly focusing on Local Government Financing Vehicles. We see the role played by land property development in the urbanization of China, and how it relates to the administration of cities.

Main Reading :

Ong, Lynette H. “State-Led Urbanization in China: Skyscrapers, Land Revenue and ‘Concentrated Villages.’” The China Quarterly 217 (March 2014): 162–79. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305741014000010.


Additional readings :
  • "Chen, Ting. 2017. State Beyond the State: Shenzhen and the Transformation of Urban China. Rotterdam: nai010 publishers."
  • "Wu, Fulong. “The Long Shadow of the State: Financializing the Chinese City.” Urban Geography 44, no. 1 (January 2, 2023): 37–58. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2021.1959779."
  • "Documentary: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chinese_Mayor"
  • Tomba, Luigi. 2014. Chapter 2 “Micro-Governing the Urban Crisis”. The Government Next Door: Neighborhood Politics in Urban China. Ithaca; London, Cornell University Press.
  • Hsing, You-tien. 2006. "Land and Territorial Politics in Urban China." The China Quarterly (187):575-591
  • Wang, June, and George S. M. Li. 2017. “State territorialization, neoliberal governmentality: the remaking of Dafen oil painting village, Shenzhen, China.” Urban Geography 38(5):708- 728.

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3 / Tuesday 10 February 2026

网 - Infrastructure and Planning Networks

We explore regional planning and infrastructure networks in China shapes national and regional development, including transportation systems (high-speed rail, metro, bike-sharing, Didi). We examine the case study of the Pearl River Delta to understand regional approaches to urban planning

Main Reading :

Rippa, Alessandro and Tim Oakes. "Infrastructural Thinking in China: A Research Agenda." The China Quarterly 255 (2023): 547-559. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/china-quarterly/article/infrastructural-thinking-in-china-a-research-agenda/C956D2B5DE1D60A1540AB8C1BA21A4E9.


Additional readings :
  • Oakes, Tim. "Geographies of infrastructure III: Infrastructure with Chinese characteristics." Progress in Human Geography 46, no. 4 (2022): 1009-1020. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/03091325211033652.
  • Hilgefort, Jason. "Belt and Road initiative: infrastructure as foreign policy." Domus, March 7, 2019. https://www.domusweb.it/en/speciali/guest-editor/winy-maas/gallery/2019/03/07/infrastructure-as-foreign-policy.html.
  • Plantin, J-C. "WeChat as infrastructure." LSE, 2018. https://researchonline.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/91520/1/Plantin_WeChat-as-infrastructure.pdf.
  • "Xiao, Zhongxian. "Conceiving Chinese Speed: Sociotechnical Imaginaries of High-Speed Rail in Post-1978 China." Made in China Journal (blog), December 22, 2023. https://madeinchinajournal.com/2023/12/22/conceiving-chinese-speed-sociotechnical-imaginaries-of-high-speed-rail-in-post-1978-china/."
  • Al, Stefan. Factory Towns of South China. Edited by Stefan Al. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2012. https://hkupress.hku.hk/pro/261.php.
  • "Hilgefort and Li in Realtime: Making Digital China. Lausanne: EPFL Press, 2020."
  • China Made Project Briefs. https://chinamadeproject.net/china-made-briefs/.

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4 / Tuesday 17 February 2026

造 - The Making of Manufacturing

We explore contemporary tech manufacturing in China, focusing on the Huaqiangbei electronics district, shanzhai culture, hardware supply chains, and electronics manufacturing. This lecture examines the 'Made in China' manufacturing ecosystem and its role in global technology production.

Main Reading :

"O'Donnell, Mary Ann. "From Bamboo Curtain to the Silicon Valley of Hardware." E-Flux, August 2020. https://www.e-flux.com/architecture/software/337686/from-bamboo-curtain-to-the-silicon-valley-of-hardware"


Additional readings :

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5 / Tuesday 24 February 2026

家 - Family: the aging city

We will look into how the spatial transformations of China have profoundly reshaped the way family and generations live together. We will see where and how in the city elderly people, kids, infants and workers usually evolves and the life of families that does not under the same roof anymore. This course will also give us the opportunity to interrogate gender representations and in Chinese cities.

Main Reading :

Yu, Hongyan, Ann Veeck, and Fang (Grace) Yu. “Family Meals and Identity in Urban China.” Edited by Dr. Yuri Seo, Dr. Angela Gracia B. Cruz, Prof. Kim-Shyan Fam. Journal of Consumer Marketing 32, no. 7 (November 9, 2015): 505–19. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-09-2014-1146.


Additional readings :
  • Rochot, Justine. “‘Our Generation’: The Making of Collective Identifications in China and Taiwan.” China Perspectives, no. 2022/1 (March 1, 2022): 3–7. https://doi.org/10.4000/chinaperspectives.13469.
  • Rochot, Justine. “New Perspectives on Aging in Contemporary China… and Beyond.” Gis Asie (blog). Accessed January 21, 2025. https://www.gis-reseau-asie.org/en/article/new-perspectives-aging-contemporary-china-and-beyond.
  • Hanser, Amy. 2005. “The Gendered Rice Bowl: The Sexual Politics of Service Work in Urban China.” Gender and Society 19(5):581-600.

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6 / Tuesday 10 March 2026

移 - Migrations: becoming urban

We analyse China's historical and contemporary migration patterns, focusing on the hukou system and the experiences of urbanization for hundreds of millions of people. We also investigate the formation of urban villages and the absorption of the rural within Chinese urban areas.

Main Reading :
  • "Film: Last Train Home (Lixin Fan, 2009; released internationally 2010–2011). Available to stream or find online (e.g. PBS, educational platforms, DVD)."

Additional readings :
  • "Franceschini, Ivan. “The Urbanisation of People: A Conversation with Eli Friedman.” Made in China Journal (blog), June 13, 2022. https://madeinchinajournal.com/2022/06/13/the-urbanisation-of-people/"
  • Liu, Tao, and Qiujie Shi. 2020. "Acquiring a Beijing hukou: Who Is Eligible and Who Is Successful?" The China Quarterly 243: 855-868.
  • "Movie « 6th generation » movie directors : Jia Zhangke - 24 City / Jia Zhangke - the world /Wang Xiaoshuai - Chinese Portrait"
  • [ChengZhongCun, in-formality](https://www.in-formality.com/wiki/index.php?title=Chengzhongcun_(China)"
  • "Bach, Jonathan P. G. “Shenzhen: From Exception to Rule.” In Learning from Shenzhen: China’s Post-Mao Experiment from Special Zone to Model City, edited by Mary Ann O’Donnell and Winnie Won Yin Wong. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2017. DOI:10.7208/chicago/9780226401263.003.0002."
  • "O’Donnell, Mary Ann. “The End of an Era? Two Decades of Shenzhen Urban Villages.” Made in China Journal (blog), December 1, 2021. https://madeinchinajournal.com/2021/12/01/the-end-of-an-era-two-decades-of-shenzhen-urban-villages/."
  • "Ding, Yannan. Urban Informal Settlements: Chengzhongcun and Chinese Urbanism. Palgrave Macmillan, 2022."
  • "Wong, Winnie Won Yin. Van Gogh on Demand: China and the Readymade. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013."
  • "Chen, Junyao and Ke Qi. Urban regeneration with the intervention of industrial transformation and curatorial ideas: A Case Study of Dafen Village, Shenzhen. Telematics and Informatics Reports 1-4 (2021) 100004."
  • "Wang, Xiang. Permits, Points, and Permanent Household Registration: Recalibrating Hukou Policy under "Top-Level Design." Journal of Current Chinese Affairs 49, no. 2 (2020): 186–210. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1868102619894739."

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7 / Tuesday 17 March 2026

创 - Planning for Innovation

We examine China's planning systems for innovation — from 5-year plans and S&T policy to the rise of smart cities and AI governance. Song Ziqian's presentation on AI and urban policy opens a first-hour discussion on how Chinese cities are deploying AI as an instrument of urban management. We will look at a case study of 'mass entrepreneurship' policy and the cooptation of the maker movement.

Main Reading :
  • Wang, Jing. "The Makers Are Coming! China's Long Tail." In Handbook of Cultural and Creative Industries in China, ed. Michael Keane. Edward Elgar, 2016.

Additional readings :
  • "14th Five-Year Plan — Part 8: Innovation-Driven Development (pp. 88–100)." CSET translation. https://cset.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/t0284_14th_Five_Year_Plan_EN.pdf
  • "Medium- and Long-Term Plan for S&T Development (2006–2020)." Full English translation. https://china-us.uoregon.edu/pdf/final%20print%20version.pdf
  • "Innovation Under Pressure: China's Semiconductor Industry at a Crossroads." American Affairs Journal, Feb 2026. https://americanaffairsjournal.org/2026/02/innovation-under-pressure-chinas-semiconductor-industry-at-a-crossroads/
  • Ding, J. "Deciphering China's AI Dream." Future of Humanity Institute, 2018. https://www.fhi.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/Deciphering_Chinas_AI-Dream.pdf
  • Liang, Fan et al. "Constructing a Data-Driven Society: China's Social Credit System." Policy & Internet 10(4), 2018.
  • Shao, A. "The 'City Brain' and Algorithmic Governance in China." Urban Studies 59(5), 2022.
  • Renaud, Clément. "Le maker : construction d'une figure politique de l'innovation en Chine urbaine." Espaces Temps, 2019. https://www.espacestemps.net/en/articles/le-maker-construction-dune-figure-politique-de-linnovation-en-chine-urbaine/

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8 / Tuesday 24 March 2026

Session supprimée

Séance de rattrapage : mardi 28 avril 2026, 10h15–12h15, bâtiment B (56, rue des Saints-Pères), salle 305.


8 / Tuesday 31 March 2026

闹 - Ecological Civilization (and Its Hiccups)

We examine how Chinese cities govern environmental risk — from floods and earthquakes to ecological degradation — and how citizens contest the distribution of that risk. Case studies pair state response with citizen resistance: Sichuan earthquake reconstruction, Wuhan sponge city and the East Lake movement, NIMBY protests against chemical plants and incinerators, and dam resettlement.

Main Reading :

Chen, Jia-Ching. "Social-Environmental Dilemmas of Planning an 'Ecological Civilisation' in China." In The Routledge Companion to Planning in the Global South. Routledge, 2017.


Additional readings :
  • Crawford, A.O. "Shengtai Wenming: What China's 'Ecological Civilisation' Actually Means." Substack, 2023. https://aocrawford.substack.com/p/shengtai-wenming
  • Schrag, Jacque. "How Does Water Security Affect China's Development?" ChinaPower, 2020. https://chinapower.csis.org/china-water-security/
  • "Glossary: Decoding How China Talks about Energy and Climate Change." Carbon Brief, 2025. https://interactive.carbonbrief.org/glossary/china/
  • Monjon, Stéphanie et al. "Understanding 'Ecological Civilization' According to China." IDDRI, Sep 2021.
  • Ho, Peter. "Embedded Activism and Political Change in a Semiauthoritarian Context." China Information 21, no. 2 (July 1, 2007): 187–209. https://doi.org/10.1177/0920203X07079643.
  • Abramson, Daniel B. & Yu Qi. "Urban-Rural Integration in the Earthquake Zone: Sichuan's Post-Disaster Reconstruction and the Expansion of the Chengdu Metropole." Pacific Affairs 84, no. 3 (2011). https://www.jstor.org/stable/23056187
  • Wilczak, Jessica. "Leveraging Land Values for Rural Development in China after the Sichuan Earthquake." China Information (2020). https://doi.org/10.1177/0920203X20928903
  • Xu, Feng. "China's Vision for Developing Sichuan's Post-Earthquake Countryside: Turning Unruly Peasants into Grateful Urban Citizens." The China Quarterly (2014).

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9 / Tuesday 7 April 2026

层 - The Folded City

Two arcs. First: the Chinese stack — how writing, code, and platforms became the operating system of Chinese cities, from the Great Firewall to WeChat to the COVID health code. Second: sinofuturism as an aesthetic and cultural formation produced by youth in the platform city — from Bilibili's danmu to shamate factory dormitories, from punk basements to idol fan clubs. The question throughout: who builds urban space when the stack owns the ground?

Main Reading :

Hao Jingfang. "Folding Beijing." Uncanny Magazine, 2015. https://uncannymagazine.com/article/folding-beijing-2/ (Hugo Award 2016)


Additional readings :
  • Jean-Christophe Plantin & Gabriele de Seta. "WeChat as Infrastructure." Chinese Journal of Communication, 2019.
  • Gabriele de Seta. "Gateways, Sieves and Domes: On the Infrastructural Topology of the Chinese Stack." International Journal of Communication, 2021.
  • Dino Ge Zhang. "Speed Politics of Danmu." Ch. 9 in Renaud et al., Realtime: Making Digital China, EPFL Press, 2020. https://realtimechina.net
  • Nathanael Amar. "Runaway" (江湖大逃亡). In (Un)Locked: Memories of Wuhan, ed. C. Renaud.
  • Ou Ning. "COVID-19: A Hubei Experience." In (Un)Locked: Memories of Wuhan, ed. C. Renaud, p.131.
  • Nathanael Amar. Scream for Life: Rock Music in Contemporary China. PUR, 2022.
  • Liu Cixin. "The City of Silence." In Invisible Planets, ed. Ken Liu. Tor, 2016.
  • Chen Qiufan. "The Torn Generation: Chinese Science Fiction in a Time of Crisis." LARB China Channel, 2015.
  • Chen Qiufan. Waste Tide. Trans. Ken Liu. Tor, 2019. [novel — excerpts]

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10 / Tuesday 14 April 2026

外 - Abroad: The export of the Chinese city

We examine China's global urban influence through a central question: when China exports its urban model, what actually travels — and what doesn't? Starting from China's changing international posture, we trace the Shenzhen/Shekou model as both material template and ideological device, then follow its export through the BRI and SEZs abroad — with Djibouti as deep case of 'deviation.' We close with the counterflow: African traders in Guangzhou's Xiaobei district, and what 'low-end globalization' reveals about the limits of top-down urban projection. Second part: case study — biography of a solar panel, tracing a global supply chain from Wuxi and Baoding to the world.

Main Reading :

Huang, Zhengli, and Andrea Pollio. "Between Highways and Fintech Platforms: Global China and Africa's Infrastructure State." Geoforum 147 (December 1, 2023): 103876. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2023.103876.


Additional readings :
  • "Zhou, Taomo. "Revolution Offshore, Capitalism Onshore." Made in China Journal, August 12, 2021. A backstory of the BRI told through the voyages of the Minghua ship — object biography meets geopolitics."
  • "Wan, Yan, Lujia Zhang, Charlie Qiuli Xue, and Yingbo Xiao. "Djibouti: From a Colonial Fabrication to the Deviation of the 'Shekou Model.'" Journal of Urban History 46, no. 1 (2020): 192–215."
  • "Li, Zhigang, Laurence J. C. Ma, and Desheng Xue. "An African Enclave in China: The Making of a New Transnational Urban Space." Eurasian Geography and Economics 50, no. 6 (2009): 699–719."
  • "Mathews, Gordon, and Yang Yang. "How Africans Pursue Low-End Globalization in Hong Kong and Mainland China." Journal of Current Chinese Affairs 41, no. 2 (2012): 95–120."
  • "Bunnell, Tim. "China at Large, Chinas for Comparative Conversation." Urban Geography 43, no. 10 (November 26, 2022). https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2022.2140968."
  • "Wakabi, Wairagala, and Tony Roberts. "Smart City Surveillance in Africa: Mapping Chinese AI Surveillance Across 11 Countries." Research report, March 2026."
  • "Chen, Siyu. "The Soft Power of Hard Tech — The 'Shenzhen Model' as an Ideological Device." Journal of Urban Technology, 2024."
  • "Bräutigam, Deborah, and Xiaoyang Tang. "African Shenzhen: China's Special Economic Zones in Africa." Journal of Modern African Studies 49, no. 1 (2011): 27–54."
  • "Fei, Ding, and Chuan Liao. "Chinese Eastern Industrial Zone in Ethiopia: Unpacking the Enclave." Third World Quarterly 41, no. 4 (2020): 623–644."
  • "Giannecchini, Philip, and Ian Taylor. "The Eastern Industrial Zone in Ethiopia: Catalyst for Development?" Geoforum 88 (2018): 28–35."
  • "António, Nelson, and Ma Shaozhuang. "China's Special Economic Zone in Africa: Context, Motivation, and Progress." African Studies 74, no. 3 (2015): 367–385."
  • "Tagliarino, Nicholas K., et al. "Compensation for Expropriated Community Farmland in Nigeria: An In-Depth Analysis of the Laws and Practices Related to Land Expropriation for the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos." Land 7, no. 1 (2018): 23."
  • "Lawanson, Taibat, and Muyiwa Agunbiade. "Land Governance and Megacity Projects in Lagos, Nigeria: The Case of Lekki Free Trade Zone." Area Development and Policy 3, no. 1 (2017): 114–131."
  • "Jordan, Austin. "Setting the Record Straight on China's Overseas Infrastructure Investments." Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. https://fairbank.fas.harvard.edu/research/blog/setting-the-record-straight-on-chinas-overseas-infrastructure-investments/."

View the slides


11 / Tuesday 21 April 2026

Session supprimée

Séance de rattrapage : mardi 28 avril 2026, 10h15–12h15, bâtiment B (56, rue des Saints-Pères), salle 305.


11-12 / Tuesday 28 April 2026

终 - Final Presentations

A 4-hour double session (8h–12h15, replaces cancelled Apr 21 and Mar 24 sessions) entirely dedicated to final group presentations. Brief intro, then 7–8 groups present (~10 min each + Q&A), with a break between the two séances.