Shenzhen ― From Factory of the World to World City

The spectacular story of Shenzhen is well-known: the former fishing village became a New Town in 1980 when the central Chinese government gave it the status of Special Economic Zone. Shenzhen soon became a metropolis and a prototype for both economic andurban reform within China. Now the time has come for Shenzhen that is an inevitable part of the life cycle of any fast growing New Town in the world: the city needs to explore its own identity anew and define the next phase of development. Shenzhen has been raising eyebrows for years: its fast urbanization process causes many social and ecological problems such as a massive floating population, a shortage of land and water resources, and deterioration of the environment. What will be the next step? This book will provide both a detailed overview of Shenzhen's current planning issues and illustrate viable solutions, by authoritative theorists and designers from China and the Netherlands, including Huang Weiwen, Doreen Liu, Tat Lam, Li Jinkui, Arnold Reijndorp, Ronald Wall and Linda Vlassenrood.