Towards collaborative planning: deliberative knowledge utilisation and conflict resolution in urban regeneration in South China

Abstract

Urban regeneration in post-reform China has become a fertile ground for the transition towards collaborative planning, which serves as a powerful tool for managing conflicts and addressing complex urban challenges. This article aims to delve into the micro-level processes that underpin the emergence of collaborative planning in practical urban regeneration projects in China. By shedding light on these micro-level processes of conflict resolution, we aim to provide a deeper understanding of how collaborative planning is implemented within the Chinese authoritarian context. Deliberative knowledge utilisation is intricately interwoven with the process of problem framing, exerting a significant influence on how conflicts are approached and ultimately resolved. We employ framing analysis as an analytical approach to demonstrate how problem framing is shaped by deliberative knowledge utilisation and is discursively constructed, drawing on empirical studies of the contentious Enning Road case in Guangzhou.

Regarding the problem framing related to the legitimacy of demolition and planning, institutional knowledge pertaining to planning leg islation and administrative procedures was intentionally wielded by the media and local residents to challenge the legitimacy of demolition. Concerning the problem framing related to the preservation of historic buildings, local knowledge was actively harnessed and deliberately employed by residents and the media to underscore the historical and cultural significance of the neighbourhood. Regarding problem framing centred on resistance to resettlement and eviction, residents intentionally incorporated institutional knowledge when composing and submitting petition letters. These three lines of problem framing, grounded in deliberative knowledge utilisation, significantly impact power dynamics and facilitate the incremental transition towards collaborative planning, which emerges as a gradual process marked by experimentation and the resolution of conflicts.

Acknowledgement

This work was funded by the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (No. 2021A1515110276), Guangzhou Philosophy and Social Sciences (No. 2020GZYB54), and Guangdong Philosophy and Social Sciences (No. GD19YYS07).

Notes

1 In March 2010, a group of students from various universities in Guangzhou, along with a few societal volunteers, established the ‘Academic Focus Group of Enning Road’ (referred to as the ‘Focus Group’ hereafter). The group members come from diverse academic backgrounds, including urban planning, architecture, sociology, anthropology, economics, geography, journalism, law, art, and more.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Xiaohong Tan

Xiaohong Tan, Dr.-Ing., is a Researcher at the School of Architecture and Urban Planning at Guangdong University of Technology. Her research interests are centred around urban regeneration, urban governance, public participation, social learning, and informal housing in China. Presently, she is involved in researching social innovation, artistic intervention, and heritage preservation in the Chinese context.

Uwe Altrock

Uwe Altrock, Dr.-Ing., is a Professor of Urban Regeneration and Planning Theory at the University of Kassel, School of Architecture, Urban and Landscape Planning, Institute for Urban Development. His research interests are urban regeneration, urban governance, planning theory, megacities, and suburban development. Currently, he is the head of the DFG-funded research group FOR2425 Urban expansion in times of re-urbanization – new suburbanism?

Xiaowei Liang

Xiaowei Liang, PhD, is a Lecturer at the School of Culture Tourism and Geography, Guangdong University of Finance and Economics in China. She has pursued research on urban regeneration as well as urban planning and urban governance. Currently, she is engaged in research on land policies, the urban redevelopment scheme and land development rights within the context of China’s urban-rural dual-track land system.