DATA-DRIVEN DESIGN & URBAN RENEWAL PARADIGM IN BEIJING & SHENZHEN

In the context of the era of big data-driven design, what is the role of an urban designer in an urban renewal project? An architect, an implementer of flashy projects, or a social engineer? What means should governments and planners take to promote a paradigm shift in urban regeneration? Ultimately, it is not a question of whether a programmer or an urbanist is best suited to design cities1, but rather who can provide citizens with the right to the city through design and reshape the concept of urbanism while striving to establish some ethics in terms of data.

This paper will introduce the urban indicators of Beijing and Shenzhen, the history of their development, the need for urban renewal in Beijing and how these renewal projects affect local residents, examine the timeline of theoretical development of urban renewal in China, and at the same time, introduce case presentations, the microrenewal of the Shuangjing community in Beijing2, the social incubator in Shuewei Village in Shenzhen3, and the redevelopment of the cultural and creative town of Xidian Village in Beijing4, discusses the paradigm shift of urban renewal and the use of smart urban approaches in urban renewal, and examines how the government and urban designers use smart platforms to coordinate residents’ opinions and help them develop planning and renovation plans under different perspectives of renewal strategies, how to create affordable housing and shared spaces for young people in urban villages by means of design, and how to activate urban brownfields through landscape and ecological restoration to activate urban brownfields, attract popularity, and rebuild the relationship between people and nature.

Through theoretical studies and case studies, we can draw the results of the discussion. In a data-driven era, we still need urban planners and urban designers. The technological tools of smart cities are only one of the ways we can achieve a paradigm shift in urban renewal; digital tools are only the bricks of our time, and we still need people who can lay them. Notably, we need to ensure that these tools are open to citizens and not become a way for governments or powerful stakeholders to exert control and increase profits, and that urbanites can enrich their toolbox by adding evidence-based, socially engaged design approaches that better serve city residents. Urban designers should consider and analyze urban data and use information tools and platforms in the design process and be aware that big data has spatial implications, balance existing power relations, and be able to shape spaces and activities.

Keywords

Big data, Urban Renewal, Informal, Smart Cities, Public Engagement.

Urbanisms

Smart Urbanism, Informal Urbanism, Landscape Urbanism.

Notes

1. Data-driven urbanism: Do we still need planners? (n.d.). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/VaggyGeorgali-2/publication/316460418

2. UrbanXYZ. “Urban Governance Laboratory of Shuangjing Street Based on New Urban Science.” UrbanXYZ, 2019. http://urbanxyz.com/ sj/1-zhuye/xc46d4a7b.html.

3. Social incubation in the urban village -. World. (n.d.). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https:// www.world-architects.com/en/architecturenews/reviews/social-incubation-in-the-urbanvillage

4. Beijing Xidian Fanshi iTOWN / Change Studio. Gooood Design Network. (n.d.). Retrieved April 22, 2022, from https://www.gooood.cn/beijingxidian-funs-itown-by-change-studio.htm