ABSTRACT As we transition into a post-carbon society, the social, environmental and economic livelihood of residents in mining communities need to consider alternative futures for the post mining landscape. This project aims to improve the living condition of post-mining residents in Panzhihua, a heavy industrial city located in a remote mountainous area in the south-western border of China. The legacy of post-industrialism cannot be solved from a stand-alone design and therefore sustainable and successful reclamation requires a multi-scale regeneration plan. Furthermore, it requires an implementation plan that outlines various time phases and scales to solve the issue from surface to the root. The regeneration plan categorizes three types of landscape within a post-mining area; community, mining plant and mine open pits. Acknowledging the existing conditions of a mining area is imperative, so an asset-based design approach will frame the design research. Phase one focuses on community based design and the restoration of science, art and social functions to improve communities living conditions. Phase two restores the ecological environment damaged by mining industries using ecological design, rehabilitation and interventionism. The design research questions China’s top-down traditional urban planning method and requires a deep understanding of the operating mode of the landscape system. By conducting a low intervention form to develop the entire plan, it can avoid to a certain extent the ineffective and vacant parts of top-down planning in the restoration of post-mining landscapes.
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