Sustainable Chinese Urban Development

Taking the Conceptual Plan of Anyang Eastern Town as the subject, the article presents key issues and learnings from the exercise carried out. The authors point out that sustainable development as a concept and practice is little known at the provincial level in China. Policy initiatives and regulations from the central government are aimed at broad environmental needs; their integration with urban planning has not yet taken place. This plan for the city of Anyang is innovative in that it is guided by principles such as the (i) creation of a city, capable of establishing livable neighbourhoods with an increased landscaped urbanism, (ii) development of an identity that connects the local cultural heritage with the new development, and (iii) provision of several typologies capable of defining neighbourhoods and accommodating varying densities, house typologies, commercial services and connectivity to the urban green space.