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Ordinary City - Ordinary Lives? Paradox of Modern Urban Development: Case of the Shanghai Expo, 2010, 'Better City, Better Life'

Silvennoinen, Kia LU (2016) SGED10 20161
Department of Human Geography
Human Ecology
Abstract
Urban questions relating to sustainable future have become ever more relevant in the 21st Century, with more than half of the world’s population residing in cities. Many cities are trying to showcase their international image as an economic centre that is simultaneously sustainable and all-inclusive. However, in some cases this international image-creation functions as a tool to generate profits, and comes to crossroads with ordinary city life. Departing from this paradox, the study takes a critical approach for understanding the urban landscape of Shanghai. A configuration of Molotch’s growth machine theory and Robinson’s ordinary city are used as frameworks to discuss geographical social and environmental (in)justices in relation to... (More)
Urban questions relating to sustainable future have become ever more relevant in the 21st Century, with more than half of the world’s population residing in cities. Many cities are trying to showcase their international image as an economic centre that is simultaneously sustainable and all-inclusive. However, in some cases this international image-creation functions as a tool to generate profits, and comes to crossroads with ordinary city life. Departing from this paradox, the study takes a critical approach for understanding the urban landscape of Shanghai. A configuration of Molotch’s growth machine theory and Robinson’s ordinary city are used as frameworks to discuss geographical social and environmental (in)justices in relation to Shanghai’s urban development. The qualitative case study was conducted on a desk-study basis, using a document analysis method. The empirical data consisted of various documents, e.g. academic writings, governmental websites, and maps. The final observations suggest that modern urban development practice in Shanghai typically prioritises profit-generation. Moreover, the case study revealed that the urban mega-event of Shanghai Expo 2010, named ‘Better City, Better Life’, was actually used as an accelerator for large-scale urban renewal, rather than for enhancing urban lives. (Less)
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author
Silvennoinen, Kia LU
supervisor
organization
course
SGED10 20161
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Urban Renewal, Shanghai Expo 2010, Large-scale Urban Development Projects, Document Analysis
language
English
id
8874012
date added to LUP
2016-06-23 09:06:14
date last changed
2016-06-23 09:06:14
@misc{8874012,
  abstract     = {{Urban questions relating to sustainable future have become ever more relevant in the 21st Century, with more than half of the world’s population residing in cities. Many cities are trying to showcase their international image as an economic centre that is simultaneously sustainable and all-inclusive. However, in some cases this international image-creation functions as a tool to generate profits, and comes to crossroads with ordinary city life. Departing from this paradox, the study takes a critical approach for understanding the urban landscape of Shanghai. A configuration of Molotch’s growth machine theory and Robinson’s ordinary city are used as frameworks to discuss geographical social and environmental (in)justices in relation to Shanghai’s urban development. The qualitative case study was conducted on a desk-study basis, using a document analysis method. The empirical data consisted of various documents, e.g. academic writings, governmental websites, and maps. The final observations suggest that modern urban development practice in Shanghai typically prioritises profit-generation. Moreover, the case study revealed that the urban mega-event of Shanghai Expo 2010, named ‘Better City, Better Life’, was actually used as an accelerator for large-scale urban renewal, rather than for enhancing urban lives.}},
  author       = {{Silvennoinen, Kia}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Ordinary City - Ordinary Lives? Paradox of Modern Urban Development: Case of the Shanghai Expo, 2010, 'Better City, Better Life'}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}