The 4th Conference on Development Zone Transformation and City Innovation was successfully held

Source: School of Architecture, Southeast University

On May 21, 2022, the 4th Conference on Development Zone Transformation and City Innovation was successfully held online. The Conference was sponsored by the Urban Planning Society of China (UPSC) and co-organized by Hangzhou City Planning and Design Academy(HCPDA), School of Design and Architecture, Zhejiang University of Technology(ZJUT), School of Architecture, Southeast University(SEU), Academic Committee of Planning History and Theory(ACPHT), UPSC, and International Joint Center for Planning and Design Technology of Belt and Road Sustainable Industrial Parks. In this conference, the Center held the establishment ceremony of the Academic Committee and the special thematic panel.

The International Joint Center for Planning and Design Technology of Belt and Road Sustainable Industrial Parks is one of China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) Programs of International Collaboration Platform for Science and Technology Organizations in Belt and Road Countries, and was applied and established relying on the Center for International Collaboration and Research on Development and Planning of Sustainable Industrial Parks, SEU. Prof. Wang Xingping is the Director for the Center. Mr Shi Nan, the Executive Vice President and Secretary-General of UPSC, is the Director of the Academic Committee of the Center. Cooperating with universities along the Belt and Road area like Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia and the National University of Laos, international organizations like UNIDO, UN-Habitat and UNECA, etc., and relevant enterprises at home and abroad, the Center aims to jointly promote the international joint research on planning and design technologies for sustainable industrial parks along the Belt and Road and jointly build the interdisciplinary, multi-regional and open academic research community. The Center was approved in August 2021 and held the Listing Ceremony in December 2021. Since its establishment, the Center has conducted several bilateral/multilateral exchanges, promoted online and offline investigations and jointly conducted international research programs with domestic and international partners relying on the global cooperation network. Besides, the Center has recruited several international students, successfully organized the Training Workshop on Belt and Road Industrialization, Urbanization and Spatial Planning (Session Ⅰ·Online) and jointly established domestic and overseas research centers/bases with partner institutions.

Listing ceremony of the International Joint Center for Planning and Design Technology of Belt and Road Sustainable Industrial Parks

On the morning of May 21, the establishment ceremony of the Academic Committee of the International Joint Center for Planning and Design Technology of Belt and Road Sustainable Industrial Parks was held after the opening ceremony of the Conference. Ms Qu Changhong, deputy secretary-general of UPSC and secretary-general of the Organizing Committee of UPSC, announced the members of the Academic Committee of the Center, consisting of 16 well-known experts in related fields at home and abroad.

Relying on the Center, the special thematic panel of Development and Planning of China’s Overseas Cooperation Industrial Parks along the Belt and Road Area was successfully held online on May 22. The panel was hosted by Dr Wang Xingping, the Director of the Center and Professor in the School of Architecture, Southeast University. Six experts and scholars from home and abroad were invited to share research and discuss the topic of the Development and Planning of China’s Overseas Cooperation Industrial Parks under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Online photo of experts and participants in the special thematic panel

Prof. Wang Xingping delivered a keynote speech entitled “Platform Construction and International Joint Research of the International Joint Center for Planning and Design Technology of Belt and Road Sustainable Industrial Parks”. Prof. Wang mainly introduced the Centre's basic information, construction progress and the international joint research programs being conducted.

Prof.Wang Xingping hosted the panel and delivered the keynote speech

Mr Bai Bing, the President of the Urban Planning and Design Research Institute, China IPPR International Engineering Co., LTD, delivered a keynote speech entitled “Adhere to the ingenuity, build a dream of the future: Heart Road of 10 years planning for the Silk Road Pearl- Great Stone Industrial Park”. Mr Bai introduced the background and content of the Great Stone Industrial Park planning and shared his feelings about participating in the 10-year planning work of the industrial park.

Mr Bai Bing delivered the keynote speech

Mr Panit Pujinda, Associate professor in the Faculty of Architecture, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, delivered a keynote speech entitled “Thailand Area-Based Innovation White Paper”. Mr Panit stressed the importance of the White Paper in region-based innovation, presented the state of innovation and future direction in Thailand, and elaborated on the development plan of space innovation in Thailand.

Associate professor Panit Pujinda delivered the keynote speech

Mr Soukanh Chithpanya, Associate Professor, Deputy Dean in the Faculty of Architecture, National University of Laos, delivered a keynote speech entitled “Changing Regional Spatial Structure in The Lancang-Mekong Region”. Starting from the connectivity of regional supply chains, Mr Soukanh introduced the distribution of special economic zones in the Mekong River basin. He then introduced the transformation of Laos’s spatial development strategy to transform from a “land-locked country” to a “land-linked country”.

Associate professor Soukanh Chithpanya delivered the keynote speech

Mr Liu Jian, the Chief Architect and Senior Engineer in the Beijing Office of Canada Baojia International Architectural Design Co., Ltd., delivered a keynote speech entitled “Changes in the development model of China’s overseas industrial parks under the Belt and Road Initiative: Case of Vientiane Saysettha Development Zone in Laos”. Mr Liu introduced the project background and positioning, strategic significance, and critical points of planning of the Saysettha Development Zone and showed the zone's industrial layout and technical indicators.

Mr Liu Jian delivered the keynote speech

Mr Zhang Chuan, the PhD candidate in the School of Architecture, Southeast University, and senior logistician, delivered a keynote speech entitled “Research on the overseas park expansion based on PPC model: Taking China Merchants Group as an example”. Mr Zhang explained the concept of the PPC model, introduced the core business model of "Front Port, Central Park and Back City” proposed by China Merchants Group, and analyzed the development of overseas industrial parks invested by China Merchants Group.

Mr Zhang Chuan delivered the keynote speech

Mr Guo Li, Director of UNIDO Center for South-South Industrial Cooperation (China) and Mr Chen Qining, the Director, President(China) of SCP Consultants Pte Ltd., made excellent comments on the speeches in the panel. Mr Guo Li pointed out that, focusing on the Development and Planning of China’s Overseas Cooperation Industrial Parks under the Belt and Road Initiative, this panel brings together the relevant research results and successful cases. Moreover, in the current context of Covid-19 and international geopolitical turmoil, this panel provides a rare opportunity for common thinking and experience sharing to develop various countries, cities, and industrial parks.

Mr Guo Li gave comments on the speeches

Mr Chen Qining spoke highly of the experts' academic speeches. He pointed out that the international joint research presented by Prof.Wang Xingping had played a leading role in the panel. Mr Bai Bing’s speech about the Great Stone Industrial Park fully demonstrates China's attitude toward braving difficulties and taking multiple considerations in developing overseas industrial parks. Prof. Pujinda's emphasis on region-based innovation echoes the concept of innovation nation, innovation city and innovation park in China. Prof. Soukanh also proved that in China's industrial transfer to Southeast Asia, the development of cross-border industrial parks is coming into an opportunity period. The report of Mr Liu Jian fully shows the development of Saysettha Development Zone from a single industrial park to a comprehensive urban area and even the sub-centre of the city in ten years. The PPC model introduced by Mr Zhang Chuan is a valuable experience that Chinese parks can provide to the world in “going global”.

Mr Chen Qining gave comments on the speeches

This panel provides a communication platform for the future development direction and scientific planning methods of node cities and industrial parks along the "Belt and Road", arouses the resonance and discussion of the participants, and inspires the thinking of scholars, practitioners and students present. Looking to the future, the Center will further promote collaborative research, expand the global network, cultivate international talents, and contribute to the sustainable development of industrial parks and high-quality urbanization along the Belt and Road.

Edited and translated by Zhao Shengbo