Smart eco-cities for a green economy: a comparative study of Europe and China

Europe and China both face the challenges of climate change and associated environmental degradation, and of finding ways in which to promote economic transition away from carbon-intensive economic and consumption patterns, and towards a green economy. The city is where these challenges are centred, and where solutions have to be found: cities are both producers of environmental externalities, and the locations where the negative effects of climate change will be felt most acutely. A promising approach focuses on treating new and existing cities as 'experimental areas' where transitions to a green economy can be trialled. Eco-cities and smart cities have been proposed as potential solutions to the need for a green economy: they are seen as 'socio-technical experiments' which are potential drivers for local, national and international environmental socio-economic change and transition.

Both China and several European countries are actively engaged in planning and building experimental cities focused on the green economy. Many of these projects combine elements of eco-city planning (focusing on the visible 'hardware' of environmental sustainability: planning, architecture, renewable energy and smart grid technologies, etc.), with 'smart city' planning (focusing is on 'software': information systems, social capital, knowledge transfer, etc.). We propose analysis of what we call the 'smart eco-city', defined as an experimental city which functions as a potential niche where both environmental and economic reforms can be tested and introduced in areas which are both spatially proximate (the surrounding region) and in an international context (through networks of knowledge, technology and policy transfer and learning).

The aim of this project is to provide the first systematic comparative analysis of green economy-focused eco-city projects in China and Europe. This will inform the identification of opportunities and pathways for shaping national and collaborative international urban and economic policy responses, engaging the state, the business sector and communities in delivering 'smart eco-city' projects that can promote the growth of the green economy.

The research addresses key issues: a.) how experimental cities have fared in terms of promoting successful transitions to a green economy in Europe and China since 2000; b.) how to evaluate success in smart eco-city initiatives; c.) what are the main obstacles to successful projects d.) what generalizable lessons can be drawn from successful smart eco-cities, in socio-economic and policy terms; e.) how knowledge can be effectively shared across the context of European and Chinese urban-economic policymaking for smart eco-cities.

In order to address these crucial issues our team will carry out international, interdisciplinary multi-method research which will include a total of eight in-depth smart eco-city case studies in China, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, and France. This will involve documentary research as well as interviews with European and Chinese policymakers, businesspeople, financiers, local communities and other stakeholders. The project will also involve research aimed at building the first qualitative-quantitative database of smart eco-city projects: this will form the backbone of our policy toolkit and will be a state-of-the-art contribution to current knowledge on smart- and eco-city planning and policy.

Our expected outcomes are: 1.) the first systematic comparative study of smart eco-city projects in Europe and China; 2.) the identification of criteria for the success of experimental city projects in stimulating the emergence and growth of the green economy; 3.) a true interdisciplinary partnership between China and Europe in the generation of new knowledge and data; 4.) the generation of new theory in the field of transition theory; and 5.) policy toolkits of use for beneficiaries involved in contemporary experimental smart eco-city projects.

The project will have an impact in informing policymaking as well as business and community engagement in and around experimental smart eco-city projects in the UK, other European countries and in China. Our research project involves sustained and detailed engagement with beneficiaries in the UK, China, the Netherlands, France and Germany, and will have an impact on:

Policy beneficiaries: in the UK these will be a.) policymakers at the national level, especially those concerned with urban and economic planning, or with environmental planning (e.g. Department for Communities and Local Government; Department for Energy & Climate Change; Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs); b.) private sector-focused government bodies, such as UK Trade and Industry; c.) local government bodies at the level of individual case studies, including local councils. These beneficiaries will benefit from engagement in the project through published outputs and from attendance at community-focused stakeholder impact workshops (see 'community beneficiaries' below), policy workshops, funded attendance at international practitioner-academic conferences such as the UN World Urban Forum summit in 2016; and the project website and webinars.

Business beneficiaries: UK businesses such as urban development and design firms, engineering corporations, or consultancies, and including industry-focused bodies such as the China-Britain Business Council. Business beneficiaries will benefit from published, workshop and webinar impact mechanisms mentioned above (in the discussion on policy beneficiaries), as well as from a specific, business-focused output: an Executive Summary Report targeting business impact, informed through engagement with businesspeople and corporations throughout the project's lifetime, therefore making sure that the report targets topics, issues and solutions relevant to UK businesses.

Community beneficiaries: these will include local community stakeholders at case study sites. These beneficiaries represent those who will be most directly affected by smart eco-city planning projects and policies. It is expected that most of these beneficiaries will be (in the UK) located in and around the Thames Gateway Eco-Region case study sites. Community beneficiaries will include NGOs, civil society organizations, and individual citizens. They will benefit from all the activities mentioned above, with a particular focus on the stakeholder impact meetings, which will be held at case study sites during case study research: in the UK, these meetings will mostly be in and around the Thames Gateway regions, and will focus on local stakeholders from communities and civil society organizations (as well as local government).

Policy, business and community beneficiaries will benefit from the provision made within the project for these beneficiaries to participate at stakeholder impact meetings; policy workshops in London and Beijing; and at panels and conference discussion sessions to be held at the UN World Urban Forum summit in 2016 and at the Eco-Cities World Summit in 2017, featuring engagement with academic and policy audiences, as well as with businesses. These events will see beneficiary attendees from other European countries and from China, funded by respective national project teams, and will therefore be key knowledge sharing, mutual learning and networking opportunities for policymakers, businesses and community stakeholders. Those beneficiaries participating in policy workshops in China will benefit from case study site visits to selected smart eco-cities, enabling on-the-ground policy and practice learning.

Finally, we aim to achieve broader societal impact through enabling the construction of cleaner and smarter urban economies and environments, thus helping to ensure successful smart eco-city projects, the emergence of a sustainable green economy, and better, more prosperous, and environmentally resilient communities.