Sino-German City Lab

The Sino-German City Lab brought together German architects and urban planners, Chinese city representatives and industry experts to discuss perspectives and share knowledge on sustainable urban regeneration strategies for Chinese cities. It was organized by the Network for Architectural Exchange (NAX) and CONSTELLATIONS International. The lab has rendered many inspiring insights into urban renewal practice in Germany and China, its challenges and opportunities. The following statements have emerged as the most significant lessons learned.

For the Sino-German City Lab, NAX talked to Thilo Cunz and Ang Ye from the German Energy Agency (dena) about the challenges Chinese cities are currently facing on their way to decarbonization.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Magdalene Weiß from gmp shares her experiences on the topic of urban regeneration, answering questions such as what challenges and difficulties are German architects facing in urban regeneration projects in both China and Germany and how do you balance the needs of different stakeholders as a project architect.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Marius Ryrko from Gerber Architekten shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration, the development of the approach in China and the successful implementation of urban renewal strategies in urban planning projects.

For the Sino-German City Lab, NAX invited Prof. Yang Jianqiang, from the Southeast University in Nanjing, to give a lecture about the development history and course of urban regeneration in China, its practical significance and goals, China’s planning path to achieve sustainable urban regeneration and future expectations on Sino-German cooperation in urban renewal.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Joachim Wendt from schneider+schumacher shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration answering questions such as how much influence do architects have on what to keep in regeneration projects and how can urban regeneration contribute to sustainability.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Hieronimus Nickl from Nickl & Partner shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration answering questions such as what is the need for urban regeneration and how do you see the evolution of the approach to urban regeneration in China.

For the Sino-German City Lab, NAX talked to Thomas Fritzsche, founder of and Head of Design at tfa architects, on the evolution of the Chinese architectural market with regards to sustainability standards, the urban decarbonization strategy and what German planners can contribute to the Chinese urban renewal efforts.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Jürgen Engel and Thomas Busse from KSP Engel share their experiences on the topic of urban regeneration answering questions such as what are effective planning approaches for sustainable urban regeneration and what future trends are important to be considered for urban regeneration.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Werner Sübai from HPP Architekten shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration answering questions such as what strategies can make sustainability possible in urban design and what is the importance of considering more aspects than financial when developing a project?

For the Sino-German City Lab, NAX talked to Shizhe Ma, International Certification Consultant at the German Sustainable Building Council DGNB, about the challenges and opportunities of sustainable buidling certification for urban renewal projects. In this expert talk, Mr. Ma shares insights intpo DGNB’s work in China as well as the details of their certification system.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Dr. Hong Li from SBA shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration, answering questions such as what do you think about the significance of Modeling and AI Simulation in urban regeneration projects and how will the global COVID-19 crisis be reflected in future urban regeneration.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Martin Jasper from Jasper Architects shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration answering questions such as how much influence do architects have on what to keep in regeneration projects and how can urban regeneration contribute to sustainability.

Der Bericht der EU-Expertengruppe für eine hochwertige Architektur und gebaute Umwelt für alle wurde am 6.10. bei der Konferenz „Building Europe“ in Graz und Maribor und am 12.10. bei einer Veranstaltung des Architects´ Council of Europe (ACE) zur Europäischen Woche der Regionen und Städte vorgestellt. Er enthält Empfehlungen für lokale/regionale Behörden und andere Akteure und nimmt u.a. Bezug auf die Davos-Erklärung für eine hohe Baukultur, die Neue Leipzig-Charta, die EU-Städteagenda, den Green Deal und das Neue Europäische Bauhaus.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Juan Lucas Young from Sauerbruch Hutton shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration, answering questions such as what do you see as an effective planning path to implement sustainable urban regeneration projects and how is the value of existing building evaluated in the renewal area.

The Eco-City Tianjin Daqiuzhuang is a leading project for large-scale urban regeneration in China. This documentary shows the current status of the project, its opportunities as well as its challenges. Planners and city representatives talk about the main issues that need to be solved in order to create sustainable and liveable neighborhoods in a former industrial area.

As part of our Sino-German City Lab, Wolfram Putz from GRAFT shares his experiences on the topic of urban regeneration, answering questions such as why are green technologies a key factor for urban regeneration and how is it possible to create a market for urban regeneration projects.