City view of Ningbo. [Photo by Xu Neng]
By Dong Na, Xu Zhuowei
This week, the CPC Ningbo Municipal Committee convened its 14th congress. The meeting calls for ushering in a new chapter in the city's development. In the past five years, Ningbo has made great efforts to accelerate the building of a modern coastal metropolis, and the rapid changes of the city have also attracted the attention of expats.
City with Beauty
and Fashion
"Ningbo is known for its garment production industry around the world. The Ningbo Fashion Fair is a great opportunity to look for new trends in the Chinese and International fashion industry." Loko, a Canadian graphic designer who lives in Ningbo, attends the Fair every year to learn about new production techniques for cloth making, graphic design and color trends.
In recent years, Loko has seen many international brands with which he is familiar come to shopping centers in Ningbo. "I love to go around and take a look at all of the new products created by big international and local brands. It gives me lots of inspiration as a graphic designer which I can use in my projects."
He has also seen a big change in the way people dress in Ningbo over the years, especially the youngsters are becoming way cooler. He also finds that Ningbo has made huge progress in terms of interior and space design, as there are tons of cool restaurants and shops now that were not around back when he first came to Ningbo.
In his view, Ningbo has done a great job in improving the city's architectural appearance over the past decade. "For example on Zhong Shan Dong Lu(中山东路), there are many new buildings and roads, sidewalk and bike lanes are way better than before. I can see the city improving from the center outwards." His one piece of advice would be to keep a good mix of modern and classic architecture, which makes the city more interesting to look at.
City with Intelligence
and Creativity
"When I think of Ningbo, I think of a 'smart city'. I haven't used cash in years! I think most people are like me," said Stoyan Valentinov Gegovski, a Ningbo University Bulgarian student.
Compared to the first days when he arrived in Ningbo, he finds that there are many innovations taking place in the city that are making him feel more convenient. "There is face recognition equipment installed in the campus libraries; the shared bikes you can unlock with a simple scan; and you can order a taxi/Didi from an app, or through WeChat, Alipay or any of the map apps."
As he sees it, China in general is going through a pretty creative and innovative process. Nowadays, he thinks that the innovation-centered enterprises are trying to improve and upgrade their already existing services and smart solutions, so this sector has somewhat matured.
"There is a new trend to start paying more attention to the creative and innovative field. I've heard that there are benefits for new startups, and the local universities are preparing well-qualified new talents to enter the market, so maybe Ningbo can soon turn into a second Shenzhen." Additionally, he noticed that parents are starting to value the creative classes, such as art & music, which was maybe not the case in the past.
City with
Good Environment
Ningbo has the most important international port in China and even Asia, and it is characterized with strong "water culture" with water ways, lakes, and lagoons. Citizens are commonly concerned about the environmental quality and livability of Ningbo.
Faith Chan is an Associate Professor from the United Kingdom who has been working at the School of Geographical Sciences, UNNC for a decade. The city's blue (water) heritage and conserved blue-green spaces such as urban parks made a good impression on him.
"There are many successful sponge measures in the city, such as the eco-corridor at the New East Town and Cicheng Urban Wetland that are completely free and accessible to the public," said Chan. "These Sponge measures can absorb excess urban rainwater and build storage up for the dry period, and simultaneously provide recreation and green spaces to the public, while reducing carbon budget by planting more trees and vegetation to improve living quality."
Chan believes that with the support of the Ningbo public and communities in further Sponge City and Blue-Green Infrastructure initiatives, the city will even shine brighter with the strong "water heritage and culture" of Ningbo. "In light of climate change and the national target of carbon neutralization and reduction, promoting more green spaces is also a 'win-win' strategy and co-benefits the direction with the national government," said Chan.
City with Enhanced
Order and Better Behavior
"Looking back on 5 years before, it is obvious that many improvements have been made in Ningbo," said Erdem Ozturk, a Turkish entrepreneur in Ningbo and one of Ningbo's Overseas Communication Officers. He enjoys the conveniences that he didn't have before.
"Improvements are made to the city traffic, which has been becoming more organized by new elevated roads and unobstructed sidewalks. Motorcycles and three-wheeler motorized tuk-tuks have been replaced with safe transportation suitable for a modern city," said Ozturk, "Using ride-hailing apps, prices are standardized for locals and visitors alike. Furthermore, traffic moves a lot faster when nobody runs red lights or drives the wrong direction on the road."
Ozturk also actively participates in the campaign for environmental sustainability. "We are categorizing our rubbish in order to increasing recycling. Government policies have fostered the usage of biodegradable products in Ningbo, which means less plastic demand and waste," he believes these efforts are really meaningful for a big city like Ningbo.
"Ningbo is playing a leading role for becoming a smart city. Five years ago, the vegetable market I often visit did not have any digital conveniences. Today, you can easily shop with smart phone from every vendor, and even can see all the information from the big display screen at the market such as lay out, historical, and current price of goods," said Ozturk.