CITYMAKERS

The Virtual Walk “Walking the Chinese Countryside” explores the Sichuanese countryside, while the protagonist interacts with locals and foreigners, reflecting on not just structural, but also lifestyle differences between urban and rural spaces.

URBANI[XX] is a German-Chinese alumni network on the topic of urbanization and urban development. Aiming to find new solutions to current issues in urban development URBANI[XX] brings together German and Chinese alumni in the field. The network is coordinated by the China- Center of the Technical University of Berlin and organizes regular networking events like the China-Lunch.

The Sino-German Urbanisation Partnership, founded in 2013 and implemented by the GIZ focuses on promoting sustainable, integrated urban development in China and Germany, aiming for the effective reduction of CO2 emissions, a more balanced distribution of urban conurbations and an improvement in the quality of life in Chinese cities.

The Network for Architecture Exchange (NAX) is an initiative of the Federal Chamber of German Architects, supporting German planners on their way abroad and promoting the brand ‘Architecture made in Germany’ worldwide. Together with CITYMAKERS China- Europe, NAX organised the Delegational Programm: NAX GOES CHINA.

The Ruhr-Regions offers many discussion topics of relevance in Europe AND in China, e.g:  What are approaches of transition for industrial legacy cities towards sustainable futures?  How can culture and nature be drivers in that process? The 2nd CITYMAKERS Ruhr Network Meeting by invitation of CITYMAKERS-Fellow Sebastian Schlecht and in cooperation with the City of Duisburg and the local Confucius Institute  took place in September.

A walk through Luxembourg, one of the European capitals, focussing on the topic of European identity. A film by Rémi Mazourine.

Following issues on Green life in Berlin. From Kleigartenanlage Am Volkspark e.V., Interkultureller Garten Lichtenberg up to Vattenfall Wärme Berlin AG. Berlin has given several answers on how to live a green way. A film by Yilan Zeng.

East Railway Station Hangzhou, China. The Chinese character “Entrance” outlines the location of the camera. A film by Hu Yue.

A studio in “Iowa”, an artist compound in the Caochangdi Village in Beijing, was forcibly demolished. Since then, the life has entered a state of uncertainty. A film by Zhang Ruo.

City of Books. Libraries. A personal perception on the quality of spaces in the city. A film by Anna W. I. Au.

Decolonising our minds. Uncovering traces of German colonialism in China in today’s Berlin. An inquiry of different locations on Kiautschou street and Pekinger Platz. A film by Kollektiv Raumstation.

Das “Chinesenviertel” – Hamburgs forgotten Chinatown. Adopting the role of the archivist, the filmmakers combing through Hamburg’s urban fabric for traces of the hidden history of Hamburgs displaced Chinese community. A film by Lina Martin-Chan and Jöran Mandik.

This video-walk focuses on the theme of walls and hutong communities from the Forbidden City to Beijing’s Qianmen (前门) during the summer of 2020 when the corona epidemic has not yet ended. A film by Li Xin.

Investigation of the topic of “boundary” in the city, corona time. A film by Wang Keyao and Fang Kong.

Walking through Stuttgart on the “Stäffele” and along the vineyards. A film by Eve Nagel and Oliver Radtke.

How does the culture of walking is influencing urban planning in Netherlands and Asia and urban design ‘adaptation’? A film by Prisca Arosia.

Shanghai and Berlin have change a lot in the last three decades due to gentrification but even more with speculation. How do cities transform over time in Shanghai and Berlin? What does that look like very practically? Who drives the urban transformation? A film by Fanny Hoffmann-Loss, Annette Erpenstein, Mickey Xu.

Stefanie Schweiger and Angela Köckritz trace the history of Chinese living in Berlin. From the first Chinese arriving in 1822 to be displayed as an exotic curiosity. Up to the very diverse Chinese community residing in Berlin at present. A film by Stefanie Schweiger and Angela Köckritz.

A river makes a city alive and brings culture — so is Yangtze river to Wuhan and Spree to Berlin. A film by Tian Gao and De Santis.

How do urban spaces like Tang Ba Jie influence single children in China? A film by Kam, Jaap and Kun.