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China´s cities are subject to dramatic changes. Cities develop into Megacities, economic growth as well as the drastic increase of traffic contribute to a profound transformation of urban infrastructure. However, the processes are more visible than the stakeholders supporting such transformations. What are the location factors, spatial principles and planning philosophies that direct the cities´ growth and reconstruction?

The articles of this anthology investigate the above mentioned questions. Using various case studies, they analyse processes of location choice and transformation in Chinese coastal Megacities and in inland areas; they explore urban governance processes and - vice versa - also include the planning concepts of rural areas.

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Prof. Dr. Hans Gebhardt has held the Chair of Human Geography at the University of Heidelberg since 1996. His research focus is on geographical urban research and political geography with a regional focus on the Middle East and China.

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