urban China

urban-china

String Theory: Yarn Crafts Find a New Generation in China

Timely reports on issues and events from across China. Drawing on a vast range of sources, these succinct articles provide insights into the significance of each issue in a wider context.

NEWS

From weaving to knitting, yarn crafts are back in vogue in China. Young professionals and university students are using them to find peace and community, and to connect with family.

Li Xin

Liu Haowen

In China, the Middle-Class Home Aesthetic Is for Hire

Contributions from individuals with unique perspectives to share. Hear from everyone, from experts and commentators to those whose voices are often marginalized.

VOICES & OPINION

A burgeoning industry sends professional organizers to clients’ homes to rearrange and declutter, all to achieve the perfect look.

Su Yihui

The Architecture of Creation and Demolition: Banksy, Zhang Dali, and China’s Living City 

A removed mural in Venice opens a broader debate about preservation, public space, and why Chinese cities often embrace change more readily than those in the West.

Andrea Baldini

Shenzhen Lets Homeowners Call the Shots on Redevelopment

Faced with needing to raise investments for demolition and construction, cities like Shenzhen have begun exploring ways for homeowners to redesign aging structures themselves.

He Qitong

The Dog, the Drivers, and the Decision to Save Her

Visual stories that get up close and personal with contemporary China. A mix of short videos, documentaries, photography, and data visualization.

MULTIMEDIA

A stray dog has gone viral on Chinese social media after a group of local taxi drivers raised money for her surgery.

Lü Xiao

How Private Gardens Are Giving ‘Neglected’ Persimmon Trees a Fresh Start 

Translations, cross-publications, and collaborative projects from Sixth Tone’s external partners. 

SIXTH TONE ×

As social media fuels a growing passion for persimmon trees, wealthy urbanites in eastern China are paying thousands to ship prime specimens from distant villages.

The  Beijing News

In China, MBTI’s Unhinged Twin Asks About Constipation and Diarrhea

SBTI, or “Silly Big” Type Indicator, borrows the MBTI format but replaces introspection with absurd questions and irreverent personality types.

Fan Yiying

Inside Shenzhen’s High-Tech Version of the Food Bank

China’s tech hub has developed a discreet, high-tech system where vulnerable residents can pick up free groceries. Now, it faces a tougher task: building a steadier pipeline of donations by giving companies more reason to participate.

Li Xueshi

Why China’s Young Urbanites Are Ditching Cities for Villages

A youth-led design studio is putting progress before profit to help transform the fortunes of an ancient Chinese village.

Original (Jiefang Daily)

New Chinese Study Links City Childhood to Early Puberty in Girls 

Based on brain scans and survey data from nearly 3,000 young women, researchers used age at first menstruation and personality tests to examine how urban childhood environments shape development.

Chen Yiru

China’s Security Guards Live Lives on the Margin

The demand for security guards is so high in Chinese cities that anyone can become one. As a result, the job has become a low-status last resort for migrant men.

He Wapi

The Class Anxieties Behind China’s Millions of Security Guards

The vast majority of Chinese urban homes are inside gated communities. Once, residents feared crime. But now, they fear something else.

Eat, Pay, Love: Dining With Strangers Is China’s New Social Fix

Algorithm-matched dinners with strangers have proliferated in some of China’s biggest cities, as participants pay to make friends, explore their surroundings, and try to escape the mundanity of daily life.

Feng Jingyi

Street Theater: How ‘Chengguan’ and Vendors Play Their Roles

A researcher focusing on China’s urban management officers, or “chengguan,” explores their catch-and-release relationship with errant traders.

Lü Dewen

The Last Tokens

As Shenyang’s youth fades into memory and nostalgia, Xu Shouzhong’s arcade lives on.

Wu Huiyuan 

Watch Out: The Hidden Dangers of Kids’ Wearable Tech

Smartwatches are helping children make friends — but also exposing them to explicit and potentially dangerous content.

The Rise and Fall (and Rise?) of China’s ‘Wanghong Tower’

Once the “home of livestreaming,” the Regent International Center in Hangzhou has fallen on hard times. Investors hope a fresh tech wave will see it reign again.

The Icon of Chinese Urbanism Everyone Loves to Hate 

Go almost anywhere in China and you’ll see street after street of garish, bright-red signs. They’re widely derided as ugly and mass-produced, so why can’t cities get rid of them?

Cai Yineng

Dig This: Shanghai’s Coolest Hobby Gets Everyone’s Hands Dirty

From first dates to family trips, foraging is turning into a favorite low-cost way for young Chinese and old alike to connect offline.

Behind China’s Growth Numbers, a Nation Still Saving

Articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants.

FEATURES

Despite steady growth and policy support, household data reveals high saving rates and persistent caution across regions and age groups.