Qihang Chen

  Waste classification bins in the neighbourhood (Kong 2021) Since 2015, Hangzhou has had a specific regulation for domestic waste (Department of Hangzhou Law Administration 2015). This regulation details the scope of household waste, classification standards, collection and transportation methods, disposal options, controls, and penalties. However, based on my observations from 2017 to 2021, Hangzhou's performance on waste classification and recycling during this period could have been better. This was mainly reflected in residents' failure to classify waste. Most residents in Hangzhou needed a detailed understanding of the criteria for rubbish classification previously, thus requiring time and effort to organise waste before they could throw it away. In this case, some individuals will simply drop off their trash without classifying it to save time. Although there are penalties in the rules for this, only a few people were punished due to the lack of monitoring capacity. To m...

Manual concrete mixing (Tenglong 2015)  Week 8's lecture on 'Embodied carbon' in buildings brought a new perspective to my understanding of carbon emissions. In daily life, when discussing how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, people are always more concerned with the efficiency of energy use on the road or inside the house rather than the carbon emissions generated by architecture before they are used. This is not unusual, as the public may be more interested in matters close to their real lives, and embodied carbon in buildings is an issue for developers to consider. However, as a student of urban planning and sustainability, and a former civil engineering student, I know this issue deserves attention and consideration. The impact of buildings on the environment is not limited to the encroachment on natural land and the energy consumed to maintain their function. The adverse effects on sustainability starts with the materials used in the construction of buildings. For i...

In this week's lecture the terms 'green' and 'sustainable' are mentioned separately, even though they are often confused in daily life contexts. A product, building or activity can be described as green or sustainable when it is considered to be nature-friendly, low-carbon and energy-efficient. However, the two terms are different: the concept of green is included in the objective of sustainability. "Green" requires the conservation of natural resources, and the mitigation of damage to the environment, often with a focus on recyclability and health. Sustainability, however, requires social and economic benefits in addition to the environment, such as fair treatment and welfare for separate groups.   I then tried to consider why this confusion in terms had arisen and suggested that there are two main reasons for this. Firstly, the term "Green" appears more often in the daily sustainable behaviours of citizens, such as reusable objects and biod...

The first week's lecture introduced some basic concepts and the history of the development of sustainable cities. This included the concepts of green and sustainable buildings, which I was very interested in. This type of building aims to reduce energy consumption, use resources efficiently and reduce the environmental impact of artificial structures through advanced technology or design. However, achieving this requires a certain level of technology and, more importantly, adequate budgets, thus for many developing countries building sustainability seems unachievable. I, therefore, wondered how sustainability could be achieved through more detailed design if sustainable buildings could not be constructed immediately. One example from my civil engineering-related studies is the installation of double glazing in some areas, which is created by injecting inert gas between two pieces of glass to achieve thermal and acoustic separation. This allows the building to be more comfortable an...