City Walks in Chongqing

City walks enable us to think and feel more intricately, and by living through them – hopefully less ostentatiously - through experiences and relations that genuinely matter. This sort of spatial syntagma is made of many correlations based on knowing what happens in cities, feeling what attributes are important, and articulating a set of relations to develop socio-spatial inter-relations and, ultimately, identities. In a way, “city walks” should empower cities to talk penetratingly while we hear, feel, and observe through experiences and thinking. Hence, city walks help the city talk.

 The City of Chongqing means a lot to me. It is a city that allows you to fall in love with a sense of urbanity for city life and experiences. It is a city that creates a distinguishable set of relations, both transient and abiding in many ways. It is a city with a different tone of heartbeat during the day and the night, a sort of vibration that lives through many arteries at different nodes, settings, and connections. It is a city of multiple networks - different from many other cities - that never sleeps. Most importantly, Chongqing has a unique magnitude of everything that a city can offer. It is a city that can be experienced differently every time you visit it, and you can live through those diminutive experiences via greater connections and expounded senses that exist but have to be experienced first. In this book, Chongqing is studied based on its sophistication of having multiple layers, multiple identities, and multiple localities. Hence, it is structured based on these three crucial aspects, including (urban) values, attributes, experiences, and livelihoods of Chongqing. This book is the first of its kind for a Chinese city and is aimed to reveal a genuine gem while accentuating with pride a city that never sleeps. This should be read and understood by scholars, urban researchers, and urban specialists seeking to develop better cities and communities.

“Just Brilliant! Chongqing has never been portrayed any better than this book does so miraculously”.

- Tian Tang, Independent Researcher, China

 “Another unique mapping study by the author; and this time, through sensory and perceptible city walks of a global city – the beautiful city of Chongqing”.

- Aaron Golden, Independent Researcher, UK

Ali Cheshmehzangi is a Full Professor and Head of the School of Architecture, Design and Planning (ADP) at the University of Queensland. He has been in the World’s top 2 per cent field leader since 2022, recognised by Stanford University. He is among the top 30 global scholars in the urban sustainability research area. Ali is internationally known for his scholarly contribution and extended work on climate resilience and sustainable urbanism research.

 Ali has a wealth of experience, expertise, and a strong commitment to innovation and excellence in the fields of architecture, design, and planning, the three core disciplines of his School at UQ. With a career spanning over two decades, he has made significant contributions to the academic and professional communities, with a focus on sustainable and environmentally conscious design. Prior to joining UQ, Ali held several strategic leadership and senior managerial roles, such as Vice-President for International Engagement and Global Partnership, Founding Director and Head of the Center for Innovation in Education and Research, Head of the Department of Architecture and Built Environment, Founding Director of the Urban Innovation Lab, Director of a university-wide Teaching and Learning platform, Director of International Research Network for Rural and Urban Development, Head of Research Group for Sustainable Built Environment, co-director of university-wide research priority areas, Director of Center for Sustainable Energy Technologies, and Interim Director of Digital Design Lab. So far, Ali has published over 500 journal papers, articles, conference papers, book chapters, and reports. This book is his 39^th academic book. Some of his previous books have received awards at the national, provincial, and municipal levels. He also has received international awards and recognition for his research on urban resilience studies and sustainability research, as well as a Vice-Chancellor’s award for his impactful contribution to higher education.