Better City, Better Life is the theme of China 20 10 Shanghai World Expo. Cities are the crystallization of human civilization. Louis Mountford, a modern American philosopher, said: "A city is a special structure, which is dense and compact and is specially used to spread the fruits of human civilization." It is no accident that the word "civilization" in many western languages comes from the Latin word "Civitas" (meaning "city"). The characteristics of eclectic, all-inclusive and constantly updated cities have promoted the improvement of human social order.
1800, only 2% of the world's population lived in cities. At 1950, this figure quickly climbed to 29%. In 2000, about half of the world's population moved into cities. According to the United Nations, by 20 10, the global urban population will account for 55% of the total population.
Undeniably, with the rapid development of cities today, people's urban life is increasingly facing a series of challenges: the high-density urban life mode will inevitably lead to spatial conflict, cultural friction, resource shortage and environmental pollution. If it is not controlled, the disorderly expansion of the city will aggravate these problems, eventually eroding the vitality of the city and affecting the quality of urban life.
The Istanbul Declaration issued by UN-HABITAT 1996 emphasizes: "Our city must be a place where human beings can live a dignified, healthy, safe, happy and hopeful life." All kinds of challenges faced by cities, whether they are congestion, pollution, crime or conflict, are rooted in the disharmony between man and nature, man and man, spirit and matter in the process of urbanization. Long-term disharmony will inevitably lead to the retrogression of urban life quality and even civilization.
Therefore, 20 10 Shanghai World Expo responded to the demand of "Better City, Better Life" with the concept of "harmonious city". China ancient culture contains the concept of "harmony". China culture advocates interpersonal harmony, harmony between man and nature, and harmony between body and mind. At the same time, "harmony" is also found in the ideals of western sages. For hundreds of years, people have never stopped discussing the "harmonious city" model. From the "utopia" to the "ideal city" and then to the "garden city" in the18th century, a series of theories, propositions and models are all exploring how to establish the balance and harmony of the city in space, order, spiritual life and material intake.
Since 1980s, with the increasingly serious problems of environment and development, the concept of sustainable development came into being. The strategies put forward by city governments around the world to implement "2 1 Century Agenda" mostly revolve around how to rebuild the harmony between man and city, man and nature, and finally realize the harmony between contemporary people and future generations.
It can be seen that the pursuit and practice of "harmonious life" and "harmonious city" runs through the development history of human society and is increasingly manifested in the blueprint drawn by people for tomorrow's city.
"Harmonious city" mainly embodies the harmonious coexistence of multi-cultures, the harmonious development of economy, the harmonious life in the era of science and technology, the harmonious operation of community cells and the harmonious interaction between cities and villages.