ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously affected China's macroeconomy, industrial transformation, and high-quality development. Research on economic patterns and urban network systems can provide a reference for healthy development of the regional economic system. The evolution of the economic pattern and urban network system of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) from 2010 to 2020 is investigated using methods (e.g., the gravity center model, the gravitational force model, social network analysis, and geographic information system). (1) The gravity center of gross domestic product (GDP) of the GBA is located in Nansha district, Guangzhou, with a skewing direction northwest-east-northwest and a movement rate of "large-small-large." The center of import and export and the center of consumption show a "zigzagging migration" in which the center of investment shows an "irregular (random) migration". (2) The economic connection degree of cities in the GBA exhibits a high ascending velocity, and the whole area tends to be mature, with a significant effect of spatial proximity. With the steady increase in network density, there is significant polarization of network centrality in the region. The four major cohesive subgroups have been relatively stable and consistent with the degree of geographic proximity of the cities. The center-periphery structure is more significant, in which the core area is extended to the cities on the east coast of the Pearl River Estuary, thus forming the core cluster of "Hong Kong-Shenzhen-Guangzhou-Dongguan." In this study, the evolution of economic patterns and urban network systems in the GBA over the past decade is analyzed using multiple methods (i.e., gravity model, urban network system analysis, and geographic information system) based on urban socioeconomic data by starting from various spatial elements (e.g., "points, lines, and networks") to gain insights into and optimize research on regional economic development after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Humans , Hong Kong/epidemiology , Macau , COVID-19/epidemiology , Pandemics , CitiesABSTRACT
Currently, urban crises are spreading, even tending to be magnified along the urban networks. Improving urban network resilience can effectively reduce the loss and cope with sudden disasters. Based on the dimensions of regional resilience and the framework of urban network, a new evaluation system of network resilience, including economic, social, and engineering networks, was established to assess the network resilience of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) from a structural perspective. We analyzed the spatial characteristics and influencing factors of network resilience using social network analysis and quadratic assignment procedure. The results were as follows: (1) regional difference was biggest in GBA's economic network strength while smallest in its transportation network strength, and the east bank of the Pearl River represented an extremely resilient connection axis;(2) the structures of network resilience and its subsystems were heterogeneous, and the connection paths of network resilience were more heterogeneous and diversified than those of the subsystems;(3) network resilience presented an obvious core-edge structure, and the spatial correlation and spillover effect between blocks were substantial;and (4) geographical proximity, as well as differences in economic development, urban agglomeration, and market development, had a significant impact on network resilience. This study provides a more systematic approach to evaluate the regional network resilience, and the results provide references for the construction of bay areas in developing countries.
ABSTRACT
International education and international student mobility are becoming increasingly popular in the era of globalization, which has triggered discussions on brain drain, brain gain, and brain circulation. Nonetheless, international student mobility has been significantly not only by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic but also by the new geopolitics clearly adversely influencing the diplomatic relationships between China and the USA with its allies in the West. In view of the growing complexity closely related to how international politics affecting international learning and student mobility, there is a reverse trend of Chinese international students choosing to return to China in recent years against the worsening relations between China and some major powers in the West. This chapter sets out against the broader political economy context to examine the intentions of Chinese high-level talents graduating from major universities overseas to return to mainland China to pursue their career development. More specifically, this chapter examines the high-level talents’ overall feelings about China and foreign countries from their perspectives. Special attention is given to high-level talents’ preferred institutions and provinces or regions for their career development. Analyzing the major survey data generated from a research project conducted by Peking University, this chapter discusses policy implications for talent attraction and retention for the GBA. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 outbreak has significantly impacted people's mobility in terms of travel, which is directly related to regional economic vitality and individuals' well-being. This study conducted research on the COVID-19 epidemic's impact on travel mobility in China's Greater Bay Area, utilizing mobile phone big data. The overall influence of COVID-19 was measured by investigating the impact between different income and migration groups in three core cities: Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Foshan. Individuals' weekly travel frequency and activity space area between December 2019 and May 2020 were calculated, and the average values between the different cities and various social groups were compared. The results showed that travel mobility declined during the epidemic's peak, followed by a recovery based on the overall trend. The start and end of strict law enforcement had a significant impact on the initial decline and subsequent recovery of travel mobility in the core cities. COVID-19 had a larger impact on core cities than peripheral areas, and on non-commute travel frequency, compared to commute travel frequency. Compared to advantaged groups, socially disadvantaged groups experienced a steeper decline in travel mobility during the epidemic's peak, but a more significant recovery afterwards. These findings indicate that discretionary activities have not yet recovered and remain below the pre-epidemic level, and that disadvantaged social groups had limited access to superior precautionary measures for avoiding infection. Based on the findings, we provide several policy suggestions regarding the recovery of travel mobility.