New Actors in the Old Hierarchies: Alliances for Low-Carbon Urban Development in Shenzhen, China

Abstract

The integration of climate mitigation into urbanization has brought new actors to city planning and building. This study examines the driving actors of decarbonization-focused urban development in a Global South context through the case of Shenzhen International Low-Carbon City (SILCC), China. It outlines a complex governing landscape that combines new genres of actors and traditional hierarchical relationships within the state system. The paper further elaborates on how this ostensible multilevel governance is used strategically as a new source of legitimation for mega development projects, indicating the shifting legitimacy foundation for urban development to new levels of governance and onto different actors in the era of climate change.