China will shift its urban policy from outward expansion to a more intensive inward development, said Jon Taylor, associate dean of the College of Liberal and Fine Arts and chair of the Department of Political Science and Geography at the University of Texas at San Antonio. China's urban renewal agenda marks a genuine pivot away from breakneck urban growth toward a more nuanced urban growth model that emphasizes livability, inclusiveness and environmental resilience, he said.

Interviewed by May Zhou, video by Wang Haoran