Introduction

As the biggest immigrant city in China , Shanghai has a population of 16,700,000 in 2000. More than 50% of the citizens come from Jiangsu Province and Zhejiang Province , which are very close to Shanghai and have a special water web context like Shanghai herself.

Located in the delta plain of Yangtse River, Shanghai meet the Pacific Ocean on the north side. The Yangtse River , which has her natural numerous branches and artificial canals interlace each other to form a waterway net used for travel, shipping, or irrigation in this deata area. The inhabitants there take these waterways as the necessary activity media in the past thousands years and even today.

The name " Shanghai " actually came during Song Dynasty (960-1276), when Shanghai was then becoming a new rising trade port. In 1843, after the Opium War, Shanghai was forced to become an open port by the colonialists. A period of foreign commercialization and industrialization followed. In the next half century Shanghai developed a distinctly Western character and experienced a period of important commercial, industrial and political development.

Shanghai Location

Shanghai has stronger links to both the Chinese interior and the central government, in addition to a stronger base in manufacturing and technology and recorded a double digit growth for 14 consecutive years since economic reform in 1992. In 2005, Shanghai 's nominal GDP posted an 11.1% growth to 912.5 billion yuan (US $114 billion).

Because of the market economical power, more and more lands were urbanized to fit the requirement of the increasing population. This urbanization brought new problems to this city like heating islands, traffic, energy shortage, portable water shortage, pollution and diseases. A new development method is required to make this city to grow healthily.

Shanghai City Map

Since 2003, the Planning Board of Shanghai Municipal Government (SHGHJ) made a green map which focused on the long term sustainable planning and development. This green map is the framework for Shanghai's future ecological environment and social space. The future urban project will follow this green map and single case will be organized by this map. Big events, like Expo 2010 Shanghai , provide more opportunities in this green urbanism process in multi scale and functions.