Quality of Life Indicators and Policy Strategies to Advance Sustainability in the Pearl River Delta Debra Knopman, Johanna Zmud, Liisa Ecola, Zhimin Mao, Keith Crane C O R P O R A T I O N For more information on this publication, visit www.rand.org/t/RR871 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this publication. ISBN: 978-0-8330-9097-3 Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. © Copyright 2015 RAND Corporation R® is a registered trademark. Cover image: Holger Mette/iStock As a part of the agreement under which the research described in this document was funded, RAND grants the Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of Guangdong Province a nonexclusive, royalty-free license to publish, distribute, and sell the Chinese language version of this report. Limited Print and Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. 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Support RAND Make a tax-deductible charitable contribution at www.rand.org/giving/contribute www.rand.org Preface The Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (HURD) of Guangdong Prov- ince in the People’s Republic of China asked RAND to develop a system of quality of life indi- cators and identify policy options to advance sustainability in the Pearl River Delta (PRD), a region of Guangdong Province in southeastern China. Guangdong’s interest in measures of quality of life stems from a national interest in looking at measures of progress that go beyond gross domestic product (GDP) and other measures of economic output to address sustain- ability. Sustainability is a broad and often ill-defined term, but is generally used to address the idea that actions taken today should consider the needs of both present and future genera- tions—and not preempt their ability to have a clean environment, productive agriculture, and other benefits. Quality of life indicators provide a foundation for measuring progress toward socioeconomic and environmental goals and can be an important guidance and monitoring mechanism for policy- and decisionmaking. The primary audiences for this report include officials at HURD and technical staff of other provincial departments and bureaus related to urban planning and urban rural develop- ment in Guangdong and the nine major cities in the PRD. The overall framework for linking indicators directly to goals and strategies may be helpful in other planning contexts elsewhere in China and perhaps other countries as well. This study follows two earlier RAND reports that consider pathways for China’s regional economic development authorities to follow in their transition to a more innovation-driven economy: • Keith Crane, Howard J. Shatz, Shanthi Nataraj, Steven W. Popper, and Xiao Wang, An Outline of Strategies for Building an Innovation System for Knowledge City, MG- 1240-GDD, 2012 (www.rand.org/t/MG1240). • Richard Silberglitt, Anny Wong, S. R. Bohandy, Brian G. Chow, Noreen Clancy, Scott Hassell, David R. Howell, Gregory S. Jones, Eric Landree, and Parry Norling, The Global Technology Revolution China, Executive Summary: Emerging Technology Opportunities for the Tianjin Binhai New Area (TBNA) and the Tianjin Economic-Technological Develop- ment Area (TEDA), MG-776-TBNA/TEDA, 2009 (www.rand.org/t/MG776). About RAND Environment, Energy, and Economic Development The research reported here was conducted in the RAND Environment, Energy, and Economic Development Program, which addresses topics relating to environmental quality and regula- tion, water and energy resources and systems, climate, natural hazards and disasters, and eco- iii iv Quality of Life Indicators and Policy Strategies to Advance Sustainability in the Pearl River Delta nomic development, both domestically and internationally. Program research is supported by government agencies, foundations, and the private sector. This program is part of RAND Justice, Infrastructure, and Environment, a division of the RAND Corporation dedicated to improving policy and decisionmaking in a wide range of policy domains, including civil and criminal justice, infrastructure protection and homeland security, transportation and energy policy, and environmental and natural resource policy. Questions or comments about this report should be sent to the project leader, Debra Knopman ([email protected]). For more information about the Environment, Energy, and Economic Development Program, see http://www.rand.org/energy or contact the director at [email protected]. Contents Preface ........................................................................................................... iii Figures ........................................................................................................... ix Tables ............................................................................................................ xi Summary .......................................................................................................xiii Acknowledgments ...........................................................................................xxix Abbreviations ................................................................................................ xxxi CHAPTER ONE Introduction ..................................................................................................... 1 Defining Quality of Life ........................................................................................ 1 Rationale for Measuring Quality of Life in the Pearl River Delta ......................................... 2 Study Objectives ................................................................................................. 3 Organization of This Report .................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER TWO Context for Improving Quality of Life in the Pearl River Delta ...................................... 5 Governance in the Pearl River Delta .......................................................................... 5 Policy Direction ................................................................................................. 7 Forces of Urbanization and Economic Transition ........................................................... 8 International Benchmarks for Guangdong’s Development ................................................10 CHAPTER THREE Measuring and Monitoring Quality of Life ..............................................................15 Units of Analysis: Region, City, District .....................................................................15 Linking the Indicator System to Policy Goals ...............................................................16 Identifying Strategies to Meet Policy Goals .................................................................17 Setting Priorities Among the Strategies ......................................................................17 Building an Indicator System ..................................................................................19 Approaches to Information Gathering .......................................................................21 Data Availability ............................................................................................... 22 CHAPTER FOUR Pilot Resident Survey in Pingshan New District ....................................................... 23 Profile of Pingshan ............................................................................................ 23 Design of the Resident Satisfaction Survey ................................................................ 24 v vi Quality of Life Indicators and Policy Strategies to Advance Sustainability in the Pearl River Delta Profile of Survey Respondents .................................................................................25 Key Findings for Pingshan ................................................................................... 27 Recommendations for Pingshan New District .............................................................29 Recommendations for Future Surveys of Pearl River Delta Residents ...................................31 CHAPTER FIVE Land Use ........................................................................................................35 Background ......................................................................................................35 Challenges and Overview of Goals and Strategies ......................................................... 36 Rationale for Strategies, Recommended Practice, and Proposed Indicators ............................ 38 Enabling Strategies ..............................................................................................55