GSE December 2023: Book Discussion- Building for Oil

Описание: Book Discussion- Building for Oil: Daqing and the Formation of the Chinese Socialist State

Li Hou's Building for Oil: Daqing and the Formation of the Chinese Socialist State. The book is a historical account of the development of the oil town of Daqing in northeastern China during the formative years of the People’s Republic, describing Daqing’s rise and fall as a national model city. Daqing oil field was the most profitable state-owned enterprise and the single largest source of state revenue for almost three decades, from the 1950s through the early 1980s. The book traces the roots and maturation of the Chinese socialist state and its early industrialization and modernization policies during a time of unprecedented economic growth. The metamorphosis of Daqing’s physical landscape in many ways exemplified the major challenges and changes taking place in Chinese state and society. Through detailed, often personal descriptions of the process of planning and building Daqing, the book illuminates the politics between party leaders and elite ministerial cadres and examines the diverse interests, conflicts, tensions, functions, and dysfunctions of state institutions and individuals. Building for Oil records the rise of the “Petroleum Group” in the central government while simultaneously revealing the everyday stories and struggles of the working men and women who inhabited China’s industrializing landscape—their beliefs, frustrations, and pursuit of a decent life.

Li Hou is an urban planning educator, researcher, and practitioner with over 20 years of experience. Her scholarly pursuits address the history of urban and regional planning in modern China, comparative planning regulations, and urban politics. Noteworthy publications in urban history include "Building for Oil: Daqing and the Formation of the Chinese Socialist State" (Harvard Asia Center, 2018 & 2021), "Richard Paulick in Shanghai, 1933-1949: The Postwar Planning and Reconstruction of a Modern Chinese Metropolis" (In Chinese, Tongji University Press, 2016). Prior to 2022, she held the position of Professor of Urban Planning at Tongji University in Shanghai and is currently a researcher associated with the MIT Sustainable Urbanization Lab.

Panel:

Jing Zhang, University College London, UK

Stephan Hauser, University of Helsinki, Finland

Joe Collins, University of Sydney, Australia

Yan Zhang, University of Cambridge, UK


Moderator:

Franklin Obeng-Odoom, University of Helsinki, Finland