Analysis of Informal Dynamics in Mega Urban Areas - Based on Spatial Structure and Steering Mechanisms Focused on Water in the Pearl River Delta

在过去的几十年里，中国的城市成为最具活力的城市地区之一。随着一些经济特区的经济自由化，珠江三角洲的特大城市地区成为中国最具活力的地区之一。快速的经济增长和巨大的人口压力导致了结构性问题和严重的环境影响。由城市地理学、水文地质学和景观规划的三名申请者组成的跨学科工作组为研究城市发展的结构和指导机制提供了新的方法。为了在第一步减少与高度动态的特大城市地区发展相关的复杂过程，我们以资源水的流动和水管理为例，其次，将大型城市群细分为更小的单元。在这些不同类型的“城市细胞”中，对各种社会经济、形态和生态结构以及代理结构和机制的深入分析变得可行。对正式结构的非正式影响以及不同城市单元及其周围城市空间之间适当的相互关系的分析，旨在进一步了解整个特大城市地区的实际过程和适应的治理系统。

Chinese cities became one of the most dynamic urban areas within last decades. By economic liberalisation in some special economic zones the mega-urban area of Pearl River Delta became one of the dynamic regions in China. Rapid economic growth and immense population pressure led to structural problems and high environmental impacts. The interdisciplinary work group, composed by three applicants joining urban geography, hydrogeology and landscape planning, provides new approaches for investigating the structures and the steering mechanisms of urban development. In order to reduce in a first step the complex processes related to the development of highly dynamic mega urban areas we take flows of the resource water and water management as an example and, secondly, subdivide the large urban agglomeration into smaller units. Within these different types of `urban cells¿ in-depth analysis of various socioeconomic, morphological and ecological structures as well as agency structures and mechanisms become feasible. The analysis of the informal influences on formal structures and the appropriate reciprocity between different urban cells and their surrounding urban spaces respectively is intended to provide further knowledge about the actual processes and adapted governance systems in the overall mega urban area.