Since the Communist Party began promoting the Ecological Civilization ideology, a new trend is the concept of the Ecological Housing Estate, or shengtai xiaoqu. These sustainable urban renewal projects can be viewed as a version of public-private partnerships within an authoritarian Chinese context that link up nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), real-estate companies and local government agencies. Two local NGOs in Chengdu were interested in a critical study of these Ecological Housing Estates from the perspective of the residents, which resulted in this research project.

Collaborating with government officials in three neighborhood committees, seven housing estates were chosen for analysis: three housing estates were hosting an Ecological Housing Estate project at the time of study and four were not. Using mixed-methods, including cultural domain analysis, semi-structured interviews, and household surveys, the study demonstrated that the projects reinforced recycling behaviors but their water conservation practices were little more than an urban sustainability fix. Additionally, it was shown that while air pollution was essentially ignored by the projects, this was a strong concern for many residents who often felt it was the government's responsibility to find a solution to the problem.

A primary finding from the study was that low-income working class communities were often neglected by the government and NGOs despite the fact that these communities demonstrated high levels of environmental consciousness. Our hope is that this study can breakdown stereotypes in China that assumes environmentalism is primarily a middle-class phenomenon.

This project was a collaboration with my dear friends Wang Yuehan, Shao Yuqian, Zhao Baoyang and Gao Yushi. While the study was primarily self-funded, some recognition should also be given to the Hong Kong Ph.D. Fellowship Scheme. Also many thanks to my Ph.D. advisor, Prof. Joseph Bosco. Some of the results from this project were included in my dissertation and are being adapted into my ethnography on the rise of environmental consciousness in Chengdu.