Course Description

MCG501 Cities and Social Change

The course provides an introduction to the key drivers of urban social change. It examines how processes of globalisation, demographic change, mobility, economic change and shifting social norms impact on urban development and on the social structure and composition of cities. The course has an international perspective but with a particular orientation towards urban change in East Asia.

MCG502 Regional Policy Study and Visit in the Greater Bay Area

In collaboration with major higher education institutions in the Greater Bay Area, special lectures and class discussions, professional visits, and cultural tours will be organised for students. In selected cities of the Greater Bay Area, students will be engaged in field observations and field visits to develop a more critical understanding of urban development issues through their active participation and personal experience and critical reflection. More specifically, this course is an intensive and experiential unit, which provides a platform for students to study Greater Bay Area beyond classroom. Through critical examination of different groups’ and individuals’ experiences (such as urban poor, working poor, migrants, women, university students, and elderly people) under rapid socio-economic and institutional changes and how these groups react to and interact with different institutions (such as governmental departments, non-governmental organisations [NGOs], trade unions, and interest groups, etc.), student learning experience will be enhanced through theory-field experience integration and reflection.

MCG503 History, Heritage and Regional Perspectives

The course History, Heritage and Regional Perspectives provides an overview of key theoretical, practical and policy debates within the field of heritage management. The focus is on the history and heritage of the Greater Bay Area, but also brings in a comparative perspective by incorporating international case studies and policy issues from other parts of Asia and the world. The concept of heritage will be explored from an inter-disciplinary approach to cover heritage practices including the identification, assessment, research, preservation, interpretation, and promotion of various forms of cultural heritage. Students will also be introduced to international, national and regional cultural heritage regulations and policies.

MCG505 Smart and Sustainable Cities

This course introduces students to Smart Cities, their construction, organisation, and management under the framework of UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It explores how these new conceptions of the city, as data driven and technologically convenient are utopian, but also problematic. One of the chief concerns about Smart Cities, is how they must become sustainable in terms of environmental impact, technological innovation, and social life. This course explores how cities can be both smart and sustainable, and the risk vectors of such a strategy.

MCG506 Ageing Policies in Greater China

This course examines how governments in Greater China respond to ageing issues and the effectiveness of their interventions. It will firstly discuss ageing problems from a theoretical and international perspective. Then, it describes the extent of ageing problems in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. Finally, it critically analyses how the four societies tackle the financial and long-term care needs of older people.

MCG507 Urban Issues and Policies: International Symposium

In collaboration with South China University of Technology, Sun Yat-Sen University and University of Macau, an international symposium will be organised at Lingnan University to engage students enrolling in the Master of Cities and Governance to participate in international research event to enhance their learning and research experiences. Throughout the typically two-day international symposium, students would have the opportunity to learn from leading researchers in the urban affairs management and policy studies. Research and policy dialogue among scholars and practitioners coming from the Asia Pacific region and especially Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will focus on the main themes of city research and social policy. Special panels will be organised in the symposium to allow students to present their own research. Additional seminars will be organised after the international event to allow students to organise and reflect their learning after attending the symposium, with particular reference to building the links between what they are researching and the discussions highlighted in the international event.

CRS501 China and Regional Studies: Politics, Policy, and International Development

Over the past few decades, the world has witnessed the rise of China as a new power in the new world system. The political, social, and economic changes of China strongly and regularly influence not only the international affairs but also redefine the relationship between China and the other regional powers in East and South East Asia. Therefore, this course is designed to provide IR students with opportunities to identify and study the old and new hot spots in these regions. Students will explore how and why different regional powers respond differently to recent China’s initiatives and foreign policy shift. The fundamental question the course deals with is the redistribution of power in the new international environment and its consequences for the power relations between states in East and South East Asia.

MCG510 Workshop for Smart Governance

This workshop course aims to expose students to analyse issues related to the introduction of new technology in public sector management and urban governance. Special attention will be given to reflect upon the increasingly governance issues related to citizens’ perceptions of the newly introduced devices in monitoring transport mobility, people mobility, and other forms of public management measures. Students will do some highly interactive activities such as case studies, role plays, and field research. They will be guided to analyse the complicated issues when introducing new governance measures when privacy issue and data management issues are becoming increasingly sensitive to the general public. This workshop course will engage students in conducting small-scale research related to different urban governance reform issues, facilitating students to consider how public sector management can be enhanced when city governance is highly politicised. Students will be encouraged to adopt some major social sciences methods to conduct a small-scale research during the workshop course. Students are expected to have active participation in the workshop course, engaging in group presentations and reports on selected topics and write an independent reflective essay after attending the workshop.

MCG509 Understanding Metropolitan Indicators and Social Policies

A good understanding of the nature, measurement, and limitations of major metropolitan indicators (e.g., https://indicators.metropolis.org/), including ‘context and governance’, ‘economic development’, ‘social cohesion’, ‘gender equality’, ‘environmental sustainability’, and ‘quality of life’, is crucial for one to be able to comprehend and assess social policies in the context of rapid urbanisation. Students will learn to apply these comparable indicators in understanding and comparing social policies across different metropolises.

MCG511 Housing Policy and Development

This course will provide students with an understanding of housing policies in the local and global settings. It will examine the relationship between the housing system and social policies. It also examines how affordable housing is delivered by both government and non-profit actors in the national, local, and community levels. Particular attention would be drawn to how economic, political, legal, and social forces shape the housing policy and housing stock. Students are expected to learn how to analyse the policies and programmes that are currently in place, and evaluate their effects on the quality and affordability of housing.