Better City, Better Life? A study of attitudes regarding ecology, urban development and risk among university students in Shanghai

Abstract: Background: The People’s Republic of China is one of the world’s largest countries, whose approximately 1.3 billion citizens make it the most populous nation state on Earth. It is also one of the world’s most powerful and booming economies, and biggest polluters. As such, the PRC’s actions aimed at continuing industrialization and urbanisation play a key role for future ecological development all around the globe. In attempts to promote sustainable development and environmental awareness among China’s vast population national campaigns and NGOs alike target the young. What are the environmental attitudes of China’s youth and how do they view the future? Aim of thesis: To study the opinions and attitudes regarding ecology, urban development and risk in a group of university students from China’s largest and most populous city Shanghai, and view these findings against the theory of world risk society as presented by sociologist Ulrich Beck. Is Beck’s view of contemporary society as a risk society and the view that this society is culturally rooted in individualism, diversity and scepticism applicable to nonwestern groups? Conclusion: Beck’s theory of world risk society is found to be too deeply rooted in Western concepts of society and the welfare state to be readily applied to explain the attitudes and experiences of the group of studied individuals. In fact, attitudes of interviewees participating in this study showed great discrepancies with the risk society worldview presented by Beck – with interviewees relating the power of action to groups rather than individuals, portraying high levels of belief in expertise and technology, and trusting the national government to make the right investments for the future and to bring about change.