Towards a new society brought about by the coronavirus
~Future designs for the post-COVID era originating from China~

In China, just four months after the nationwide lockdown in February, life in the cities has returned to nearly pre-COVID levels. The only difference is that in urban areas, wearing a mask and presenting a health code via a mobile app are now mandatory when using public facilities or traveling on public transportation.Linked to ID information, this health code uses big data analysis to display a risk level—green, yellow, or red—based on an individual’s Private two-week travel history, movement records, and duration of contact. The movements of nearly the entire population are digitized and made public in real time. The sense of security this provides has, as a result, played a major role in the rapid economic recovery of society as a whole.I believe that digital platform providers—such as Alibaba, which has driven the spread of electronic payments alongside government crisis management, and Tencent, known for WeChat—have played a significant role and made major contributions to the advancement of a highly digitized society. This bold implementation of big data-driven solutions is also having a major impact on people’s lifestyles.
I feel that behind the containment of the novel coronavirus and the economy’s V-shaped recovery lie messages for the future across various fields.

The appeal of a city is created by the richness of people's lives and the revitalization of communication. Simply maintaining social distancing severely restricts people's actions and robs them of their freedom of communication. Now that domestic travel has been lifted, China is using data analysis of population density in urban spaces, based on activity records stored on smartphones, to effectively control the concentration of people. As a result, at night, food stalls line public squares and sidewalks, and cities are regaining their vibrancy.
Furthermore, the entry of major IT companies into architecture and urban space design is a very interesting trend. Huawei has introduced ICT technology to campuses across the country, and Tencent has created a platform for BIM and CIM (City Information Modeling) on its cloud, venturing into the efficient operation and maintenance of buildings and public spaces, and into unmanned operations. It seems certain that the future of the architecture market will require a major transformation as these companies enter the market, leveraging big data and AI technology.

Resilience refers to the strength and recovery capabilities of cities and buildings to withstand external influences and prepare for accidents and disasters. In China, the focus has historically been on developing "sponge cities" centered on water infrastructure, but recently there has been a shift towards promoting "resilient cities" that incorporate diverse perspectives such as health, environment, and disaster prevention. Particularly in high-density metropolitan areas, there has been a significant movement to guide the overcrowded population to surrounding cities and create "metropolitan areas." Learning from the lessons of Wuhan, where the healthcare system collapsed, the integrated metropolitan area concept centered on megacities aims to balance population concentration and dispersion, establish a flexible support system to counter disasters through inter-city cooperation, and create a healthy and sustainable society. Furthermore, by utilizing advanced information technology, the aim is to improve people's quality of life not only through disaster response but also through urban strategies such as smart cities and environmental conservation, as well as building lifecycles, surplus space for disaster prevention, and the creation of open public spaces.

The national policy "New Infrastructure Construction," which forms the core of post-COVID economic recovery measures, refers to construction projects for new infrastructure such as 5G information bases, high-speed and urban railways, new energy sources, and smart cities. In particular, the construction of public transportation networks that support the integration of "metropolitan areas" will serve as the foundation for maintaining economic activity between cities, and various station-center integrated development (TOD) projects are also being actively promoted with railway stations as hubs.
Stations, which serve as mobility hubs, are not only designed to enhance the convenience and mobility of travel, but also to create environments that prioritize enriching user experiences by incorporating open parks, commercial facilities, and cultural facilities. Furthermore, the transfer networks for railways, buses, and car sharing are being integrated with more comfortable and open shared bikes and slow transportation systems centered on walking, attracting attention as a new urban infrastructure in the post-COVID era. The success of TOD (Transition-Oriented Development), which transcends the silos between railways and local governments, is also supported by the spread of various sharing apps powered by digital technology that underpins safety and security.

Amid the ongoing global turmoil caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, China's rapid recovery from the crisis is largely attributed to its well-established information society and the thorough control system built upon its mobile payment IT platform used by over 700 million people. Through this crisis, China is rapidly advancing the social implementation of various digital technologies, aiming to turn it into an opportunity to take a step ahead of the world. For Japan, too, the fight against the coronavirus may be a great opportunity to re-examine its own resilience by rediscovering its strengths that are valued globally.
Amidst the ongoing teleworking situation, a group of volunteers from Nikken Sekkei's design team have launched Future Lab. Using various information gathered from overseas as inspiration, we are currently prototyping a technology map to position the strengths of our technologies from a global perspective and aim for the future.
The road ahead may still be long, but I want to begin my journey in the post-COVID era by first finding my compass. (October 16, 2020)

* "Beyond Covid-19: Society, Cities, and Architecture" is a series. Going forward, architects, planners, engineers, consultants, and others will regularly share their visions from their respective professional perspectives.