潜行狙击
From community renewal to sustainable transit: two Latin American scholars draw on the people-centered planning embedded in China’s urban development_我的网站
一 | 对这句话的刻板印象早就该改改了 很多人提起这句话，第一反应就是传统孝道对年轻人的束缚，觉得它是在要求我们守在父母身边，放弃出去闯的机会。 真的是这样吗？我们都只记住了前半句，忘了后半句“游必有方”。这里的“方”从来不是刻板的方向，而是让父母安心的底气啊。
二 |
现在的游，早就不是过去的远游了
放在古代，出一趟远门可能大半年都回不来，音信全无都是常事。
Editor's Note:
Chinese President Xi Jinping has pointed out, "to understand China today, one must learn to understand the Communist Party of China (CPC)." With the rapid development of China's economy and society, and the steady advancement of the Chinese path to modernization, the notable achievements of the CPC have drawn extensive international attention and scholarly interest. Against this backdrop, the Global Times has launched the "CPC in Global Eyes" column, focusing on the feelings, perspectives and insights of international friends from various fields regarding the CPC's historical path and achievements.
They include those who have toured China, who deeply study the CPC in academic fields, who work, live, study, seek employment or do business in various fields in China, and who pay close attention to the CPC's policies and trends, although they haven't visited the country in person. Through their vivid personal experiences, we aim to present a multifaceted overseas view of the CPC.
In the 16th installment of this series, we followed two Latin American scholars as they toured Chinese cities, witnessing how the CPC's people-centered, long-term development vision is translated into tangible everyday improvements - and reflecting on what China's experience might offer for state capacity building in Latin America.
Standing before the glass at the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, Ecuadorian scholar María Imelda Robalino gently traced the edge of the giant city model with her fingertips, her eyes reflecting the orderly contours of this megacity stretching toward the horizon. The clear lines linking green spaces along the city's iconic Huangpu River, dense residential neighborhoods and industrial parks drew the public administration scholar, who has long studied urban expansion in Latin America, into deep thought.
Beside her, Mariana Escalante, a Mexican scholar in China studies, gazed at the scrolling timeline of Shanghai's long-term urban plans on a screen and expressed her admiration for the CPC and the Chinese government's all-out efforts in development and construction. "It's very impressive that they're taking care of all the factors that influence Chinese people, not just development and the economy, but also the environment and the well-being of the people," she told the Global Times at the exhibition center.
In June, a delegation of more than 20 think tank scholars from about 15 Latin American countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Ecuador, started their tour in China. Over the course of more than 10 days, they visited cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Nanjing, and went into urban planning exhibition centers, residential communities, Party schools, eco-friendly power plants and university think tanks. Robalino and Escalante were among them. Like many others in the group, they came with a shared purpose: to see for themselves what Chinese modernization under CPC leadership actually looks like.
"I always emphasize the importance of seeing and experiencing China with my own eyes, in addition to learning about it through documents, academic research or news reports," Escalante told the Global Times.
From plans to everyday life
For Escalante, this trip to China was far from her first encounter with the country.
A professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and founder of Mexican Association of Sinology, she has visited China many times before - yet each journey still brings fresh discoveries. "China is a country that changes at an impressive speed, so I try to visit as often as possible," she told the Global Times. "Every trip allows me to observe new processes, and compare what I study in texts with how policies are implemented."
Robalino approached her China visit with a broader set of expectations. Her institution, Ecuador's National Institute of Advanced Studies, has a Center for Chinese Studies, and this trip was meant to deepen existing academic ties. As a scholar of public policy and innovation, she also hoped to observe firsthand how China builds state capacity.
With different expectations, the delegation set off on a "dialogue" spanning mountains and seas. In Shanghai, the Latin American scholars visited the city's urban planning exhibition center and also stepped into one of its most local residential communities. If the former showed them how a metropolis is "planned" into being, the field visit to Block 228 Changbai New Village Subdistrict, or Changbai 228, revealed how planning is translated into everyday life - through the leadership and support of CPC organizations at every level.
On an afternoon in early June, the delegation stepped into Changbai 228 in Shanghai's Yangpu district. Since its completion in 1952, it has served as a warm home for the city's industrial workers. More than seven decades later, through urban planning, it has been transformed into a mixed-use community that preserves historical memory while offering modern services.
As the delegation walked through the neighborhood, they passed one amenity after another: a convenience commercial center, an affordable sports and health center, a restaurant, and subsidized rental housing. Inside a local Party-mass service center, some residents were dancing, while music drifted out into the hall. At the entrance, several scholars paused and, unable to resist, began clapping along to the beat.
"From the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, I was able to observe how the state plans and envisions the development of the city; at Changbai 228, I was able to observe the results of that action from the perspective of the community and everyday life," Robalino told the Global Times. What intrigued her most was "how a planned intervention can become a space that does not feel rigid or imposed, but instead becomes a place for connection and coexistence." To her, the case revealed one of the less visible dimensions of public action: what happens after planning, during implementation, when public decisions become part of people's daily lives.
Escalante was equally struck by what Changbai 228 revealed about the CPC's people-centered philosophy. "What attracted my attention most at 228 was the close connection between urban renewal and the everyday well-being of residents," she said.
"Urban space should not be organized solely around commercial consumption. Changbai 228 includes commercial services, but it also has public and community spaces where people can meet, rest or take part in activities, without consumption necessarily being at the center of the experience." In Escalante's view, the CPC's people-centered approach had taken on tangible form. "Development should not be understood only in economic terms or in terms of economic gain, but also in terms of the people."
An immersive understanding
Having visited China in person and seen firsthand how CPC policies are implemented in everyday life and put at the service of the people, these Latin American scholars with a strong interest in China gained a more immersive understanding of some of the Party's core concepts.
Several of the projects the scholars visited enabled them to observe how these concepts are translated into concrete policies and projects, Escalante said. She pointed to some terms often mentioned by the CPC and the Chinese government, such as "people-centered development," "common prosperity" and "Chinese modernization."
"People-centered development" means that development should not be measured solely by economic growth, infrastructure construction or technological progress, but also by its ability to improve people's livelihoods and quality of life, she added.
The scholar further pointed out that, "common prosperity" adds another layer to this vision: growth and modernization should benefit a broader swath of society, and development should help reduce social and regional inequalities. "What is the point of achieving high levels of economic growth or technological development if a significant part of the population is left outside its benefits?"
As for "Chinese modernization," Escalante described it as a modernization path suited to China's own historical, social and political conditions, rather than the assumption that there is only one universal model to follow.
"The leadership of the CPC is also explicitly presented as one of its central elements. From my perspective, the role of the Party is precisely one of the defining features of this process," she told the Global Times. "The Chinese government has considerable capacity to set long-term development goals, coordinate public policies and mobilize resources toward specific priorities. What interests me is how these broad ideas are translated - or are intended to be translated - into concrete policies, and what results they produce at different levels of society."
Cooperation amid challenges
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the launch of the China-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Forum. Data show that in 2024 trade between China and Latin American and Caribbean countries exceeded $500 billion for the first time, more than 40 times that of the beginning of this century. In 2025, the figure climbed further to $549 billion. More than 20 Latin American countries had joined the Belt and Road cooperation framework, the Xinhua News Agency reported in May 2025.
Behind the numbers are scholars' observations and reflections. Escalante believes that one of the most practical and promising areas for cooperation between China and Latin America lies in sustainable urban transportation and its integration with new energy - including electric public transit, charging infrastructure, energy storage technologies, smart traffic management systems and shared mobility services. "These are particularly relevant areas for large Latin American cities that face problems such as congestion, pollution, unequal access to transportation and long commuting times," she said.
From the perspective of public administration, Robalino pointed to at least two areas where China and Latin America could find concrete opportunities for South-South cooperation.
"One is the exchange of experience on long-term planning, policy monitoring and strengthening implementation capacity; the other is public innovation," she told the Global Times. "It would be particularly interesting to exchange methodologies for experimentation, institutional learning and scaling up innovations."
When asked about the resurgence of "Monroe Doctrine" thinking in the US, Escalante did not evade the issue. "US influence and pressure on Latin America have a long history," she said. What worries her now, she added, is that the US government has once again publicly invoked the Monroe Doctrine, "which inevitably raises questions in Latin America about sovereignty and the capacity to make our own decisions."
At the same time, Escalante argued that it is too simplistic to explain Latin America's limited autonomy solely through external pressure. "Autonomy also depends on our own capacities. A country with strong institutions, a more diversified economy, lower levels of poverty and inequality, greater scientific and technological capabilities, and a long-term development strategy also has more room to decide with whom it wants to build relations and on what terms," she said.
Looking at Latin America, Escalante said one of the most important lessons from China's experience is the country's ability to define long-term goals and, above all, to translate them into concrete policies.
"Our countries have very different political systems, histories and social conditions, so this is not about copying the Chinese model," she told the Global Times. "However, we can reflect on the importance of building institutional systems that can plan, coordinate policies, ensure a certain degree of continuity and make public decisions truly take effect."
As the scholar put it, "China's experience can prompt Latin America to ask an important question: how do we build states with enough capacity to turn development goals into concrete and lasting improvements in people's lives?"
。父母在家牵肠挂肚，连孩子是死是活都不知道，自然是放心不下。
三 | 现在呢？早上从广州出发，晚上就能到北京落地。
四 | 想父母了随时随地能弹个视频通话，连你今天吃了什么火锅都能给父母拍个照片看看。
五 | 现在的远游，早就不会再让父母陷入长久的等待和不安了。 我们这代人，多少人是从小县城考出来，留在大城市工作，别说远游，有些人干脆就在工作的城市安了家。要是真按老刻板印象说，那这些人都不算孝顺吗？当然不是。 真正让父母难过的从来不是你走得远，而是你走了之后，连句准信都不给，连个让他们安心的着落都没有。
六 | 你说走就走，一年半载不联系，父母在家天天对着空房子掉眼泪，这才是真的不孝。 “游必有方”的新内涵，其实是让我们学会让父母安心 方是什么？放在今天，它不是你必须给父母留一个固定的地址那么简单。 你每个星期固定给父母打个电话，说说你最近的生活，哪怕只是吐槽一下公司的盒饭不好吃，他们都能开心好久。你换工作换住处，第一时间告诉他们新的联系方式，不让他们瞎担心。你在外面攒了积蓄，给自己买了医保社保，让他们知道你就算遇到事也能扛得住。
七 | 这些就是现在的“游必有方”啊。 我身边有个朋友，在北京工作了五年，父母一直在老家。她每天不管多晚，都会给妈妈发一条晚安，哪怕只是一个表情。逢年过节一定会回家，实在回不去，也会提前把给父母买的礼物寄回去，还约好邻居家的姐姐多帮着照应。
八 | 她父母从来不会天天催她回老家结婚，反而逢人就说我女儿在北京干得好，我们很放心。你看，这不就是对这句话最好的诠释吗？ 哪怕你走得再远，你心里装着父母，不让他们悬着一颗心，这就够了。 真正的孝道，从来不是绑着你留在父母身边 现在很多人批判这句话，说它耽误年轻人发展，其实错怪了老祖宗的智慧。 孔子从来没说过不让年轻人出门闯荡，他自己带着弟子周游列国，不也是远游吗？他想说的从来不是“你必须留在父母身边”，而是“你要是出门，一定要想着让父母安心”。 现在很多人的矛盾，从来不是远游不对，而是只想着自己远游，忘了身后的父母。
九 | 有些人出去打拼，几年都不回一次家，电话也不打几个，父母问起近况就嫌烦，说他们不懂自己的理想。可你的理想再大，也不该让生你养你的人，天天对着月亮盼你回信啊。 也有些人，明明自己想去外面闯，就因为这句话，硬生生留在小地方，天天抱怨自己被家庭耽误了，对着父母甩脸子。这也不是孝道，这是扭曲了这句话本来的意思。 父母在，也能远游，只要你带着心安回家 现在交通这么方便，通讯这么发达，距离早就不是什么问题了。 你在大城市打拼，每年抽两次假期带父母出去旅游，或者接父母过来住一段时间，让他们看看你生活的地方，知道你过得好不好，比你天天守在家里跟他们吵架强多了。 你哪怕一个月回一次家，每次回去都开开心心陪他们吃顿饭，聊聊天，比你天天住在一起，却对着手机不理他们强多了。 这句话放到今天，从来不是束缚年轻人的枷锁，而是提醒我们的一句箴言。不管我们走得有多远，飞的有多高，都别忘了身后还有牵挂我们的人。 别让你的远游，变成父母望眼欲穿的等待。别把你的任性，当成追求自由的借口。 父母在，人生尚有来处。只要你让父母知道你的归处，远游又有什么关系呢？ 这份刻在骨子里的牵挂，才是这句话留到今天，最珍贵的新内涵。返回，查看更多。
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Published on:09:13:40