Children are the future of the city, and a child-friendly environment is a vivid practice of the core concept of a “people’s city.” Building a child-friendly city embodies the people’s aspirations for a better life. From “visible spaces” to “psychological support” and “spiritual enrichment,” Shanghai has achieved an organic integration of childlike wonder, playfulness, and child development. The city’s innovative approach to building a child-friendly urban environment is continuously evolving with new dimensions.

According to the Shanghai Action Plan for Building a Child-Friendly City, the city aims to establish a child-friendly, inclusive, and vibrant community by 2025. On October 24-25, the 2024 Shanghai “For the Children” International Forum, themed “Future Cities and Child Development,” is being held in Pudong, as well as in the Yangpu, Huangpu, and Putuo districts. Participants from various fields will engage in multi-dimensional and multi-perspective discussions on the relationship between future urban development and the growth of children.

Caring for children and nurturing their growth is a shared responsibility, just as urban development is a collective effort. A “people’s city” is built by the people, and it exists for the people. As more and more urban spaces open up for children, as their voices are heard, and as their suggestions are embraced, the concept of child-friendliness is no longer just an idea—it has become a fundamental aspect of the warmth that defines this people-oriented city.

Expanding Access to Child-Friendly Spaces

Programs like “The Power of a Kilowatt Hour,” “Mythical Stories in the City,” “Space Exploration to Ignite Dreams,” and “Exploring the Benefits of Lotus Leaves” have recently drawn many children to themed science reading events at the Laoximen Community Library in Huangpu District. The library features a dedicated children’s reading area, equipped with a wide range of books and regularly hosts cultural activities, providing a convenient space for reading and social interaction for children.

Similar activities are frequently held across Shanghai’s many new child-friendly reading spaces. As a key aspect of building a child-friendly city, these spaces serve as a gateway for children to engage with the community. With the growing demand for children’s reading, Shanghai has been steadily developing child-friendly reading spaces within neighborhoods, incorporating diverse, high-quality reading services into various public cultural venues. To date, the city has established 157 new child-friendly reading spaces, organized nearly 7,000 reading promotion events, and attracted around 400,000 participants.

Beyond reading spaces, the development of other child-friendly areas is also accelerating, including the “One River, One Creek” waterfront spaces, parks, and extracurricular activity venues. For example, some of the best waterfront areas along the rivers are being reserved for children. In Yangpu District, the “Life Show Belt,” Putuo District’s “Half-Marathon Suzhou Creek,” and Jing’an District’s “Suhui Bay” continue to undergo child-friendly transformations. The concept of viewing the city, the world, and the future from a “one-meter height” is being integrated into urban planning. Fengxian District is creating exclusive growth spaces for children, while new parks are springing up across the city. For instance, the Bubble Park “Ant Paradise” playground has become a popular destination for families.

Simultaneously, under the guidance of the Shanghai Women’s Federation, the “Home + Study” family education project is flourishing citywide, supported by a network of women’s federation organizations. This project collaborates with experts, federation leaders, community activists, school teachers, and volunteers, as well as popular bookstores, libraries, and well-known reading platforms, to create spaces for family education guidance. These spaces offer services such as family education counseling, family skills development, and opportunities for social engagement, thereby empowering families and supporting children’s growth.

These “Home + Study” spaces can be traditional bookstores or libraries, coffee shops or gardens that incorporate book reading, or venues closely tied to family education such as museums and science centers. They may even include new media platforms like online reading portals. Dozens of such spaces have already emerged across Shanghai, like spring shoots in the urban landscape. The Shanghai Women’s Federation aims to establish 100 “Home + Study” spaces and create a city-wide map by the end of this year.

In 2021, the National Development and Reform Commission, together with the Office of the State Council Working Committee on Women and Children, and 23 other departments jointly issued the Guidelines on Promoting Child-Friendly City Construction. The document set a goal to establish 100 child-friendly city pilot projects across the country by 2025, ensuring that child-friendly principles are reflected in public services, rights protection, growth spaces, development environments, and social policies. Shanghai is actively turning this vision into reality.

Making “Children First” More Tangible

“Let’s go to the maze for a challenge!” In the evenings, Miele Park on Songlin Road becomes a popular spot for local elementary school students after school. Just a five-minute walk north along the same road, across from the sports field of Jianping Middle School’s West Campus, is a multi-age-friendly public service center called “Songlinli,” another favorite after-school gathering spot for children.

Songlin Road, with its warm and convenient atmosphere, is a microcosm of Shanghai’s commitment to being child-friendly and putting children first. In Xuhui District, the transformation of spaces beneath elevated roads into the “Lehui Mini Park” provides a “paradise” for children amid the urban landscape. In Jiading District, individualized traffic management plans have been developed for 241 schools, with signal timing optimized at 27 intersections near 16 key schools. Additionally, projects like the Pediatric Hospital’s “Dream Medical Academy” and “Little Bu’s Home” have enhanced the medical experience for child patients. These thoughtful, child-sensitive transformations of urban spaces showcase both the precision and the warmth of the city’s development.

Focusing on the needs of children, Shanghai launched the “Star Moms’ Haven” project earlier this year, which aims to support families with autistic children. As part of the “Loving You in Your World” initiative, the project has established a “1+5” service network spanning the city and districts. This network provides skills training for families, psychological counseling, and other forms of support. Since its launch in May, the project has recruited nearly 200 families and provided services to over 4,300 people.

Bringing warmth and strength, the project aims to help every “star” shine bright. From forming volunteer service teams to organizing parent-child pottery workshops in Jingdezhen, from raising awareness about autism to hosting related forums, Shanghai is developing a comprehensive care system for autistic children. Over the years, the city has launched various social initiatives and themed activities focused on autism care, offering diverse experiences that have helped foster greater public understanding and acceptance of “children of the stars.”

The continual improvement of this comprehensive care system for autistic children is just one example. Other initiatives, like raising the basic welfare standards for children with special needs and implementing “Light-Chasing House” room modifications, further strengthen protections for children’s rights. Numerous quality public services have emerged to better meet the needs of children as they grow. Volunteers at the Riverside Pavilion in Pudong, community workers at the Shengjing Garden in Changning, and many others across the city increasingly embrace the child-friendly concept and work towards it. Building a child-friendly city is becoming a shared vision among the people of Shanghai.

Making Children’s Participation More Accessible

“A fine that varies based on each minor’s family financial situation could make things even harder for those from low-income families.” This was a suggestion made several years ago by Li Junhao, who was then a middle school student, in a proposal to amend the Law on the Protection of Minors submitted to the National People’s Congress. To his surprise, his recommendation led to a change in the relevant provisions.

Ensuring that every group has a voice includes making space for children’s perspectives. In Shanghai, children’s ideas have been considered in various initiatives, such as the design competition for the city’s child-friendly city logo, the “One River, One Creek” civic improvement projects, and the revision of the city’s protection regulations for minors, which included suggestions from youth reporters of the Juvenile Daily. Children’s voices are being heard and increasingly adopted, turning their “golden ideas” into tangible results. By establishing a network that spans from the city to districts, towns, and communities for gathering children’s suggestions, Shanghai has achieved 100% coverage of its children’s suggestion collection platform and children’s councils at the local level.

Children’s participation reflects a city’s inclusiveness and warmth, while also representing a coordinated effort that requires collaboration across departments and the broader community. In its journey toward becoming a child-friendly city, Shanghai has made promoting children’s participation a key focus, creating vibrant and accessible platforms for engagement. Various settings, projects, activities, and services have been developed and continually upgraded, incorporating the concept of “Child-Friendly+” into all aspects of the city’s high-quality development.

As the first municipality in China to fully advance the construction of a child-friendly city, Shanghai has rolled out a series of implementation plans and action initiatives. It has also launched research on standards for child-friendly communities, schools, hospitals, parks, and more, alongside implementing the country’s first local regulations on preschool education, childcare services, and extracurricular educational support for primary and secondary students. The child-friendly philosophy is now embedded in over 50 city-level policy documents, including the Guidelines for Developing Child-Friendly Waterfront Spaces along the “One River, One Creek” and the Shanghai Management Regulations for Maternal and Infant Facilities.

The building of a child-friendly city is crucial not only for children’s growth but also for improving urban living environments. A child-friendly city benefits not only children but all residents and the city itself. Caring for those at the “one-meter height” is about safeguarding the future, creating a solid foundation for children’s development, and infusing the city with renewed vitality. It makes those who live here feel a greater sense of pride and happiness. By listening to children’s voices and respecting their needs, we can ensure a happier life for them and foster a city where development is more compassionate and life more fulfilling.

– Jiefang Daily