Chongqing- International experts visited the Chongqing Meteorological Bureau and Minzhu Village in Jiulongpo District on June 17, gaining firsthand insights into how the inland megacity is leveraging digital technology and community-centered governance to address the challenges of modernization.

The visit was part of the International Symposium on the Global Significance of Chinese Modernization, held in Chongqing from June 16 to 18. The event brings together scholars and think tank experts from China and several countries to examine Chinese modernization through the lens of Global South development.

Building Resilience Through Smart Early Warning Systems

At the Chongqing Meteorological Bureau, officials briefed the delegation on the city's implementation of the World Meteorological Organization's "Early Warnings for All" initiative. Chongqing covers 82,400 square kilometers, has 37 districts and counties, and a permanent population of more than 30 million. Its geography combines large urban areas, rural areas, mountainous regions, and reservoir areas, creating frequent risks from rainstorms, heatwaves, drought, gales, flash floods, urban waterlogging, geological disasters, and forest fires.

International experts listen to a briefing at the Chongqing Meteorological Bureau on June 17, 2026. (Photo/Zheng Ran)

Chongqing has developed an intelligent meteorological system known as the "Four Tian" system, covering intelligent observation, forecasting, public services, and disaster prevention. The system supports a progressive forecasting model, with information updated from several days ahead to real-time warnings. It also connects the city, district, subdistrict, and community levels, as well as 27 municipal departments and more than 1.02 million emergency responders.

One example introduced during the briefing was the city's targeted warning mechanism. Using electronic geofencing, the system can identify people within a high-risk area and send alerts directly to them. In an extreme precipitation scenario, officials said more than 840,000 phone numbers in a designated risk zone could receive warning messages in less than four minutes, at a rate of 4,500 messages per second.

Technology in Service of the People

For many visiting experts, the briefing demonstrated how advanced technology can be effectively integrated into public governance.

Roland Theodore Boer, an Australian sinologist and high-end foreign expert with the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs, said he was struck by two aspects of Chongqing's digital meteorological services: China's willingness to test new technologies and the system's integrated nature.

"Many different aspects need to work together, from grassroots-level responsibilities to the latest technologies, satellites, early warning systems, and even imaging for potential flooding in specific buildings," Boer said. "All of this is integrated in a way that makes the system much more efficient."

Vineeta Sinha, Director of the Asia Research Institute at the National University of Singapore, focused on the public purpose behind the technology.

"I was very impressed by the use of technology and advanced high-tech methods for tracking weather conditions for the benefit of local people," Sinha said. She added that behind the digital monitoring system was an underlying philosophy of care - care for the environment and care for the people.

Maria Fe Celi, a Peruvian PhD candidate at Shanghai University, said Chongqing's experience showed the importance of combining technology with governance capacity.

"The idea is really about technology for the people and technology serving the people," Celi said. "Natural disasters cannot be stopped, but people can now be saved, and losses can be greatly reduced."

She added that technology itself is not sufficient. "Technology is not a silver bullet," Celi said. "Good governance and coordination between different levels of government are necessary."

Beyond digital risk management, the visit also highlighted another dimension of Chongqing's urban governance: how public services and community renewal are organized at the grassroots level.

In Minzhu Village, experts observed how urban renewal can be linked with residents' participation, improved public services, and everyday community life. The area has undergone a major renewal project since early 2022 and drew national attention when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited on April 22, 2024, highlighting people-centered urban development.

Originally developed in the 1950s, Minzhu Village now includes more than 160,000 square meters of renewed space. Its renovation has included upgraded infrastructure, improved public services, an eco-friendly farmers' market built with recycled materials, sponge parks created from once-polluted drainage channels, and public spaces such as fitness zones and rehearsal stages.

Minzhu Village is also part of Chongqing's pilot program for high-quality 15-minute living circles, which aim to provide residents with convenient access to healthcare, education, commerce, and public services within a short walk. More than 100 new businesses have opened in the area, including cafes, boutique stores, and community art spaces.

Community Participation at the Heart of Governance

Boer noted Minzhu Village could serve as a model because the renewal process was not simply top-down.

"Technical experts and building specialists were involved, but local people were also consulted to understand what they thought would be the best approach," he said. He also noted that grassroots CPC (Communist Party of China) organizations were part of the community, understood local needs, and engaged with residents in everyday life.

For Boer, community governance and public services are important to modernization because they address basic requirements for a better life, including food security, shelter, clothing, medical services, elderly care, and childcare.

Sinha said the visit challenged some outside assumptions about China and showed the role of local participation.

She added that Minzhu Village also showed how a large city can renew itself through smaller neighborhood-level changes. "Sometimes large cities say that the scale is too big," Sinha said. "But Minzhu Village shows that it is possible to work within a larger urban context by focusing on local communities and neighborhoods."

For Sinha, community governance is central to modernization in the Global South because public services affect daily life.

"Democracy is not just about elections and winning elections," she said. "It is about delivering services to the people in order to improve their everyday lives."

Celi said the most important lesson from Minzhu Village was the relationship between people and governance.

"The people and the government are working together for a better life," she said. Referring to a photo of a community meeting, she noted that residents were sitting in a circle, where everyone is equal and in dialogue.

Celi said China's approach to modernization is drawing attention because it challenges the long-held idea that modernization must mean Westernization.

"China is breaking that paradigm completely," she said. "It shows that all countries and peoples can develop and become modern without giving up their core values and traditions."

She said China's experience should not be understood as something to be copied exactly.

"China has its own process and its own history," Celi said. "What we need to do as Global South countries is to learn from the process, and then reflect on our own countries and how we can do it."

"For example, in my case, I am Peruvian. So the question is: what would it mean to be modern with Peruvian characteristics?" she said.

Boer said the broader lesson for other cities lies in combining economic capacity, trained people, and governance embedded in the local community.

"You need very good governance," Boer said, "and that governance must be thoroughly embedded in the local community."