The 4th Life Quality National Forum kicked off in Hangzhou, capital city of east China’s Zhejiang province, on Dec 5.

With the theme of Promoting civic engagement and citizen life and building a harmonious society, the 4th Life Quality National Forum gathered 27 specialists from national level think tanks and top universities in China.

The specialists shared their research on ways to improve citizens’ lives by engaging citizens in the decision-making process.

In the meeting, the specialists spoke highly of a series of activities Hangzhou municipal government has initiated on engaging local citizens in deciding how to improve local citizens’ lives. The Hangzhou public bicycle transportation system, solutions for parking difficulty, and renovation of old buildings were the most often cited examples of city-wide civic engagement in government initiated projects.

Since 2006, this event has been co-organized annually by Hangzhou municipal government, Bright Daily and Social Association of China. Opinions and suggestions voiced at the forum on ways to make Hangzhou a better place were greatly valued by the Hangzhou municipal government.

By Li Hui