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A Pearl in the North, a City of Happiness
Changchun is the capital city of Jilin Province and one of the 15 sub-provincial cities assigned by the State Council. The total area covers 24,744 square kilometers with a metropolitan area of 20,571 square kilometers which includes 7 administrative districts, three cities, and one town. [1]
Changchun has become a multi-functional and modern city with numerous reputations such as “The Automotive Capital”, “The Hollywood of China”, “The City of Organic Food”, “The City of Forests”, “The City of Science and Education”, and “The City of Sculptures”. Changchun has won countless awards such as the “2011 Top Ten Low Carbon City”, the “2012 National Cultural City Award”. It is also the first to receive the “National Innovative City” award and voted the “City with Most Happiness” and “City Provides Happiness for its Citizens” by the national media and press. [2]
As a beautiful city, Changchun has a pleasant climate and distinct scenery in each of the four seasons. Owning the largest artificial forest of Asia, the city, 41.5 percent of whose urban area is covered by green, is awarded as the “National Model of Green City”, “National Model of Environmentally Friendly City”, and “National Clean City”. [3]
Vivacious Spring City
The “Integration of the cities of Changchun and Jilin” provided opportunities for the urban structure and the industry distribution of Changchun, and created a solid foundation for better and faster development of the backbone industries and the economy. Scientific development planning, solid development foundation, and the advanced distribution helped Changchun became one of the innovative cities that is capable of development. In 2012, Changchun was among the first group of cities to receive the “National Innovative City” awarded by the State Council. The rank of innovation capability of Changchun city has been rising since 2018. [4]
1 The Famous Automotive Capital
1.1 The First Automobile Works of China (FAW)
The FAW Group is a historic milestone in the history of development of China's automotive industry as its pioneer and leader. Over the years, the FAW has been emphasizing on the development of the auto part industry in expansion, industrialization, and collection under the enterprise development guidelines of the “Independent Innovation; Open Cooperation”. The FAW had completed the transformation from a single product factory to a global enterprise with a multi-brand, multi-series, and multi-dimension product lines that ranges from small, mid-sized and heavy trucks to passenger cars, mini-sized vans, buses, and military vehicles as well as the leading automotive enterprise with a diverse capital structure that operates in both international and domestic markets. [5]
1.2 Changchun Railway Vehicles Co., Ltd. (CRV)
Changchun Railway Vehicles Co., Ltd. is the cradle of China Metro Transit and EMU. The former Changchun Passenger Car Factory, founded in 1954, is one of the key construction projects of the First Five-Year Plan.
The CRV produces 180-200 EMUs, 4,000 urban rail vehicles and 600 ordinary railway buses every year. The products have been exported to more than 20 countries and regions The total number of export vehicles has exceeded 9,000, and the contract value has exceeded 12 billion US dollars. CRH5 200 km/h AC emu is the pioneer of the sixth large-scale speed-up of Chinese Railway in 2007. It is the first class high-speed EMU in the world. [6]
2 Photoelectric Industry
Changchun is the cradle of China’s photoelectric technology. In 1951, the famous scholar, Wang Daheng came to Changchun to establish the Changchun Optical Precision Machinery and Physics Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Science, and engaged in basic, applied, engineering and high-tech industrialization research work. Led by fellow researchers, Wang Daheng and Xu Xurong together with a group of scientists have made over 1,700 achievements in scientific research, developed over ten “First in China” technological advancements including China’s first ruby laser and the first large-scaled theodolite, trained more than 2,200 talents, and contributed to the national science and technology development, economic development, and national defense development. The institute is known as the “the Cradle of China’s Optics” and has created the foundation for the formation and development of Changchun’s photoelectric industry. [7]
Relying on its solid foundation, strong innovative ability, and a complete R&D team, Changchun is emphasizing on the development of the photoelectric industry. So far, Changchun has completed projects such as “The Changchun Photoelectric Industry Base of the National Torch Project”, “The Software Industry Base of the National Torch Project”, “The National High-Tech Export Base”, and the “Chinese Overseas Student Entrepreneurship Base”. As the officially certified “National Photoelectric Industry Base”, Changchun is moving forward to a market-oriented and demand-oriented photoelectric R&D base.
3 The City of Academic Culture
Changchun has long enjoyed its fame of the “City of Science, Education, and Culture”. With a great number of universities, scientific and cultural institutions, and cultural activities, Changchun becomes one of the knowledge-intensive cities of China. The city is praised as “Boston in the East” with its nation- and world-renowned universities, such as Jilin University, Northeast Normal University, and Aviation University of the Air Force of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army; 107 private scientific and technological research institutions, and 98 state-owned scientific research institutions; 19 national key open laboratories for scientific research; 31 academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering; and over 339 thousand professionals of different fields. [5]
4 Changchun Film Studio (CFS)
As the film cradle of the PRC, the Changchun Film Studio (CFS), in its history of over 60 years, has produced over 1000 films and translated over 1000 overseas films. Under its influence, Changchun has won its reputation as City of Film, held 12 national film festivals since 1992, established Changying Century City --- the first worldclass film theme park of China, transformed the former site of the CFS, attracted millions of tourists with its film industry, and earned the honour and realized the dream of its film culture. [5]
A City for Livability and Quality of Life
The Province of Jilin is the “Ecological Model Province”. Changchun, as the capital of Jilin takes the leadership role in the ecological development of the province. A temperate, semi-humid continental monsoon climate makes Changchun a beautiful scroll of sceneries that draw the eyes of millions. The locals are kindhearted and easy to get along with. Numerous stories of “positive energy” are evident. A genuine daily life with an optimistic attitude towards any eventualities can also be found in the city.
1 Urban Forests and Natural Sceneries
Changchun, also better known as the “National Garden City”, “National Model of Green City”, and “A City of Forests”, uses the color green in its name card to make the visualization of a perfect ecological environment that only exists in people’s imaginations. Everyone has the luxury of forests, gardens, and parks around where they live. This is not a mirage but something real that can be touched, giving anyone a feeling of an out-of-this-world dreamland. The beautiful natural sceneries have raised the environmental awareness of the citizens. Currently, Changchun is the holder of numerous awards such as the “The Model of Chinese Living Environment”, “The National Garden City”, the “The Model City of Environmental Protection”, and the “National Clean City” . [8]
2 The Mingling of Ice and Snow and the Crossing of Spring and Autumn
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