This month we are happy to introduce Prof. Guanchi Zhang, an Associate Professor of Law at Vermont Law and Graduate School, Vermont, USA, where he teaches Property, State and Local Government, and Land Use Regulation. He holds an interdisciplinary Doctor of Juridical Science (S.J.D.) degree from Harvard Law School, as well as master’s and bachelor’s degrees in law and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Peking University, China.

Q: Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I am what might be called a boundary-crosser—both geographically and intellectually. As a comparative scholar of urban law and political economy, I spend my time trying to answer a central question: How can law help us manage distributive conflicts inherent in urban development?

This question has taken me between two economic powerhouses—the United States and China—countries that often approach metropolitan governance in completely different ways, yet somehow face remarkably similar urban challenges. I study property, local government, and urban planning in those two countries, publish in both English and Chinese, and write for legal scholars and urban studies readers.

Q: What are you passionate about?

I am fascinated by what it means to live together in cities. Gathering hundreds of thousands of strangers in dense spaces is perhaps humanity’s boldest social experiment, and there’s no better laboratory for studying this than our cities. My work focuses on two interconnected pieces of this puzzle: territory—how law carves up and defines urban space—and community—how legal systems mediate competing claims to urban resources. A recently published paper Urban Common on Uncommon Ground explores some of these themes.

What really drives me is a belief that urban life holds keys to a better society and more harmonious relationships with the environment. I am inspired by thinkers like Iris Young, who wrote about the “community of strangers,” and Henri Lefebvre’s vision of “urban revolution.” The idea that cities can be normative models for how we should live together feels especially urgent now, as we wrestle with inequality, environmental crises, and rapidly evolving technology. Understanding the transformative potential of urban collective life may provide a hint for addressing the challenges we are facing today.

What are you working on these days?

I have two projects that keep me busy right now.

The first project explores how marginalized and vulnerable residents influence urban planning and land use decisions. This grew out of my earlier work on urban villages in China, where I was struck by the jarring coexistence of skyscrapers and shantytown-like communities in global cities. Now I expand this research to American cities, where renewed urban redevelopment and mega-projects are creating fresh tensions between capital and community. I am collecting data and conducting interviews to understand how community-developer negotiations unfold through legal channels like rezoning battles and community benefit agreements.

My second project examines the rise of “techno-cities” in both the US and China—new cities and areas designed for technology and advanced manufacturing. This started when I noticed the tech industry’s call for decentralization through the creation of urban territories. I am studying these developments with equal interest and concern, trying to decode their implications for inequality, energy, and environment.

What brings you to PLPR?

I discovered PLPR through a causal conversation at a law conference. I was talking with a colleague about how studying planning law can feel lonely—there didn’t seem to be much of a community for us. “Do you know PLPR?” he asked. That simple question led me to this association, and I’m grateful for that chance conversation.

Anecdote: things we don’t know about you?

I have a cat whose name combines two Dostoevsky characters: Ivan Karamazov and Prince Myshkin. That’s quite a mouthful for a pet, but somehow it works.

I also write cultural commentary on video games and anime under a few pen names. My productivity isn’t exactly impressive, but I genuinely love exploring how these media forms tell stories about human conditions, society, and our futures.