UC Santa Barbara

In the context of a knowledge economy and innovation-driven development, innovation districts have emerged as place-based urban development tools increasingly embedded within the urban redevelopment of old districts. While this economically and industrially oriented redevelopment pattern revitalizes urban spaces, it also raises concerns about social integration and community inclusion. This study proposes using cognitive regions as a key lens to assess whether urban redevelopment trends toward social integration or segregation, examining the cognitive coupling that occurs when innovation-driven selective redevelopment is inserted into the context of Chinese urban villages. Using Tangdong Village in Guangzhou as a case study, we apply an enhanced cognitive interview (ECI) method combined with visual and spatial analyses to identify cognitive disconnections between different groups toward original residential and innovation spaces, manifested in differences in cognitive elements, focal points, core ranges, and meaning interpretations. At the same time, the transitional streets and environmental improvements surrounding the innovation spaces are weakening the perceived boundaries between the two. We further outline the potential phased evolution of the cognitive impacts of this pattern and highlight that balancing the needs of different groups throughout this process is key to achieving inclusive and sustainable redevelopment.