Chinese community embrace '15-minute city' livability concept

Urban communities across China are benefiting from renewal projects that place residents' daily needs within walking distance, resulting in greater convenience, stronger social connections, and more sustainable living environments.

The emerging concept in urban design has become known globally as the "15-minute city", based on the idea that everything from dining and parks to essential healthcare should be accessible within just 15 minutes of travel distance.

In China, pilot projects are embracing the concept in an attempt to shore up weaknesses in the provision of public services -- a key task for housing and urban-rural development departments across the country this year.

According to the latest data from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, by the end of July, 106 pilot complete communities in China have constructed and renovated 1,246 public service facilities, including elderly care service centers, community canteens, kindergartens, and community health service stations.

In Yibin City of southwest China's Sichuan Province, a community canteen providing discounted meals for residents, with special discounts for seniors, has seen booming business since its opening in May.

"Now that we have the community canteen, both my husband and I eat here. It's convenient and clean, and we can scoop whatever we want to eat. It's pretty good," said He Xianglin, an elderly resident in the community.

The canteen is part of a broader effort to bring essential services to residents' doorsteps. Thanks to renewal efforts, all amenities, including kindergartens, supermarkets, community health service stations, public activity spaces, and green areas, are easily accessible within walking distance.

"By fully leveraging the geographical advantages of a park-integrated community, we have built a '15-minute city' that offers green views outside every window, park access right at the doorstep, easy walking distance, and services enjoyed by every age group," said Xian Xiaoqin, party secretary of the community.

Data from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development shows that this year, various regions have demonstrated a commitment to constructing complete communities. Over 700 commercial outlets, including convenience stores, domestic service outlets, hair salons, and postal and express service facilities, have been established.

Meanwhile, 24,700 parking spots have been added, 710,000 square meters of public activity areas and green spaces have been developed, and 233 community parks have been built.

Many communities have also integrated barrier-free facilities, smart management service platforms, and installed intelligent sensing devices, benefiting more than a million residents.

A key driver of the 15-minute city is demand for sustainable living, and as such, many communities are placing special emphasis on the reuse of existing resources.

Ji'an City in east China's Jiangxi Province has transformed idle plots into leisure spaces as part of the city's comprehensive community development efforts.

A notable example is in a local sub-district, where a previously vacant lot is being converted into a multifunctional space combining sports facilities with an eco-friendly parking area -- a renovation project achieved through democratic consultation with residents.

"The government offered three renovation projects in January. Most neighbors chose the current project, and everyone is looking forward to seeing the results after the renovation," said Deng Haohua, a resident in the sub-district.

"We established a resident-led renovation council to oversee the entire process of the renovation project, including design, material selection, and construction," said Liang Yinwei, the on-site project manager.

Chinese community embrace '15-minute city' livability concept

A Japanese lawmaker has raised concerns over Japan's push to expand its military and its nuclear policy.

Responding to some politicians' dangerous tendency towards possessing nuclear weapons, Takara Sachika, a member of Japan's House of Councilors, said that Japan's push to strengthen its military, combined with what she called a misguided nuclear policy, not only heightens regional tensions but also directly threatens regional security.

"I think this is completely unacceptable. Japan is a country that has suffered atomic bombings and is one of the nations most aware of the threat posed by nuclear weapons. Yet such a country is openly discussing the issue of possessing nuclear weapons and even attempting to revise the principle of not allowing the introduction of nuclear weapons, one of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles. This is an extremely serious problem," Takara said.

Takara said the Japanese government's tendency to expand its military capabilities is completely contrary to the Constitution.

"From the perspective of Japan's Constitution, Japan should never have adopted a policy of ensuring security by strengthening military capabilities. Yet today, enormous effort is being poured into military expansion, and that in itself is a serious problem," said the lawmaker.

At a Diet meeting in early November 2025, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said that what she described as the Chinese central authorities' "use of force on Taiwan" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, and suggested the possibility of armed intervention in the Taiwan Strait, drawing strong criticism worldwide.

Takara urged Takaichi to retract her erroneous remarks as soon as possible.

"I think there is a very big problem with making such remarks that provoke other countries. It is necessary to thoroughly examine the facts as soon as possible and withdraw the relevant remarks," she said.

Japanese lawmaker criticizes nuclear weapons remarks as threat to regional security