Dr Kai Gu

k.gu@auckland.ac.nz

Kai Gu has been teaching urban design in the planning programme at the School of Architecture and Planning since 2006. His research in urban morphology seeks to advance knowledge of urban landscapes through the study of their history and the agents and ideas involved in their creation and transformation. Urban morphology provides a systematic basis for urban landscape characterisation and management. His recent research projects explore comparative urban morphology, morphogenesis and sustainability, and urban design pedagogy. To promote innovative and interdisciplinary morphological research for urban design and policy making, he collaborates with many colleagues, students, and organisations nationally and internationally

Publications

Books

• Wang, S. and Gu, K. (2022, in press) Spatial Justice and Planning: : Reshaping Social Housing Communities in a Changing Society, Cham: Springer.

• Tian, Y., Gu, K. and Tao, W. (2021) Urban Morphology, Architectural Typology and Cities in Transition, Les Ulis, France: EDP Sciences.

• Xie, P. F. and Gu, K. (2018) The Morphology of Tourism: Planning for Impact in Tourist Destinations, Abingdon, Oxon and New York, NY: Routledge, 218 pp.

• Gu, K. (in press) Urban Morphology: A Cross-cultural Conception of Historical Urban Landscapes, Abingdon, Oxon and New York, NY: Routledge.

Book Chapters

• Gu, K. (2019) ‘Urban morphological regions: Development of an idea’, in Oliveira, V. (ed.) W.R. Whitehand and the Historico-geographical Approach to Urban Morphology, Cham: Springer, Chapter 2, 33-46.
• Gu, K. (2018) ‘Exploring urban morphology as urban design pedagogy’, in Oliveira, V. (ed.) Teaching Urban Morphology, Cham: Springer, Chapter 9, 145-157.

Refereed Journal Articles

• Wang, S and Gu, K. (in press) ‘Waste recyclers, embodied research and planning: evidence from Guangzhou, China’, International Development Planning Review (SSCI-indexed).
• Gu, K., Wang, S., Zhang, J. and Chen, S. (in press) ‘Exploring the substantive nature of urban morphology: managing the changing character of cities in China’, Urban Morphology (SSCI-indexed).
• Gu, K. (2020) ‘The teaching of urban design: a morphological approach’, Journal of Planning Education and Research, 40(4), 472-481 (SSCI-indexed).
• Xie, S., Gu, K and Zhang, X. (2020) ‘Urban conservation in China in an international context: retrospect and prospect’, Habitat International, 95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.habitatint.2019.102098 (SSCI-indexed).
• Wang, S. and Gu, K. (2020) ‘Pingyao: The historic urban landscape and planning for heritage-led urban changes’, Cities, 97. DOI: 10.1016/j.cities.2019.102489 (SSCI-indexed).
• Gu, K., Li, Y. and Zheng, X. (2019) ‘A typological approach to planning’, Journal of Urbanism: International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability, 12(4), 373-392.