It wasn’t always the design that was inappropriate, but often the politics or the way the project was funded placed great restrictions on how it was implemented, often resulting in a bad outcome.

Clean air, as the Beijing Olympics demonstrated, required many of the cars to be taken off the road and most of the factories to be temporarily closed down.

The solution to the air quality problem in China therefore could be solar, electric and hybrid cars for private travel, a sophisticated public transport network and promotion of the Chinese tradition of cycling for fitness benefits.

All of these measures are essential in the West too, so in many ways it is a case of us working together to solve this problem that we share for the world. Chinese thinkers will undoubtably come up with their own unique solutions which hopefully they will also share with the West.

A tip to ask of the people working in the foreign company: are they the A team (or the B or C team?) The A team are usually the people who work most closely with the designer of world renown.

Another fundamental issue is that the idea of the ‘international style’ still has currency (perhaps more currency than it should have) so cultural influences on aesthetics are not considered valuable. So hopefully there is a middle way between an international style and tradition.

I have asked several Chinese people about the emptying villages – and received several replies (1) Chinese people don’t like the countryside (2) but they do like gardens (3) at present, regulations do not allow the purchase of houses in villages as second homes. My guess is that, as in most countries at most points in history, the taste for summer homes will develop in China

I wonder what will happen to the villages as they empty? In Europe they would most likely become holiday homes, but I am not sure if the Chinese middle class is ready to view the rural life as romantic enough to want to do this, I suspect not.