Bldg. 389, Room D215
Tel. +86-20-84114105 (direct)
Fax +86-20-84113621
breitung@hotmail.com  

Current courses 

Sun Yatsen University*
. Undergraduate
World Regional Geography

. Postgraduate
Nations and Borders in a Globalising World

. Postgraduate
Western Planning Theory

University of Hong Kong
. GEOG 1012
Economic and Social 
Development in an 
Urbanising World

. GEOG 2080   
Regional Geography of 
Europe

. GEOG 3028  
Germany Fieldtrip (2006)
  
Universität Basel
. Lecture and Fieldtrip
Hongkong and the 
Pearl River Delta 

Past projects

2006 Germany fieldtrip 
with HKU and ZSU

Hunan Province (2006)
International tourism (pdf)

Lake Kanas [Xinjiang] (2005)
International tourism (pdf)

Ganzhou [Jiangxi] (2004)
International tourism (ppt)

Biotope mapping Mai Po
[byMaja Willis] (2004)

Teacher training: The East Asian City (2002) (German)

Computer Applications 
in Geography (2002)

Culture of Macau (pdf)
(2001)

Links

FU Berlin
GSIS
University of Basel
ASG (swissgeography)
University of Macau
Instituto Cultural (ICM)
University of Hong Kong
-School of Geography
-CUPEM
Sun Yatsen University*
Global Cities (GaWC)
Mega Cities (IGU)
Border Research (IBRU)
Hong Kong Government  
DFG SPP Megacities (1233)
Geographische Rundschau
Newspapers:
  SCMP
  Tagesspiegel
  NZZ
European Union  
Goethe-Institute HK
HK Esperanto Association

* Sun Yatsen University is known in China as Zhongshan University.

Degrees: StR in geography and mathematics (Free University Berlin), First thesis: Transformation of Berlin's 19th century suburbs.  Second thesis: Economic change in the environs of Berlin - the example of the industrial area of Teltow. Teaching at high schools in Berlin and Hong Kong (1993-1997). Research associate at University of Basel (1998-2000). Doctoral thesis: Hong Kong and the integration process. Spatial patterns and planning concepts. Lecturer at University of Macau, Dept. of Social Sciences (2001-2003), temp. Assistant Professor at University of Hong Kong and research scholar of Instituto Cultural do Macau (ICM). Since 2004 Associate Professor at Sun Yatsen University, Guangzhou. Regional Editor (China) of Geographische Rundschau International.
  
Research areas

Cities and city regions: The impact of globalisation and political change on urban development  
Borders: Border regions, border people and transborder planning
Tourism: Tourism planning and development in China
Regional focus: Hong Kong, China and East Asia; Europe (especially Central Europe and Germany)
   

Current research

Pearl River Delta: Intra-urban borders as a tool for mega city governance
Guangzhou and the Pearl River Delta has become a fast growing mega city region of about 50 million people. While the dynamism, diversity and lack of structure that comes with such a development is often seen as a threat to governability, the case of the Pearl River Delta now shows that boundaries and bounding can serve the governance of the mega city. Our research within the German DFG Priority Programme 1233 looks at:
* The role of boundaries and bounding, exclusion and inclusion in the Pearl River Delta mega city region
* How spatially differentiated governance can support the governability of a mega city region
* How local people perceive boundaries and phenomena of exclusion and inclusion
* The role of informal processes as contributing to stability and development in the Pearl River Delta. 

Hong Kong: Global city and local socio-economic consequences
Global cities as command and control centers direct the flow of goods, people, information and money globally. China's integration in the world's economic, cultural and political networks turns Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing into such global cities. This causes social, economic and cultural changes in these cities. Research foci:
* Growth of the central business district and other "globalised" spaces  Hong Kong
* Cultural, social and demographic changes in "Asia’s World City" 
* Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai as competing or complementary centres.
 
Macau and Hong Kong: Living with the mainland border 
Political borders have political, physical, socio-economical, functional and psychological functions and aspects. Overcoming borders is a process on all five levels. The examples of Hong Kong and the former Portuguese colony of Macau in China illustrate strategies of the local population to live with borders and to overcome them in their daily life. Particular research topics:
* Cross-boundary perception and spatial awareness
* Cross-boundary activities and especially the emergence of cross-boundary commuting  
* Macau and Hong Kong in the context of China's booming outbound border tourism
* Integration processes and transborder governance in Hong Kong and Macau in comparison.

The New Territories: Natural and cultural landscape under threat
The regional integration of Hong Kong initiated an increasing development pressure on the New Territories between Shenzhen and urban Hong Kong. This still largely rural area has developed into an unique natural and cultural landscape under the particular historical conditions of a tight border regime. Specific research topics: 
* Review of the natural and cultural characteristics especially of the Northwest New Territories
* Innovative development proposals of private developers for this area
* A possible holistic planning concept with a sustainability and transborder perspective
  

Publications

Monographs
BREITUNG, W. (2007): Overcoming borders, living with borders. Macao and the integration with China. Macau: ICM. 
BREITUNG, W. (2001): Hongkong und der Integrationsprozess. Räumliche Strukturen und planerische Konzepte. 
(= Basler Beiträge zur Geographie, Bd. 48), Basel: Wepf & Co.

Refereed papers and book chapters
BREITUNG, W. (2009): Macau residents as border people - A changing border regime from a socio-cultural perspective. In: Journal of Current Chinese Affairs - China aktuell, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 101-127.
BREITUNG, W. (2008): Peking - Von der Hauptstadt zur Weltstadt. In: Geographische Rundschau, vol. 60, no. 5, pp. 52-57.
ZHOU, S. & W. BREITUNG, W. (2007): The 798 Art District in Beijing - Production and reproduction of culture in a global city. In: Geographische Rundschau International, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 56-62. 
BREITUNG, W. (2007): The formation of a transborder metropolitan region: Growth of cross-border commuting between Hong Kong and Shenzhen. In: Wang Fanghua and Chen Hongmin (eds.): Research report on metropolitan regions in China and abroad. Shanghai: Sanrian, pp. 264-284.
BREITUNG, W. (2007): Working, living, partying – The global city takes local spaces. Monitoring changes in Hong Kong under globalisation. In: Du Guoqing (ed.): Tourism and urban transformation. Tokyo, Rikkyo University Press, pp. 139-160.
BREITUNG, W. (2006): At the border of two regions (in Chinese). In: Review of Culture (Chinese Edition), no. 59, pp. 83-102.
BREITUNG, W. & M. GÜNTER (2006): Local and social change in a global city - the case of Hong Kong.
In Fulong Wu (ed.): Globalisation and the Chinese City. London: Routledge, pp. 85-107. 
WILLIS, M., S. ZERBE & W. BREITUNG (2006): Habitat survey, mapping, and assessment in the Mai Po NatureReserve, Hong Kong (China). In: Archiv für Naturschutz und Landschaftsforschung, vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 53-69.
BREITUNG, W. (2006): Hong Kong, China's global city. In: Rita Schneider-Sliwa (ed.): Cities in transition - Globalization, political change and urban development (=The GeoJournal Library, no. 83). Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 67-94. 
BREITUNG, W. (2004): Living with borders - overcoming borders. In: Revista de Cultura, no. 9, pp. 18-29.
BREITUNG, W. (2004): A tale of two borders. Separation and exchange: Macao's and Hong Kong's borders with the Mainland. Hongkong. In: Revista de Cultura, no. 9, pp. 6-17.
BREITUNG, W. (2003): Hongkong, Shanghai, Peking - ein Land, drei Weltstädte . In: Geographie heute, no. 211/212, pp. 36-45. 
BREITUNG, W. (2002): Hongkong - eine Weltstadt auf der Suche nach einer neuen Identität. In: Zeitschrift für Wirtschaftsgeographie, vol. 46, no. 3/4, pp. 246-259. 
BREITUNG, W. (2002): Transformation of a boundary regime: the Hong Kong and Mainland China case. In: Environment and Planning A, vol. 34, pp. 1749-1762.
BREITUNG, W. (2002): Hongkong, die Globalstadt Chinas. In: Rita Schneider-Sliwa (ed.): Städte im Umbruch. Berlin: Reimer, pp. 73-100. 
BREITUNG, W. (2001): Globalstadt Hongkong - Lokale Konsequenzen der globalen Vernetzung. In: Asiatische Studien, no. 3, pp. 611-648.
CHAN, R., C. GU & W. BREITUNG (2000): Immigration, neue Armut und Segregation in Peking. In: Geographica Helvetica, no. 1, pp. 13-22.
BREITUNG, W. & R. SCHNEIDER-SLIWA (2000): Das Neue Berlin - vereinigte Stadt, gespaltene Stadt.In: Petermanns Geographische Mitteilungen, no. 5, pp. 6-17.
BREITUNG, W. (1999): The End of "Made in Hong Kong"? – De-industrialisation and Industrial Promotion Policy in Hong Kong. In: Geographica Helvetica, no. 4, pp. 242-251.
BREITUNG, W. & R. SCHNEIDER-SLIWA (1997):Hongkong vor neuen Herausforderungen - Eine Global City im Wandel. In: Geographische Rundschau, no. 7-8, pp. 441-449.
BREITUNG, W. & P. KNEIP (1993): Was tut sich im Speckgürtel von Berlin? - Strukturwandel in der Industriestadt Teltow. In: Geographie heute, no. 110, pp. 35-43.
  
Other publications
BREITUNG, W. (2006): Lake Kanas in the Altai Mountains – A world-class destination? 15pp. 
BREITUNG, W. (2006): The formation of a transborder metropolitan region. In: 2006 International Forum on Metropolitan Regions Development - Proceedings. Shanghai: Jiao Tong University, pp. 209-220.
BREITUNG, W. (2005): The Land of Hakka at the Trans-China Railway - Study on the prospects of developing Ganzhou area of Jiangxi Province (China) as a destination for international tourism. In: Ganzhou tourism master plan 2005-2020, concept planning special subject research, Guangzhou: Sun Yatsen University, School of Tourism, pp. 249-268 (in Chinese).
BREITUNG, W. (2005): Working, living, partying – The global city takes local spaces. In: Murayama, Yuji & Guoqing Du (eds.): Cities in global perspective. Tokyo, Rikkyo University, College of Tourism & IGU Urban Commission, pp. 391-400. 
BREITUNG, W. & M. GÜNTER (2004):  Local and social change in a global city - the case of Hong Kong. (GaWC Research Bulletin 159). 
BREITUNG, W. (2004): Hongkong. In: R. Marr (ed.): Schweizer Weltatlas - Kommentar. Zürich: EDK, pp. 186-187.
BREITUNG, W. (2003):Emerging patterns of cross-boundary commuting between Hong Kong and Mainland China. In: Occasional Papers of the Centre for China Urban and Regional Studies, no. 31, 17 pp. 
BREITUNG, W. (2003): Gaining advantage from open borders (book review). In: The Professional Geographer, vol. 55, no. 3, pp. 411-412. 
BREITUNG, W. (1992): Satellitenstädte in beiden Teilen Berlins(in Esperanto), In: Verdire, no. 8, pp. 11-12.
 

Papers presented at conferences and university departments
 

Membership in academic societies
Corresponding member International Geographical Union (IGU)
China Specialty Group of the Association of American Geographers (AAG)
Verband der Geographen an Deutschen Hochschulen (VGDH)
AK Ostasien in der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Geographie (DGfG)
Gesellschaft für Erdkunde zu Berlin (GfE)
Akademio Internacia de la Sciencoj (AIS)
Hong Kong and Macau Association for European Studies (HKMAES)
World Wide Fund for Nature Hong Kong (WWF HK)