Beijing Women's Federation

To study and implement important discourses by General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Xi Jinping on child-related work, act on the Beijing Municipal Outlines for the Development of Women and Children during the 14^th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), and build Beijing into a child-friendly city, Beijing Women's International Center (BWIC) has rolled out a demonstration project for the building of child-friendly communities in collaboration with the Zhongguancun Sub-district Office of Haidian district. They recently unveiled the Handbook of Children's Participation Greenspace Chapter, which underscores the importance of greenspace in the building of child-friendly communities and explores effective routes to get children involved in community building.

Take Model Communities as Examples, Pool Wisdom

The handbook selects Shuangyushu Community as a study case. The Zhongguancun Sub-district Office has attached great importance to children's participation in the building of child-friendly venues, and has organized for local teenagers to take part in the comprehensive management of child-friendly places during the construction of the regional history hall, gardens and a scientific and cultural experience area.

In addition, the Zhongguancun Sub-district Office has accomplished the compilation of the handbook on the basis of relevant practical activities and a year-long follow-up research on children aged between 6 and 14.

The handbook's writing has received guidance and support from experts, scholars from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Beijing Municipal Institute of City Planning & Design, and the University of Sheffield and grassroots workers .

Strengthen theoretical and practical integration to promote children's participation

There are three chapters in the handbook. They expound the principles and methods for children to fully participate in the research, planning and design, management and observation of the community environment.

The third chapter provides practical operating solutions for some representative activities. For instance, it guides children to draw a map of their community and a picture of their ideal homeland in a move to help community-level administrative personnel better assess whether infrastructural facilities meet children's needs. It also encourages children to take part in the building of communities through diverse activities such as creating a habitat for earthworms and other insects.

Community-based greenspace in the handbook provides children more opportunities to embrace nature and guides them to pay attention to their living environments, acquire knowledge, build social connections and develop cooperative ties with others. The emphases on children's participation in the building of child-friendly communities is crucial to guaranteeing their development, winning the support of their parents, deepening inter-family interactions, and building a harmonious living environment.

The Beijing Municipal Outlines for the Development of Women and Children during the 14^th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) has listed the building of a child-friendly city as a primary objective. As one of the actions of Beijing Women's Federation (BWF) to promote the building of a child-friendly city, the demonstration project has held online symposiums and live-stream activities, compiled the handbook, explored new methods to create friendly places for children's growth, and accumulated practical cases with Beijing characteristics.