Michelle Teope-Shen: A foreign counselor in the small “United Nations”

Photo: Michelle at the Council Chamber

Since the Reform and Opening up in China 40 years ago, Shanghai has seen a huge influx of foreigners into the city and a lot of international communities have emerged in response to this trend. As the city’s desire for overseas high-end talents grows, more foreigners and expatriates are expected to move to Shanghai in the future. It is a challenging and urgent task for local authorities and community workers to create a good living environment for these foreigners and expatriates.

Gubei community has taken a lead in this aspect. Gubei, which is under the administration of Ronghua Neighborhood Committee and was established in the mid-1990s, is the first large-scale international community in Shanghai for expat families. The community is home to more than 33,000 people from nearly 50 countries and regions and 57 percent of them are foreigners. They make Gubei community a “United Nations” with an area of just 2 square kilometers.

Traditional community management deals with local residents but cannot meet the diverse needs of foreign residents. To address this challenge, a few years ago the General Party Branch of Ronghua Neighborhood Committee established the Gubei Civic Chamber - a platform for both Chinese and foreign residents to discuss and solve public affairs within the community in a democratic way.