I am an urban geographer from China. My research investigates the drivers of urban transformations in China amid the country’s shift from high-speed to high-quality development. The focus of my work has thus evolved from state-regulated migration that fuelled rapid urbanisation, to state-facilitated global city formation that positions megacities as coordinators of the global economy, and more recently to state-funded urban environmental amenity projects that embody the vision of high-quality development. In studying the emerging transformations in population, economy, and space in urban China, I am trying to understand the workings of the Chinese state – why it changes its urbanisation strategies and what it is trying to achieve. I strive to conduct research that is grounded in empirical evidence and informed by a reflexive theoretical framework, with an aim to use urban China to enrich traditional Western-centric perspectives in urban studies.