Knowledge Diagram Navigation:

Spatial co-ordinations are initially random, and will automatically re-arrange to minimize complexity based on distance between relationships. Mouse down and drag to pan. Right click on the strategic diagram toggles between motion and stationary. Hover over abstract node (orange) to view abstractions. Hover over leaf node to view corresponding narrative. Left click on the leaf node expands the narrative to view full text.

Narrative Analysis - Report

Key Focus

Zhengzhou, in northeastern China on the banks of the Yellow River, was an enthusiastic early adopter of the sponge city concept, spending hundreds of millions of dollars building related projects from 2016 to 2021 ...

Edmund Penning-Rowsell, a research associate at the University of Oxford who focuses on water security, said the scale of the sponge city projects would have to be huge to cope with flooding on their own ...

Momentum supporting factors

(china,climate,rain)

(china,climate,monsoon)

(china,rain,monsoon)

(china,climate,infrastructure)

(china,rain,infrastructure)

(china,climate,hazard)

(china,rain,hazard)

(china,climate,drainage)

(china,rain,drainage)

(china,zhejiang_province)

Challenge supporting factors

(china,country,greenhouse)

Work-in-progress supporting factors

(china,city,yellow_river)

(china,sponge,city,yellow_river)

(china,sponge,yellow_river)

(city,sponge,yellow_river)

(city,yellow_river)

(sponge,yellow_river)

(city,sponge,university)

(city,university)

(sponge,university)

(china,city,trees)

(china,sponge,city,trees)

Time Period	Challenge	Momentum	WIP
Report	0.92	8.44	90.65

High Level Abstraction (HLA) combined

High Level Abstraction (HLA)	Report
(1) (china,city,yellow_river)	100.00
(2) (china,sponge,city,yellow_river)	97.87
(3) (china,sponge,yellow_river)	94.04
(4) (city,sponge,yellow_river)	92.55
(5) (city,yellow_river)	92.13
(6) (sponge,yellow_river)	91.91
(7) (city,sponge,university)	90.85
(8) (city,university)	90.21
(9) (sponge,university)	90.00
(10) (china,city,trees)	87.23
(11) (china,sponge,city,trees)	85.11
(12) (china,sponge,trees)	81.49
(13) (city,sponge,trees)	80.00
(14) (city,trees)	79.15
(15) (sponge,trees)	78.94
(16) (city,sponge,tracts)	78.30
(17) (city,tracts)	77.45
(18) (china,city,tobacco)	75.11
(19) (china,sponge,city,tobacco)	72.98
(20) (china,sponge,tobacco)	69.36
(21) (city,sponge,tobacco)	67.87
(22) (city,tobacco)	66.60
(23) (sponge,tobacco)	66.38
(24) (china,city,storm-water)	64.26
(25) (china,sponge,city,storm-water)	62.34
(26) (china,sponge,storm-water)	58.94
(27) (city,sponge,storm-water)	57.66
(28) (china,city,spending)	55.96
(29) (china,sponge,city,spending)	52.55
(30) (city,sponge,spending)	50.00
(31) (city,chinese,tai)	48.51
(32) (city,chinese,sponge)	47.23
(33) (city,chinese,redirected)	44.68
(34) (city,chinese,president_xi_jinping)	43.40
(35) (sponge,cities,president_xi_jinping)	42.55
(36) (city,chinese,inaugurated)	41.91
(37) (sponge,cities,inaugurated)	40.85
(38) (city,chinese,energy)	40.43
(39) (city,chinese,country)	39.15
(40) (sponge,cities,country)	37.66
(41) (city,torrential)	37.45
(42) (china,city,tracts)	34.89
(43) (china,sponge,city,tracts)	32.77
(44) (china,sponge,tracts)	29.36
(45) (china,city,permeable)	28.51
(46) (china,sponge,city,permeable)	25.32
(47) (china,cities,weather)	21.91
(48) (china,rain,weather)	21.49
(49) (china,sponge,weather)	20.43
(50) (sponge,cities,weather)	19.79
(51) (sponge,weather)	19.36
(52) (china,climate,surges)	17.87
(53) (china,climate,strategy)	16.60
(54) (china,climate,rain)	15.32
(55) (china,climate,monsoon)	14.04
(56) (china,rain,monsoon)	13.19
(57) (china,climate,infrastructure)	12.55
(58) (china,rain,infrastructure)	11.49
(59) (china,climate,hazard)	11.06
(60) (china,rain,hazard)	9.79
(61) (china,climate,drainage)	9.57
(62) (china,rain,drainage)	8.09
(63) (china,cities,sponge)	7.45
(64) (china,rain,sponge)	6.81
(65) (china,country,policy)	5.96
(66) (china,country,imprison)	5.53
(67) (china,country,greenhouse)	5.11
(68) (china,cities,rain)	4.26
(69) (sponge,cities,rain)	3.40
(70) (china,cities,floodwaters)	3.19
(71) (china,zhejiang_province)	2.34
(72) (china,yellow_river)	2.13
(73) (sponge,cities,city)	1.91
(74) (sponge,cities,chinese)	0.43

Supporting narratives:

Please refer to knowledge diagram for a complete set of supporting narratives.

momentum - Back to HLA

"We've been using the conventional drainage infrastructure for 200 years and we haven't solved the flooding problem," he said, noting that much of China has a monsoon climate subject to extremely heavy bursts of rain that pose an increasing hazard as climate change advances. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,rain,hazard)
(china,climate,rain)
(china,climate,hazard)
Inferred entity relationships (7)
(china,climate,hazard) [inferred]
(china,climate,strategy) [inferred]
(china,climate,infrastructure) [inferred]
(china,climate,rain) [inferred]
(china,climate,drainage) [inferred]
(china,climate,surges) [inferred]
(china,climate,monsoon) [inferred]

momentum - Back to HLA

"We've been using the conventional drainage infrastructure for 200 years and we haven't solved the flooding problem," he said, noting that much of China has a monsoon climate subject to extremely heavy bursts of rain that pose an increasing hazard as climate change advances ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,rain,monsoon)
(china,climate,monsoon)
(china,climate,drainage)
(china,rain,infrastructure)
(china,rain,drainage)
(china,climate,infrastructure)
Inferred entity relationships (7)
(china,climate,hazard) [inferred]
(china,climate,strategy) [inferred]
(china,climate,surges) [inferred]
(china,climate,monsoon) [inferred]
(china,climate,infrastructure) [inferred]
(china,climate,rain) [inferred]
(china,climate,drainage) [inferred]

momentum - Back to HLA

Yu said growing up in a village in Zhejiang Province toward the end of the Cultural Revolution showed him how earlier generations in rural China had "made friends with water." Farmers in his region built terraces, berms and ponds to direct and to store excess water during the rainy season ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,zhejiang_province)

challenge - Back to HLA

Currently, 65 percent of urban areas in China experience some degree of flooding each year, according to Mr. Yu. The country is currently the world's largest producer of greenhouse gases. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,country,greenhouse)
Inferred entity relationships (2)
(china,country,imprison) [inferred]
(china,country,policy) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Zhengzhou, in northeastern China on the banks of the Yellow River, was an enthusiastic early adopter of the sponge city concept, spending hundreds of millions of dollars building related projects from 2016 to 2021 ...
High Level Abstractions:

(sponge,yellow_river)
(china,city,spending)
(city,sponge,spending)
(china,city,yellow_river)
(city,sponge,yellow_river)
(china,sponge,city,yellow_river)
(china,sponge,city,spending)
(china,sponge,yellow_river)
(city,yellow_river)
Inferred entity relationships (28)
(sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,weather) [inferred]
(china,city,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,spending,sponge) [inferred]
(china,city,spending) [inferred]
(china,city,tracts) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable,sponge) [inferred]
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,city,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(city,spending,sponge) [inferred]
(china,city,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable) [inferred]
(city,yellow_river) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,sponge,university) [inferred]
(china,city,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tracts) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Edmund Penning-Rowsell, a research associate at the University of Oxford who focuses on water security, said the scale of the sponge city projects would have to be huge to cope with flooding on their own ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,university)
(sponge,university)
(city,sponge,university)
Inferred entity relationships (6)
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(sponge,university) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

One of Mr. Yu's projects abroad is the Benjakitti Forest Park, a maze of ponds, trees and miniature islands in Bangkok that was opened to the public in 2022 and occupies more than hundred acres on the site of a former tobacco factory ...
High Level Abstractions:

(sponge,trees)
(china,city,trees)
(city,trees)
(china,sponge,trees)
(china,sponge,city,trees)
(city,sponge,trees)
Inferred entity relationships (27)
(china,city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,weather) [inferred]
(china,city,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,spending,sponge) [inferred]
(china,city,spending) [inferred]
(china,city,tracts) [inferred]
(sponge,trees) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable,sponge) [inferred]
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,sponge,university) [inferred]
(china,city,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tracts) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

. Where large tracts of land are not available, sponge city projects are replacing concrete and asphalt with permeable pavement, installing green roofs and creating trenches called bioswales that channel storm-water runoff and use vegetation to filter out debris and pollution ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,tracts)
(city,sponge,tracts)
Inferred entity relationships (5)
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(city,sponge,university) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Yu's projects abroad is the Benjakitti Forest Park, a maze of ponds, trees and miniature islands in Bangkok that was opened to the public in 2022 and occupies more than hundred acres on the site of a former tobacco factory. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,tobacco)
(china,sponge,tobacco)
(china,sponge,city,tobacco)
(china,city,tobacco)
(sponge,tobacco)
(city,sponge,tobacco)
Inferred entity relationships (27)
(china,city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,weather) [inferred]
(china,city,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,spending,sponge) [inferred]
(sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,spending) [inferred]
(china,city,tracts) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable,sponge) [inferred]
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(city,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,city,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,sponge,university) [inferred]
(china,city,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tracts) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Where large tracts of land are not available, sponge city projects are replacing concrete and asphalt with permeable pavement, installing green roofs and creating trenches called bioswales that channel storm-water runoff and use vegetation to filter out debris and pollution. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,city,storm-water)
(city,sponge,storm-water)
(china,sponge,city,storm-water)
(china,sponge,storm-water)
Inferred entity relationships (25)
(china,city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,weather) [inferred]
(china,city,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,spending,sponge) [inferred]
(china,city,spending) [inferred]
(china,city,tracts) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable,sponge) [inferred]
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,city,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,sponge,university) [inferred]
(china,city,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tracts) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Yu calls the concept "sponge city" and says it's like "doing tai chi with water," a reference to the Chinese martial art in which an opponent's energy and moves are redirected, not resisted ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,chinese,tai)
Inferred entity relationships (6)
(chinese,city,energy) [inferred]
(chinese,city,sponge) [inferred]
(chinese,city,president_xi_jinping) [inferred]
(chinese,city,redirected) [inferred]
(chinese,city,country) [inferred]
(chinese,city,inaugurated) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

The sponge city program was formally inaugurated by President Xi Jinping in 2015 with pilot projects in 16 Chinese cities and has since expanded to more than 640 sites in 250 municipalities around the country ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,chinese,president_xi_jinping)
(city,chinese,sponge)
(sponge,cities,city)
(sponge,cities,inaugurated)
(sponge,cities,chinese)
(sponge,cities,president_xi_jinping)
(city,chinese,inaugurated)
Inferred entity relationships (14)
(chinese,city,energy) [inferred]
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(chinese,city,sponge) [inferred]
(chinese,city,president_xi_jinping) [inferred]
(chinese,city,redirected) [inferred]
(chinese,city,country) [inferred]
(cities,sponge,weather) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(chinese,city,tai) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(chinese,city,inaugurated) [inferred]
(city,sponge,university) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Yu calls the concept "sponge city" and says it's like "doing tai chi with water," a reference to the Chinese martial art in which an opponent's energy and moves are redirected, not resisted. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,chinese,redirected)
(city,chinese,energy)
Inferred entity relationships (7)
(chinese,city,energy) [inferred]
(chinese,city,sponge) [inferred]
(chinese,city,president_xi_jinping) [inferred]
(chinese,city,redirected) [inferred]
(chinese,city,country) [inferred]
(chinese,city,tai) [inferred]
(chinese,city,inaugurated) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

The sponge city program was formally inaugurated by President Xi Jinping in 2015 with pilot projects in 16 Chinese cities and has since expanded to more than 640 sites in 250 municipalities around the country. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,chinese,country)
(sponge,cities,country)
Inferred entity relationships (6)
(chinese,city,energy) [inferred]
(chinese,city,sponge) [inferred]
(chinese,city,president_xi_jinping) [inferred]
(chinese,city,redirected) [inferred]
(chinese,city,tai) [inferred]
(chinese,city,inaugurated) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

But torrential rains inundated much of the city in July 2021, creating scenes of destruction and killing hundreds, including at least 14 in a subway tunnel ...
High Level Abstractions:

(city,torrential)

WIP - Back to HLA

Where large tracts of land are not available, sponge city projects are replacing concrete and asphalt with permeable pavement, installing green roofs and creating trenches called bioswales that channel storm-water runoff and use vegetation to filter out debris and pollution ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,city,tracts)
(china,sponge,city,tracts)
(china,city,permeable)
(china,sponge,tracts)
(china,sponge,city,permeable)
Inferred entity relationships (26)
(china,city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,weather) [inferred]
(china,city,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,spending,sponge) [inferred]
(china,city,spending) [inferred]
(china,city,tracts) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable,sponge) [inferred]
(city,tracts) [inferred]
(city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,city,storm-water) [inferred]
(city,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tracts) [inferred]
(china,city,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(china,city,permeable) [inferred]
(city,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(china,city,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(city,sponge,university) [inferred]
(china,city,trees) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

The goal, at least on paper, is that by 2030, 70 percent of the rain that falls on China's sponge cities during extreme weather events should be absorbed locally rather than accumulate in the streets ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,sponge,weather)
(sponge,cities,rain)
(china,cities,rain)
(sponge,weather)
(china,cities,weather)
(sponge,cities,weather)
(china,rain,sponge)
(china,rain,weather)
(china,cities,sponge)
Inferred entity relationships (14)
(china,cities,rain) [inferred]
(china,sponge,yellow_river) [inferred]
(cities,rain,sponge) [inferred]
(china,rain,sponge) [inferred]
(china,cities,floodwaters) [inferred]
(cities,sponge,weather) [inferred]
(china,sponge,trees) [inferred]
(china,cities,sponge) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tobacco) [inferred]
(china,sponge,storm-water) [inferred]
(sponge,weather) [inferred]
(china,cities,weather) [inferred]
(china,rain,weather) [inferred]
(china,sponge,tracts) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

A landscape architect in China has a surprising strategy to help manage surges of water from storms supercharged by climate change. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,climate,surges)
Inferred entity relationships (6)
(china,climate,hazard) [inferred]
(china,climate,strategy) [inferred]
(china,climate,infrastructure) [inferred]
(china,climate,rain) [inferred]
(china,climate,drainage) [inferred]
(china,climate,monsoon) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

A landscape architect in China has a surprising strategy to help manage surges of water from storms supercharged by climate change ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,climate,strategy)
Inferred entity relationships (6)
(china,climate,hazard) [inferred]
(china,climate,infrastructure) [inferred]
(china,climate,rain) [inferred]
(china,climate,drainage) [inferred]
(china,climate,surges) [inferred]
(china,climate,monsoon) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Yu last year, echoed Professor Kirkwood, saying Mr. Yu's impact on policy in China, a country that has been more likely to imprison environmental activists than take their messages to heart, has been astonishing ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,country,policy)
Inferred entity relationships (2)
(china,country,greenhouse) [inferred]
(china,country,imprison) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Yu's impact on policy in China, a country that has been more likely to imprison environmental activists than take their messages to heart, has been astonishing ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,country,imprison)
Inferred entity relationships (2)
(china,country,greenhouse) [inferred]
(china,country,policy) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

Traditionally, cities in China would set aside areas capable of absorbing floodwaters. ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,cities,floodwaters)
Inferred entity relationships (3)
(china,cities,rain) [inferred]
(china,cities,sponge) [inferred]
(china,cities,weather) [inferred]

WIP - Back to HLA

You'd probably need half of Manhattan.". . Zhengzhou, in northeastern China on the banks of the Yellow River, was an enthusiastic early adopter of the sponge city concept, spending hundreds of millions of dollars building related projects from 2016 to 2021 ...
High Level Abstractions:

(china,yellow_river)

Semantics Relevance

He's Got a Plan for Cities That Flood: Stop Fighting the Water