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HKDI students bag awards for creation of innovative co-living spaces

18.09.2018
Architecture, Interior & Product Design
Awards
Land resources are scarce in Hong Kong. Rising property prices mean that the living spaces Hongkongers can afford are getting smaller and smaller. This is bringing about a new lifestyle trend of “co-living”. Recently, a group of Higher Diploma in Architectural Design students from HKDI entered the World Green Organisation’s “Co-Living & Co-Working Environment – Social Innovation Inventor Design Competition” and showed they are firmly on top of the trend, winning the Championship, Second Runner-up prize and several Honourable Mentions in the tertiary school division.

According to survey findings on the global living space per person collected by the United States Census Bureau, Hong Kong people have to make do with a mere 15 sq m (about 161 sq ft) of living space on average, one third of that in the US, and the smallest ratio in the world. Through the co-living spaces created for this contest, the World Green Organisation was keen to enhance young people’s concern for the community and environmental issues, promote interpersonal communication and interaction, and encourage them to blend green concepts into everyday life for the sustainable development of society.

Designs promoting communication in the neighbourhood
Teams taking part in the tertiary school division were required to design a three-storey co-living space for an area below 5,000 sq ft, with each storey occupying an area of about 1,500 sq ft. The teams needed to mark out living and public spaces in proportion and ensure that each resident enjoyed a personal living space of at least 50 sq ft. The design also needed to incorporate eco and energy-saving facilities – indeed a tall order. Five HKDI student teams had been shortlisted into the final round from among 60 entering teams and finally won the Championship, Second Runner-up prize and several Honourable Mentions in the tertiary school division.

The champion team named their conceptual design “Momentum” as they hoped to encourage residents to work out more. One of the team members, Kinson LAW, noted that their design was inspired by the crowded living environment and lack of exercise Hong Kong citizens. The indoor and outdoor spaces of their design were furnished with different sports themes and facilities so that occupants could freely work out any time they liked, singly or in groups. “We also wanted to make good use of adjoining spaces for dining, film-watching and laundry line drying to increase interpersonal communication, so as to further diversify the concept of ‘co-living’ in Hong Kong and bring out the message of working out for all,” explained Law.

Beefing up practical experience through competition
Part of the champion team’s prize was the “Green Educational Tour”. Law and his other two team members found the trip eye-opening. “We visited Bali Refuse Incineration Plant and Dihua Wastewater Treatment Plant, from which we learnt about the local green architecture and promotion of the green culture. We believe the experience will be like nutrients for our future design work,” Law recalled, adding that they felt taking part in the contest had strengthened their “battle and war” experience. “In the course of the competition we collected lots of data on architecture and interior design from other countries to learn from the competitive edges of others and turn the information into something conducive to our proposed design solutions, which were intended to alleviate the crowded surroundings faced by Hongkongers. In addition, we went back and forth thinking deep into the design throughout the competition, which made us fully understand the need for the design to be functional instead of just aesthetically pleasing.” Kinson would like to study architecture-related degree programmes in the United Kingdom in the future and put what he has learnt in the United Kingdom into practice to improve the living environment for Hongkongers.

Lecturer of HKDI’s Department of Architecture, Interior and Product Design Henry CHAN led the tour. He said he was thrilled that the students had won so many prizes in the competition. Noting that there was a need to study the new “co-living and co-working space” lifestyle, given the cramped living environment of Hong Kong, he said the community and students had an opportunity to think about this issue through the competition. “We place a premium on providing chances for our students to take part in overseas exchanges and competitions, as they extend the students’ horizons and enable the application of knowledge acquired in studies, which helps their future entry to the workplace and the unleashing of their potential,” Chan said.

 


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