HONG KONG, Aug. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Dedicated to sustainable development, Arup actively engages local youths in knowledge sharing and inspiration beyond our contribution to the built environment. Two impactful initiatives - 'Reimagining a sustainable future: Our lives ∙ Our community ∙ Our Hong Kong' video competition, and 'Sustainable School Explorer' programme, have recently concluded, igniting innovative ideas from the next generation of Hong Kong leaders and laying the groundwork for future city development.
Andy Lee, Arup’s East Asia Region Chair (first right) interacting with students from TWGHs Li Ka Shing College to learn about their creative design.
Inspiring local youths to reimagine a sustainable future
Arup launched the 'Reimagining a sustainable future' video competition to deepen youths' understanding of sustainable development and spark their creativity in urban planning and design. The results were announced on 3 July, with 11 awards and prizes worth $43,000 presented to teams with excellent performance.
Riding on the success of the first edition, this year we received around 200 entries from 600 secondary students representing over 75 schools in Hong Kong. Participants offered innovative solutions tailored for our city and local communities, manifesting their sustainable visions on renewable energy, waste management, green building design and community redevelopment.
Supported by local youth-oriented organisations including the Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong, La Violet Education, St. James' Settlement, The Women's Foundation, and The Zubin Foundation, the video competition aimed to raise public awareness of a sustainable future through the minds and eyes of the younger generation. Students had the opportunity to learn about the UN Sustainable Development Goals and video production techniques from Arup's technical experts and an external filmmaking expert.
The winning entries and highlights can be viewed on Arup's YouTube channel.
Promoting green campuses through unique STEM education
In response to the popularity of STEM education, Arup proactively brings the education and industry closer together. The 'Sustainable School Explorer' programme, co-organised with social enterprise La Violet Education (LVE), engaged seven local secondary schools in developing sustainable campus ideas and cultivating students' interest in engineering.
Arup's designers and engineers worked closely with teachers, principals and LVE to engage over 130 secondary students in identifying the 'pain points' of their schools and developing creative green campus solutions. The solutions include green installations, teaching kits, design prototypes and school campaigns, covering themes such as renewable energy, water conservation, waste reduction and recycling.
The programme concluded with a closing ceremony on 10 July, showcasing the students' unique sustainable solutions tailored for their school campuses. Andy Lee, Arup's East Asia Region Chair said, "Looking forward, we will remain committed to contributing our expertise to nurture our future leaders and sow the seeds of innovation. We hope these programmes can cultivate students' interests in design and engineering, as well as empowering them to put their ideas into action through our various youth programmes, leaving a lasting impact on society."
Click here for the programme highlights and all green campus solutions.
Results of 'Reimagining a sustainable future: Our lives ∙ Our community ∙ Our Hong Kong' video competition
Award |
Entry |
School |
Champion & Most Creative Video |
當太陽遇上壓力？ |
ECF Saint Too Canaan College |
1st Runner-up |
The Future is Now: Embracing Sustainability for a Better Tomorrow |
Victoria Shanghai Academy |
2nd Runner-up |
海藻計劃 |
St. Paul's School (Lam Tin) |
Merit |
「樓」意！香港綠色建築先鋒來襲～ |
Carmel Pak U Secondary School |
Merit & Most Creative Video |
Tai Yuen Estate Redevelopment |
Carmel Pak U Secondary School |
Merit |
都會新概念 AI建我"橋" |
Yuen Long Merchants Association Secondary School |
Most Creative Video |
最佳方案 |
HKMLC Queen Maud Secondary School |
Best Engagement Award |
廢物處理 |
CCC Chuen Yuen College |
Best Engagement Award |
Sustainable Transport: Now or Never |
Maryknoll Convent School (Secondary Section) |
Most Supportive School Award |
／ |
St. Paul's College |
Green proposals by 'Sustainable School Explorer' programme
School & proposal |
Introduction |
St. Stephen's Girls' College: Crackling Energy Room |
Inspired by Arup volunteers' sharing on kinetic power generation, students planned to place a homemade electricity generating bike in a classroom, providing energy supply for a refrigeration unit to generate cool air. To encourage more students to produce energy with the bike, an app was developed to display the total number of steps and energy generated. |
CNEC Lee I Yao Memorial Secondary School: Planting for GREEN |
Arup conducted a landscape planting workshop to teach students about sustainable landscape and planting, using some low-maintenance irrigation systems made from recycled waste. The works are placed at the fishpond and the greenhouse inside the school for decoration and educational purposes. |
TWGHs Li Ka Shing College: Ka Shing Garden |
To utilise the empty rooftop area, the students proposed to build a sustainable garden with a water retention lawn and a solar greenhouse to achieve water and energy conservation. Arup provided technical support during the prototype production for educational activities. The prototype also laid the groundwork of construction of the sustainable garden in future. |
St. Catharine's School for Girls: Smart paper towel holder |
To enhance students' awareness on environmental protection, students created a smart paper towel holder and placed it in the school washroom. When the device detects that only one paper towel is taken, the device would display encouraging sentences. Users taking more than one sheet would see reminders asking them to consider reducing paper towel use for sustainability. Arup supported the students in product testing and explained research concepts of 'baseline assessment' and 'impact measurement' to help them evaluate the effectiveness of their design. |
Chong Gene Hang College: Aquaponics installation and teaching kit |
Inspired by the Arup volunteer's sharing on water cycle, dissolved oxygen measurements and system operations, students created their own teaching kit with a portable aquaponics. The materials can be used as educational displays for upcoming school years. |
Kwun Tong Maryknoll College: The Sound of Environment | Marker Pen |
Students produced a music video using DIY upcycled musical instruments, creating new lyrics with an eco-friendly theme for the Japanese viral hit 'Kyoufuu All Back'. To support the students' initiative, an Arup volunteer and alumnus participated in the music video production. The musical instruments will also be showcased in campus later. They also designed a reusable marker pen and refill stand. |
SKH Leung Kwai Yee Secondary School: Plastic-free day |
Students organised a 'Plastic-free day' to reduce the use of plastic products such as disposable cutlery and containers at the tuck shop. They were required to bring their own reusable food containers if they wanted to buy food items at the tuck shop. An Arup volunteer actively supported the campaign on site and shared valuable comments. After the campaign, an impact measurement was conducted for evaluation. |
About Arup
Arup is a global built environment consultant headquartered in London. The firm opened its Hong Kong office in 1976, contributing to numerous signature buildings and iconic infrastructures including Tai Kwun, M+ Museum, Admiralty Station, Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge and Kai Tak Sports Park.
Dedicated to sustainable development, Arup participates in various innovative, sustainable, smart and resilient designs and planning projects, including CIC ZCP, T‧PARK and Kowloon East Smart City, empowering Hong Kong to cope with future development. The firm has been engaging the local youths in educational programmes, fostering their interest in the built environment and sustainable development. Learn more: www.Arup.com/offices/greater-china/hong-kong
