A Celebration of Cultural Heritage Preservation and Design Excellence

HONG KONG, May 29, 2023 — The 2023 AIA Hong Kong Honors & Awards Launch Event was held on May 24th at The Oasis, Central Market, with the theme Inspiring Innovation.

Yimei Chan, 2023 Chapter President, thanked Platinum Sponsors American Hardwood Export Council, B.S.C. Group, and Dow for their generous support of the Honors & Awards program and welcomed members and guests to an evening of insightful presentations - with opportunities for those attending to deepen relationships within the architecture and engineering community.

The discussions were hosted by 2023 Honors & Awards co-Chairs Dr. Sujata Govada and Scott Brooks, who also unveiled this year's program calendar. The first session, titled Preserving Cultural Heritage to Ensure Human-Scaled Cities, explored critical aspects of creating livable cities for our shared future. Professor Mee Kam Ng, Professor Douglas So, Barry Wilson, and Kwong Kiu Wong offered their perspectives on the significance of preserving cultural heritage in creating human-scaled cities. Key insights from the conversation underlined the need to plan for people, not just profit, and, specifically for Hong Kong, how to retain distinctive density typologies between the territory's urban, new town, and rural areas in order to enhance our competitiveness.

In the second session, Design Excellence to Better Shape the Built Environment, awardwinning architects and planners Dr. Christine Bruckner FAIA, Bernard Chang AIA, Zhou Shi AIA, Rick Lam AIA and Zheng Chao discussed how architects are responsible for shaping the built environment and should be encouraged to create more resilient spaces that meet the needs of their communities. The panelists emphasized the necessity of context-sensitive design and public engagement, and stressed the importance of designing peaceful spaces. Attendees gained valuable insights into the difficult balance between the conflicting needs of modernisation and conservation, and the responsibility of architects to maintain a focus on people while designing in an era of rapidly advancing technology.

In closing, AIA Hong Kong announced the schedule for this year's Honors & Awards program which will begin with a call for submissions on May 31st, followed by a jury review process and culminate in an awards ceremony on December 4th at The Rotunda, Exchange Square. AIA Hong Kong, A Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, was established in 1997 to serve the professional interests of the growing number of AIA member architects practicing in Hong Kong, China and the Asia Pacific region. The objective of the Chapter is to uphold a high standard of design, education and professional practice among its members as well as to promote the importance of architecture in society. The annual Honors & Awards program is a key Chapter initiative, recognizing the contributions of architects to the built environment and celebrating excellence in architecture, interiors, urban design, and unbuilt projects undertaken within the region.

For more information about the AIA Hong Kong Chapter and its activities, please visit: www.aiahk.org