[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_fullwidth_header title=”Out of Turbulence, Communities Re-align Across the City ” text_orientation=”center” header_fullscreen=”on” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” title_font=”Abril Fatface|700|||||||” title_text_align=”center” title_text_color=”#000000″ title_font_size=”32px” title_letter_spacing=”1px” title_line_height=”1.5em” content_font=”Lato|700|||||||” content_text_color=”#000000″ content_line_height=”1em” subhead_font=”Lato|700|||||||” subhead_text_align=”center” subhead_text_color=”#000000″ subhead_font_size=”22px” subhead_line_height=”2em” background_color=”RGBA(255,255,255,0)” background_image=”https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2023\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Header_City-Realigned.png” background_blend=”hard-light” background_layout=”light” filter_opacity=”75%” title_text_shadow_style=”preset2″ content_text_shadow_style=”preset2″ content_text_shadow_color=”#FFFFFF” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
By Tommy Wang Zilong<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_fullwidth_header][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Intro” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”1162px” custom_padding=”||0px|||” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”50%” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
B<\/span>enjamin Sin\u2019s credo rings around an independent bookshop at a public sharing session in Wan Chai. He is citing Italo Calvino\u2019s <\/span>Invisible Cities.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s like we\u2019re wandering through hell, looking for who and what doesn\u2019t belong. Finding people and stories that are alive and then passing them on, making them endure, giving them space. It\u2019s the little bits of life that make this place a resilient community.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n A registered social worker, Sin believes that, in a city with an increasingly limited political system, it is the social actors, the people who want to document and affect change, that are building an \u2018invisible\u2019 Hong Kong.<\/span><\/p>\n The fabric of Hong Kong society has changed so thoroughly over the last few years that, even to locals, the city now feels somewhat foreign.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n According to the Department of Census and Statistics, Hong Kong\u2019s resident population dropped to 7,332,000 at the end of 2022, a decline of nearly 150,000 from mid-2020, when the new National Security Law (NSL) came into force.<\/span><\/p>\n Along with the new NSL, COVID-19, social unrest and a former police officer elected as Chief Executive in a general election that saw the lowest voter turnout in Hong Kong\u2019s history, have all contributed to four tumultuous years in the city.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThere is a sense of disenchantment in Hong Kong\u2019s civil society, but there is nothing to do about it. To feel that we have no hope in the present is like accepting hell and becoming part of it,\u201d Sin wrote in a contribution to a book on the preservation of Pok Fu Lam Village, one of the oldest villages in Hong Kong. The book was published in 2018, before the turbulence of the years to come. \u201cBut this is also a very important life lesson from God,\u201d he wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n A community survey conducted by Hong Kong Youth Epidemiological Study (HK-YES) on the mental health of young Hong Kongers, in 2020, revealed that 14.7% of young people suffer from depression. This is <\/span>reportedly<\/span><\/a> three to four times the rate in Japan, South Korea and Mainland China.<\/span><\/p>\n A year later, a <\/span>study<\/span><\/a> conducted by the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Hong Kong, found that 40.9% of the 100,000 people surveyed had moderate to high levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSD). Nearly 73.7% had moderate to severe depression, and 36% had symptoms of both.<\/span><\/p>\n But, as wounds heal, a spirit of community, identity and resilience seems to be taking root amongst those residents who have chosen to stay. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Section 1″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”1150.7px” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”50%” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”A Taboo Topic in Hong Kong” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Abril Fatface||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ text_font_size=”32px” header_font=”Abril Fatface||||||||” header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”#333333″ header_font_size=”32px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Creating Community Connections<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” custom_padding=”30px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n S<\/span>in is a senior social work supervisor at Caritas Hong Kong, a non-profit organisation that provides services to communities across the city. One such service, set up by Sin and his team before the COVID pandemic, was the Healthy Neighbourhood Kitchen Project.<\/span><\/p>\n The project brings together thousands of people living in subdivided apartments\u00a0 across the central, western and southern districts of Hong Kong Island, providing a communal space for them to cook and network, rather than allowing them to contend with a lack of space and time, on their own.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_2″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n A second project hatched by Sin\u2019s team during the COVID-19 pandemic, Buffer Space for Families in Urgent Housing Crisis, provides short-term housing for those suffering from housing instability and unemployment, by utilising vacancies in hotels and hostels.<\/span><\/p>\n Both projects continued to operate through the pandemic, despite numerous barriers, and are still ongoing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c[Often] we just use the facilities in public spaces to enhance the living conditions of people, and to help them get out of a bad situation,\u201d said Sin in the sharing session, in March 2023.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c\u200b\u200bIn the relatively affluent Central and Western District, we see that there are more than 3,000 residents living in coffin homes [otherwise known as subdivided apartments] that you don\u2019t see,\u201d said Caritas\u2019s volunteer May Huang in an over-the-phone interview. \u201cAs a participant [in these projects], my belief is that social work is a life-impacting process. The work that empowers social groups can lead to change and sustainability.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n As a Mainland Chinese student studying social work at the University of Hong Kong, these volunteer activities have helped Huang\u00a0 build trust and foster connections with local groups.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a \u2018how-to-fish\u2019 way of teaching [the same idea as, <\/span>if you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime<\/span><\/i>]. It makes you happy to see people at the bottom of the social ladder, whose lives have been improved by your help, and who have gained access to more social resources,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2023\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/307464824_463908139112234_7268456382334322735_n.jpeg” title_text=”307464824_463908139112234_7268456382334322735_n” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”||on||||||” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”-30px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Sin’s Neighbourhood Kitchen gathers locals living in coffin homes a space to gather on weekends. (Source: Neiborhood Kitchen FaceBook)<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”50%” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n These experiences have made Huang want to stay in Hong Kong and keep serving the local community. The work has given her meaning.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a \u2018how-to-fish\u2019 way of teaching [the same idea as, if you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime<\/span><\/i>]. It makes you happy to see people at the bottom of the social ladder, whose lives have been improved by your help, and who have gained access to more social resources,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Section 2″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”2042.8px” custom_margin=”-67px|||||” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”50%” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”\u201cFulfil My Need for Meaning\u201d ” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Abril Fatface||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ text_font_size=”32px” header_font=”Abril Fatface||||||||” header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”#333333″ header_font_size=”32px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n When in doubt, walk about\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n \u201cI brought you here, not because there is anything special, but simply for you to see it,\u201d urbanist Sampson Wong raises his voice to a group of volunteers, urging them to squeeze into an unassuming space of less than three square metres, between a Mong Kok MTR exit and the adjacent building.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2023\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Screen-Shot-2023-05-25-at-7.56.42-PM.png” title_text=”Screen Shot 2023-05-25 at 7.56.42 PM” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”20px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”-25px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Wong guides volunteers through Mongkok to show how “walking” has inspired him in recent years.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”20px||20px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n \u201cOnce we discover a space, it seems to take a meaning,\u201d Wong said in the scheduled walk.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n He is promoting his philosophy of \u201cstrollism\u201d, which he first started in 2020 via his YouTube channel. During the pandemic, Wong began a series of videos named, \u201cWhen in Doubt, Take a Walk\u201d, in which he encourages viewers to walk around Hong Kong\u2019s urban spaces, merely for pleasure. In doing so, he hopes people can find appreciation in the sometimes-hidden details of their neighbourhood.<\/span><\/p>\n He wants Hong Kongers to find solace in the chaos of urban life by taking photos and writing down what feels memorable and inspiring<\/span>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2023\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Screen-Shot-2023-05-25-at-8.05.21-PM.png” title_text=”Screen Shot 2023-05-25 at 8.05.21 PM” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”10px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”-25px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Wong’s ‘When in Doubt, Take a Walk” YouTube channel. (Source: YouTube)\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”20px||20px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n In 2022, Wong published his book, <\/span>Hong Kong Strollism <\/span><\/i>(<\/span>\u9999\u6e2f\u6563\u6b65\u5b78<\/span><\/i>) in which he recounts ten routes around Hong Kong streets and 100 spaces to discover in the city.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Wong was approached by Taylor Lee in early 2023, of the Chinese Young Men\u2019s Christian Association of Hong Kong (YMCA), to help young people involved in an urban change project specifically centred around the Yau Ma Tei area. This is what brought Wong and his group of volunteers to the Mong Kok MTR exit in March 2023.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2023\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/323157528_536165851798800_553619088197301205_n.jpeg” title_text=”323157528_536165851798800_553619088197301205_n” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”-25px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Wong on a stroll near a busy Hong Kong intersection. (Source: Sampson Wong)\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”20px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we walk around armed with questions, we\u00a0 open our five senses to perceive. We want to try to see how we can inspire, and then to help people with their daily problems,\u201d says Lee, explaining the project\u2019s objectives. \u201cWe often think about how to serve our young generation and what help we should give them. They need to know how to take care of and love the city.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c[Walking] is a way of connecting with the city. Sweat and footsteps have been our way of communicating with it.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Section 3″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” min_height=”1466.2px” custom_margin=”-67px|||||” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” width=”50%” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Family Business” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Abril Fatface||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ text_font_size=”32px” header_font=”Abril Fatface||||||||” header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”#333333″ header_font_size=”32px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Transforming urban spaces through placemaking<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” custom_padding=”20px||20px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n I<\/span>f strolling is the starting point, then for architect Sarah Mui, the challenge is to inspire Hong Kong\u2019s youth to create and innovate.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt might be the right time to better use our knowledge to tackle needs with resources. Everyone deserves a better city and world, that\u2019s what I\u2019m trying to believe in,\u201d said Mui during a volunteer workshop. For two months, she trained\u00a0 volunteers to transform the old Yau Tsim Mong district, which incorporates areas such as Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2023\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Sarah-Mui-and-volunteers.jpeg” title_text=”Sarah Mui and volunteers” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”-25px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Mui with volunteers at a workshop about placemaking.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” custom_padding=”20px||20px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n According to a <\/span>study<\/span><\/a> by the Urban Renewal Authority, 80% of the buildings in Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok will be over 70 years old by 2047. Another <\/span>report<\/span><\/a>, issued by think tank Civic Exchange, shows that Yau Ma Tei is one of the 57 districts in Hong Kong with the least amount of open space.<\/span><\/p>\n “I need you to find a problem that needs solving, identify those affected by that problem and then find ways to address it,” Mui told the volunteers.<\/span><\/p>\n Placemaking is a term Mui aptly uses to describe her work, referring to the process of transforming urban spaces into places that reflect and enhance the communities that use them.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t necessarily want the city we see to be easily changed. We want to create by ourselves,\u201d said Mui. \u201cI hope more and more people will get involved and be part of shaping the future, slowly sowing the seeds of the city we want.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c[If so] we will be rewarded in the end.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Mui and her team believe it is unrealistic to rely on Hong Kong\u2019s youth to transform ageing districts over a short period of time. For now, it is important to engage young people, in order for them to then build the city of their dreams.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_2,1_2″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Lato||||||||” text_text_color=”#333333″ module_alignment=”center” min_height=”310.8px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n A team of three volunteers from Mui\u2019s workshop were inspired to create a map of over a dozen \u2018less-visible\u2019 public spaces around Prince Edward, Mong Kok and Yau Ma Tei MTR stations. The volunteers discovered that locals were dissatisfied with a lack of quiet public spaces to rest and relax. By making and distributing the map, the volunteers hoped to give more exposure to these sites.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe designs are low-cost, but we see the seeds of creativity responding to real problems we encounter in our lives,\u201d said Mui. \u201cWe started planning the project by thinking, what should we do to give our youth more motivation to walk and discover, and show more care and love for the city?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2023\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Screen-Shot-2023-05-27-at-11.28.33-AM.png” title_text=”Screen Shot 2023-05-27 at 11.28.33 AM” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”-25px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n