Duties

He/She will be required to:

• monitor the project and manage the team to assure the quality of deliverables are within budget and scheduled timeline. Revise as appropriate to meet the requirements and actual situation；
• regular reporting on project progress, identify and mitigate potential risks to the Organization and other relevant stakeholders by preparing documentations, such as papers, reports, presentation materials and publications;
• Prepare a detailed project plan to schedule, implement and evaluate key project milestones, workstreams & activities;
• oversee all incoming and outgoing project documentation;
• explore potential collaborations with different parties, including NGOs, community partners, universities, government departments, companies, schools and media;
• handle the applications of public space, licencing and any other relevant matters;
• develop evaluation tools to measure the programme impact, and prepare for the assessment report; and
• perform any other duties as assigned by the Organization

​

*​The appointee may be required to work occasionally on weekends and outdoors.

Qualifications

Applicants for the Project Manager post should have an honours degree or an equivalent qualification in Urban Studies, Urban Planning, Social Sciences, Humanities or relevant disciplines, with over 2 years of relevant working experience.

Applicants should also:

• have a strong understanding of placemaking, community planning and public space development in both Hong Kong and oversea;
• have experiences in leading placemaking events and community engagement;
• possess strong project management, problem solving skills and interpersonal skills
• be self-motivated, responsible and able to work independently  
• have knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite (e.g. Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) will be an advantage
• have proficiency in both written and spoken English and Chinese; fluency in Putonghua is an advantage

Interested parties please send an application with cover letter, resume, expected salary by email to joinus@veryhk.org

(Personal data collected will be kept in strict confidence and used for employment-related purposes only.)

Duties

He/She will be required to:

• support the project managers to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate placemaking education programme, including training workshops, spin-off events, seminars;
• engage and maintain good relationship with local stakeholders, such as residents, shops, schools, community groups and association;
• liaise with different parties to ensure smooth delivery of the programme, including NGOs, community partners, vendors and media;
• manage programme’s social media platform (e.g. facebook, instagram, webpage) and prepare promotion materials
• handle the administrative and basic book-keeping works; and
• perform any other duties as assigned by the Organization

*The appointee may be required to work occasionally on weekends and outdoors.

Qualifications

Applicants for the Project Officer post should have an honours degree or an equivalent qualification in Social Sciences, Social Work, Urban Studies, Humanities or relevant disciplines. Fresh graduates are welcome; 1 year of relevant working experience will be preferred.

Applicants should also:

• share passion for placemaking and community planning;
• have experience in facilitating placemaking workshop,, community engagement and public events;
• have good communication and interpersonal skills, be able to work with people of diverse backgrounds
• be proactive, adaptable and responsible
• preferably have Adobe Creative Suite (e.g. Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) skills;
• have proficiency in both written and spoken English and Chinese; fluency in Putonghua is an advantage

Interested parties please send an application with cover letter, resume, expected salary by email to joinus@veryhk.org.

(Personal data collected will be kept in strict confidence and used for employment-related purposes only.)

It is our pleasure to share on the topic "Pandemic Planning and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): The Importance of Community Planning for Human Flourishing." with Prof. Mee Kam and Helen. Welcome to join us!  

The talk will be conducted with ZOOM in Cantonese

Enquiry：ouge@cuhk.edu.hk

Online reservation：
CUHK students and staff：https://webapp.itsc.cuhk.edu.hk/ras/restricted/event?id=489
Public audience：https://cloud.itsc.cuhk.edu.hk/webform/view.php?id=9774887

Register for the first workshop: bit.ly/scl_workshop1

The built environment shapes our daily life and affects our sense of place and wellbeing. To establish a sustainable city and community, building a healthy settlement, where we can have a great sense of belonging and multifaceted well-being is of quintessential importance. This project aims to create opportunities for community champions and residents to come together to ‘make’ their places at the community level.

Let's save the date! More information on https://www.facebook.com/pg/cuhkscl/about/?ref=page_internal
 

Thanks for the invitation from Community Living Room, we are happy to share the Collaborate Hong Kong work to deliver commuity-led vacant land activation project in recent years.

Registration：https://forms.gle/Fcmh7rAAmkw1qCis5
 

A full-day capacity building workshop "Introduction to Vacant Site Activation 1001" as part of the 2019 Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture (Hong Kong) Programme.

The event will be divided into 2 sessions: 

[AM] Our NGO partners will introduce 4 bottom-up site activation pilot projects to the crowd

[PM] Chris, Concerning CSSA and Low Income Alliance and St. James Settlement will share their experience in land application, securing relevant licenses and managing social enterprises.

*Both sessions will be in Cantonese

Season’s greetings! Very Hong Kong would like to wish you Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who stands with CollaborateHK since the start of our campaign. Together with our dear community partners, the team has successfully incubated over 20 neighbourhood improvement ideas, curated a diversity of engagement programmes, and facilitated land applications across the city in 2019.

We count on your continued support in 2020, let us all collaborate for a better Hong Kong!

The School of Everyday Life (SOEL) has applied for the Shing Ming School - a vacant school located in Shek Kwu Lung, Tai Po. Since its suspension in 1996, the school is slowly taken over by nature, where vegetation, rainfall and typhoons shattered its structure into pieces. The staircase passage between the premises is also blocked by collapsed trees.  

Despite the enormous challenge in revitalizing the Shing Ming site, we also see lots of possibilities. Inside the premises, we could still find historical photographs of squires who founded the school, and plaques of classrooms in untouched condition. The campus is a rare example of schools built up on a steep slope, defined by two terraced buildings, and surrounded by the forest. This premises is only a ten-minute walk from the current SOEL campus, which makes it an ideal location for their new programmes. 

SOEL is devoted to promote positive values and goodness in our everyday living through creating alternative and experiential learning. They have been in operation for over 5 years at the former Buddhist Tai Kwong Collage campus, and have injected new energy to the campus with education activities, exhibitions and farming practices. Unfortunately, the current premises will be revamped for other uses next year. While we farewell the old SOEL campus, let’s wait and see what changes SOEL will bring to the vacant school premise! 

Among LandsD’s list of vacant schools available for community use, few would doubt that the Ex-Koon Man School in Chuen Lung, Tsuen Wan, is the “most valuable player”, crowned for its highly accessible location, sound building structure and strong community ties. Established in 1961 but left idle since 1988, the campus was given a second life by the Art Promotion Office at last year’s “Hi! Hill” programme. The 5 month arts programme encouraged participants to reveal past memories of the village school and strengthen their empathy of the local community. While the programme was highly appreciated by community members, the school premise was locked up again after the event.

The Hong Kong International Photo Festival was initiated by 19 Hong Kong photographers. Since 2010, the Festival regularly organises diverse photographic activities to create conversations on issues and perspectives between people and place. The Chuen Lung Village, situated at the foothill of Tai Mo Shan, is unique in its natural and cultural landscape. The Festival intends to draw upon international experiences to revitalise the former Koon Man School premise and to transform it to place for learning and practicing the art of photography, encouraging communications across geographical and disciplinary frontiers and support the active production of local cultural experiences. 

In the coming months, CollaborateHK and the Festival will curate a series of community engagement activities to collect public opinion towards the project. Stay tuned for our updates, or just give us a heads-up on what you think!

Speaking of village schools, perhaps many would relate to the movie “Little Big Master”, or vaguely remember those forbidden premises they saw when wandering around the woods. In 1950s - 70s, the number of village school reaches its peak at +800 in the New Territories, but few have remained due to change of population structure, new town development and education reform over the years. 

According to government data, there are over a hundred vacant schools across the city, in which +40 are currently listed by Lands Department as “school premises available for short-term community uses”. The majority of these ex-campus are, not to our surprise, very remote, surrounded by private lots or in devastating condition. Except a few that could be reused by NGOs, others could not escape from the fate of staying vacant. CollaborateHK believes that rural school buildings are "living history books" that record the history of generations. If they can be put to better use, these buildings could inherit collective memories, meet social needs, and lift community spirit. 

In mid-2019, we were approached by Hong Kong International Photography Festival (the Festival) and School of Everyday Life (SOEL) with the hope to explore possibilities to reactivate vacant schools for community uses. After months of site inspections and project planning, the NGOs have submitted their land application to Lands Department in June and August respectively. While both initiatives are now pending for official approval, our team will continue to coordinate with relevant government departments, collect public opinion in the upcoming engagement activities, and initiate detailed site renovation designs with our dear designers. An exciting news to share - we were grateful to secure Home Affairs Bureau’s policy support on the Chuen Lung project. 

Tin Shui Wai Community Development Network, the local TSW community group, brought together more than 80 CUHK Urban Studies students and CollaborateHK to walk around TSW showing us the social economic network, community farm and vacant land activation project in Tin Shui Wai.

Thanks for the interesting guided tour!

On Sep 21, CollaborateHK was honoured to share our work in promoting community-led space activation projects at Nose in the Books - the city’s first humanities library that is open to the public. Everytime we reflect on the sweet memories, hurdles and lessons learned since our placemaking adventure began in Oct 2018, we are so grateful for all the help and support we received all along! As we celebrate CollaborateHK’s first anniversary, we’re here to reaffirm our unwavering commitment - to stand with the community in delivery socially-beneficial initiatives for the betterment of Hong Kong.

The Neighbour-Wood Eco Tour attracted representatives of the Hong Kong Bird Watching Association, Conservancy Association, Green Sense, Project Space, and other curious community members to explore the greens behind Tin Shui Wai’s compact residential towers. As they toured around the ecological hotspots, including the vacant fishpond that the team has applied short-term tenancy for, the groups also shared their experience in promoting low carbon living, waste reduction, conservation initiatives, as well as their aspirations towards future collaboration.

Thanks to our community co-organizer, Tin Shui Wai Community Development Network and all the participants, the Tin Shui Wai Neighbour-Wood Fiesta was concluded with success in September! Since we kick-started the Tin Shui Wai farmland rehabilitation scheme together, CollaborateHK has assisted the community to select suitable implementation site, strategized design approach, lined up voluntary designer Jen, and eventually, submitted application to Lands Department for official land approval. With the aim to empower local stakeholders in the community planning process, the team has curated 4 distinctive public engagement events to hear their voice towards the scheme.

Led by retired farmer - Sister Ling, the workshop invited participants to build a "reed house" with locally found natural resources, such as reed from the fishpond and bamboo from the woodland. Ling was also surrounded by kids who wish to learn how to make their own strawman, reed crickets and grasshoppers. 

The talks invited agriculture experts to share their experience in farming, organizing farmers’ market, and insights towards Hong Kong’s agro policies and permaculture education. Speakers included Tin Shui Wai Farmer Brother Bill, Au Law Organic Farm’s owner Wong Yu Wing, researcher Lau Hoi Lung the scholar, and urban farmer Iron. At the Q&A session, many kai-fongs were looking forward to our Neighbour-Wood scheme, so that they could have more green, open community farming space for them to get in touch with nature. 

The event aimed to engage experienced farmers and horticulture fans in envisioning the design and management of our future community farm. Despite heavy rain at the day of site visit, participants were enthusiastic to exchange views on different planting methods, fair farmland distribution approach, management model, food compost, and future school and community participation in the scheme. 

*Both sessions will be in Cantonese

Teamed up with Tin Library and dozens of local families on August 10, we all had fun in dressing-up the Tin Shui Road under-the-flyover space. Under the guidance of our leading artist - Mr. Yeung Sau Churk, participants were encouraged to decorate this inconspicuous public space with colourful duck tape. For the first time in Tin Shui Wai, this collective art piece was displayed on-site for a month, offering the best backdrop for street music performance and pop-up community gatherings. 

The smiley faces and dazzling tile patterns reaffirms our belief - that when the community is empowered with the right to initiate placemaking interventions, these ubiquitous spaces would be transformed into popular places that bond the users. As for the next step, the team will continue to explore possibilities to energize the flyover space in a longer run. 

Public Spaces are an important asset to our city. Looking beyond their physical design, public spaces are the stage where community members interplay, where neighbourhood bonds are nurtured, and where all kinds of placemaking activities contribute to the strengthening of community spirit. So, what is your favourite spot in your neighbourhood? And how would you further enhance its design to meet the pressing social needs? 

Since May 2019, CollaborateHK and YWCA Tin Library have co-organized three youth design workshops. Facilitated by professional designers from the Bubble Creatures Design Studio, the youths were encouraged to critically evaluate various local public spaces’ functionality, popularity and aesthetic value. The brainstorming sessions were concluded with space intervention designs that meet the social issues observed. The proposals will soon be reviewed by contractors to ensure that all suggestions are technically and financially viable. 

CollaborateHK is excited to embark on a new journey with the Tin Shui Wai Community Development Network (TSWCDN) for our next community farming project! 

TSWCDN has a strong track record in curating sustainability education, food sharing, carers empowerment and bottom-up community participation campaigns. Among which, community farming has always been one of the “all time favourites” among residents. Partnering with public housing estates’ Mutual Aid Committee, the team has set up the “Tin Yuet Estate Community Herbal Garden” to promote edible landscaping. They believed that the initiative could give a second life to idle community spaces, and enable participants to discover the joy of gardening. 

With their vision to stimulate community participation and social integration on a wider scale, the team finally set theirs eyes on a 200,000 sq. feet site, which was once a fertile farmland and fishpond before the site was abandoned 10 years ago. From July to October, the team will continue to touch-base with farmers, kai-fongs, community groups and industry experts to draw up an initial design proposal.

Unlike its former nickname “the City of Sadness”, Tin Shui Wai has perhaps risen as the cradle of revolutionary socio-economic practices in the recent years. With joint efforts from the government and communities, advocacy work on sustainable living, economic autonomy, local production and social inclusion is flourishing across the neighbourhood. A hero behind the success is undoubtedly the Tin Shui Wai Community Cooperative (天水圍社區協作平台). Officiated in 2011, the Cooperative is a platform that bonds active local groups such as Tin Shui Wai Community Development Network (天水圍社區發展網絡), Community Development Alliance (社區發展陣線) and Tin Shui Wai Organic (天姿作圍).

Every cooperative member focuses on bettering a different aspect of local welfare. Some take care of policy advocacy and community development, while others facilitates the establishment of a sustainable “Farm-to-Table” production chain. To step up their efforts in promoting sustainable socio-economic development, the cooperative also recruit retired farmers and fishers to practice organic farming in Mong Tseng Wai (輞井圍). Their agricultural products are then packaged or processed by local housewives, and are sold in Tin Sau Bazaar, the Kingswood Richly Plaza store and regular market fairs. 

Besides their farming initiative, the cooperative was also the first few to introduce time-based currency (時分券) for real day-to-day transactions. Regardless of their purchasing power, locals can exchange labour and service time for goods. This revolutionary currency system motivates locals to contribute in their own way, cultivates their sense of belonging and eventually, accumulates Tin Shui Wai’s social capital. 

In late 2019, CollaborateHK will launch our third pilot scheme with Tin Library (天拉吧). Established in 2014 by the Hong Kong Youth Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) Tin Shui Wai Integrated Social Service Centre, Tin Library empowers local residents to tie-in with their neighbourhood through collective learning about and participation in arts, storytelling and pop-up music shows. 

Although it’s never difficult to spot green open spaces in Tin Shui Wai, we were told that many are still looking for extra chill-out area. As such CollaborateHK has lined up designers from the Bubble Creatures Design Studio to stock-take various potential sites in the neighbourhood. Under-the-flyover spaces, housing estates’ common area, and government land available for short-term community uses were on our checklist. In mid-May, we have also kick-started a brainstorming design session with local young artists who have participated in Tin Library’s programme to discuss different design options. 

 

According to the Highways Department, Hong Kong has over 1,300 flyovers and 700 footbridges. Due to minimal maintenance, under-the-flyover spaces are often perceived as shady, dangerous spaces that are unfavourable for community use. Indeed, these unique weatherproof site could offer much more than temporary storage or parking. 

In the recent years, the government and community groups have made notable joint efforts to dress-up flyover spaces with new design and engagement campaigns. The success of these projects thus inspired us to rethink their potentials in the long run.

Have you ever noticed any vacant space in your neighbourhood that could possibly become a social innovative project? Perhaps our upcoming community experiment with flyovers in Tin Shui Wai would give you some inspirations.
 

The success of Community Fiesta marks a new milestone in our second pilot scheme - the “Green Cadogan” Community Edu-tainment Space is finally publicized for comments! At the event last Sunday, our team presented the initial proposal to the crowd. The pilot scheme envisions to establish a green, sustainable, shared open space that is curated “by the locals, for the locals”.

Over the past 6 months, we have been working hand-in-hand with Wisdom Regeneration to understand the community’s need through survey, interviews and site visits. After rounds of discussion with local stakeholders, we then put forward the initial design with our design advisor, “The Office as a Project”. We believed that the reactivation of the available land resources not only echoes the government’s waste reduction policies, but could also alleviate the lack of community facilities in the district, and create a focal point that inherits the past and engage the community. 

1) Repair & upcycling workshop: Provides basic repairing tools and work-desks to support preliminary recycling, upcycling and repairing work
2) Multi-purpose activity room: Offers a flexible, multi-functional space for community members,local groups and schools to organize activities
3) Public lounge & swapping area: Opens to the public on regular hours, available for swap parties and social gatherings
4) Community recycling station: Equipped with recycling bins, notice boards and temporary storage area

With the hope to incorporate community aspirations into the “Green Cadogan” proposal, our team will continue to organize engagement events to encourage wider public participation. We welcome everyone to voice out your opinion, hope to see you at our upcoming event! 

More details on "Green Cadogan" Initiative:http://bit.do/eRH4m

Thanks to Wisdom Regeneration, supporting organizations and our dearest kai-fongs, the “Green Cadogan” Community Fiesta was successfully held last Sunday! With over 150 participants, our day was made perfect by brilliant sunshine and loads of laughters.  

Gathered around the grassy lawn, old kai-fongs shared the less known stories that happened once upon a time in Kennedy Town. Many participated in our green workshops, while others joined the Project Spaces to upcycle 3,000 bottle lids, all collected from the district, into an art piece. A highlight of the day was the lion dance and martial art performance by the Kennedy Kung-Fu masters, who have lived in Kennedy Town for generations. The event was concluded with Urban Diary’s screening on “Tales of Shui Hau”, where participants embraced the past and future of their neighbourhood while enjoying homemade refreshments.

Checkout our Facebook for more event highlights! 

The Cadogan Street Temporary Garden is the valuable public space in Kennedy Town. But do you ever know history of the park which was the ex-wholesale market back in 1937 and has been relocated in 1990s?

On April 28 (Sun), Very Hong Kong will co-host the “Green Cadogan Community Fiesta” with Wisdom Regeneration and community groups in the Garden. Join us from 2-9pm for a fun afternoon with upcycling workshops, swap party, music performances, “Tales of Shui Hau” outdoor screening, “Kennedy Time Traveler” photo display and guided tours that delve into the neighbourhood’s less-known history.

We will also present their initial placemaking proposal, the “Green Cadogan” Community Edu-tainment Space to reactivate 7 ex-market booths into green community hub, with a series of panel displays and interactive community envisioning exercises with our Design Partner, The Office as a Project. We look forward to learning your views and involvement in the engagement session!

Remember to save the date and together, let’s embrace the past and future of the Cadogan Street Garden!

More informartion: https://www.facebook.com/events/2315087245440188/?active_tab=about

As the semester comes to an end in April, our co-founder, Mrs. Margaret Brooke, has been invited by Prof. Mee Kam Ng, Programme Director of CUHK Urban Studies Programme, to join the students at their final course presentation. After months of in-depth research, we were delighted to witness students’ work coming into fruition! 

In preparation for their final proposal, students had conducted over 120 on-site investigation on vacant land available for short-term community uses. Based on findings from their baseline studies and community interviews, students then developed a neighbourhood improvement proposal for 6 respective districts. Some of which includes setting up the Ping Shan Heritage Trail “House of Stories”; creating an inclusive multi-purpose space for Tsuen Wan’s ethnic minorities; providing extra room for artists and photographers in Shatin; and starting up an education centre that serves grassroot students in North District. A heartfelt thank you to all, who have put so much effort and thoughts into the proposals! Their field work will also contribute to CollaborateHK’s vacant site directory, which will be available for free public access in the future! 

Ever since we embarked on the journey to empower bottom-up placemaking initiatives, CollaborateHK has been keen to advocate interdisciplinary cooperation among locals, professionals, policy makers and funders. We believe that in an age of growing diversity, neighbourhood planning could no longer remain as an individual’s task, but rather, should pool the best of every sector to realize a community-backed, sustainable project that generates benefits for all. 

Most recently, we have been invited by the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s Social Work Department to share how CollaborateHK recalibrates cross-sector collaboration in community building projects.

Our recent “Green Cadogan” pilot scheme perfectly showcased how professional designers and community members interact, learn and inspire each other throughout the plan-envisioning process. With the generous help from the Office as a Project architects, the team has confidently transformed creative local aspirations into doable layout plans. You are most welcomed to meet the masterminds behind the scene and witness their fruits of hard work at our 4.28 Community Fiesta!

If you share our vision to drive seeable changes in the built environment, stand with us to spark endless possibilities for a more liveable future!  

Following the “Shing Wong Street Community Living Room”, CollaborateHK is proud to present to you our second pilot project - the “Green Cadogan” Community Edu-tainment Space!

The “Green Cadogan” scheme aspires to re-activate 14 ex-market booths in Cadogan Street Garden, Kennedy Town. Standing for over 70 years, these booths have humbly witnessed the vigorous wholesale market operations of the 1950s, their relocation in 1991, and the creation of a Temporary Cadogan Garden in 2000s. More recently, as a result of the community’s triumph over Town Planning Board’s decision to rezone this temporary open space for residential development, the government has finally approved to keep the greenery and ex-market booths for good. 

Surviving demolition but suffering a fate of deterioration, these 14 booths are in a sorry state due to minimal maintenance. Currently, 7 of which are being used for government storage, while the others are in desperate need for better usage. 

In light of the Government’s recent initiatives to strengthen waste reduction policies, rising local environmental awareness, and a common interest in conserving a piece of Hong Kong’s history, could the Cadogan booths seize their chance to serve the community again? As some locals proposed, could these booths function as a green community hub offering spaces for all to socialize, have fun and bring sustainable living into play? 

Over the coming months, CollaborateHK will organize a range of public engagement programmes in collaboration with Wisdom Regeneration and other local partners. We'd love to learn your insights towards the initiative. Stay tuned for further announcements, let’s us all work to rejuvenate this fantastic space together!

With 2019 upon us, we’ll be featuring a selection of unique STT sites that could potentially be transformed into a fun, loving place for all every Thursday. Let’s uncover hidden gems and their potential uses across the city together!

We first featured a 2700 sq. feet STT in Sheung Wan - offering an excellent location with terrific connectivity, which maybe great for passive recreation.
To let government land #1

DLO No.: DLOHKW&S044
Location: Government land behind Caine Road Garden at Caine Road & Seymour Road, Sheung Wan
District: Central & Western
Area(sq. metre): 256
Estimated Available Period: about 2 to 3 years
Site Conditions: (a) Flat (b) pedestrian access only
Remarks: Long term use (Government, institution or community)

(Site information source: Lands Department)

Since the beginning of our journey in promoting bottom-up community initiatives, CollaborateHK has been blessed with overwhelming support across government departments, professional institutes and the civil society. Recently, we are grateful that the government has increased funding and support towards NGO’s STT applications. 

In late January, the Legislative Council’s Finance Committee has approved the Development Bureau’s funding scheme, which reserves $1 billion to sponsor NGOs taking up vacant government land. As such, each eligible STT project may apply for a maximum of $60 million to cover basic site restoration works, professional consultancy services and insurance. A simpler and transparent system for funding approval has been called for; professional institutes were also encouraged to share their expertise with NGOs in need.

At the same time, Lands Department has also announced clearer STT application guidelines.   

In light of heated debates over land shortages and allocations in Hong Kong, it is time for the government and civil society to think out of the box. Constrained by their size, shape and accessibility, most vacant land listed on Lands Department’s Short Term Tenancy (STT) for community uses are unsuitable for housing nor long term development. However, we believe these sites could bring magnificent social impacts when all sectors join hands to reimagine community spaces that reflects public aspirations.

Starting this semester, CollaborateHK is checking-in at the CUHK campus to share our vision and community-backed placemaking initiatives. Special thanks must be given to Professor Mee Kam NG, Program Director of Urban Studies Program at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, who has kindly offered us an opportunity to network with 50 keen, deligent future urban leaders in class. Through a series of interactive lectures and field work, students will investigate STTs in different districts, identify local needs and concerns with stakeholders, and develop a placemaking proposal that meets community aspirations. We look forward to learning their creative schemes at the final presentation! 

Have you ever imagined what magic can wall-paintings do? As simple as beautifying the vacant back alley, an inclusive, participatory colour-adding exercise could also stimulate social interactions and bond the neighbourhood! 

With lots of laughters, paints and music, our community wall-painting day was successfully held in mid-December! Co-organized in partnership with a local green group - Wisdom Regeneration, the event has attracted over 50 kai-fongs and art lovers to get creative in redecorating an underused community space in Sai Wan. Many mentioned that there is limited room for community-based art jamming nowadays, thus encouraged us to host more events of its kind in the future. 

More photos on Very Hong Kong facebook.

Sai Wan IG Pier, the newly opened Central and Western District Promenade, and the grassy Cadogan Street Garden... are these on the top of your head when we talk about public spaces in Kennedy Town? 

With the aim to understand public's perception towards current provision of community facilities in Kennedy Town, we are conducting a survey to learn your insights on the topic. 

Please spend 2-3 mins to complete the survey.
 

While we await the Lands Department’s official approval to fence-off the Shing Wong Street vacant site, VeryHK and Friends of the 30 Houses Neighbourhood will continue to engage and collaborate with local stakeholders.

In late October, we presented the CollaborateHK report and our pilot scheme to the Central and Western District Councilors, social-welfare providers and local concern groups at the DC meeting. Thanks for all their support and advice!

After several rounds of community engagement and insight collection, we have finally submitted the “Shing Wong Street Community Living Room” proposal to the Lands Department on October 18, 2018.

A big thank you to everyone involved, especially the enthusiastic locals who  haveoffered us invaluable support and feedbacks in order to take the project forward. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for the pending 3 year short-term tenancy approval, and we all look forward to opening up the fenced off space for community use soon!

For decades, the stairs of Shing Wong Street have not only retained the unique character of the neighbourhood, but also offered valuable opportunities for users to interact and have fun.

A day before the 30 Houses Yulan Festival, Very Hong Kong and local neighboursturned these historic steps into an outdoor theater! Two short films were shown, one documenting curious stories behind the PMQ revitalization, and the other about traditional local Yulan practices. The event ended with a walking tour along Staunton Street, where participants witnessed preparations of the Yulan ceremony.

Stayed tuned for more upcoming community events, the next one could be just around the corner!

On Aug 19, taking a step forward from the CollaborateHK Sandbox, Shing Wong team seized their chance to engage the public in the “Community Living Room” scheme.

Through panel displays, guided tours and interactive dialogues on-site, all participants were empowered to voice their thoughts on the proposal and future community development.

A big thank you to all participants, kai-fongs, shopkeepers and our event co-organizer Central and Western Concern Group for all the support. In the coming weeks, we’ll incorporate these community aspirations into the pilot scheme. Let's collaborate to create beloved public spaces for all to enjoy!

Following the Sandbox Charette, a Summit was held in May. The event attracted a wider audience: government officials, scholars, business and media representatives included. The 8 Sandbox teams were given the stage to present further developed design concepts with graphical illustrations. All presentations proved stellar upon the wonderful feedback received on the day.

The event was wrapped up with a panel discussion on the topic: “ Community’s Role in shaping a Liveable City”. A special thanks and mention to all of our guest speakers for a fruitful and engaging conversation.

In March, we hosted the first ever Sandbox event in town - the CollaborateHK Sandbox Charrette, for a round of community envisioning exercise.
 
The 24 hour workshop brought together over 100 participants from all walks of life, including community leaders, scholars, professionals, and business representatives. Participants were split into 8 groups to propose a feasible and creative framework for a chosen site. In an advisory clinic, each team had the opportunity to meet with practicing professionals from various industries to discuss the viability of their proposals, before coming together once again to present their innovative ideas.
 
A big thank you to all our participants and advisors for making the event a success!

Are you ready to creatively redefine HK’s public spaces? VHK’s community-led event is back for a third run, and we want you to get involved!

“Very Aberdeen” presented by Very Hong Kong will be coming to the Aberdeen Promenade on 15 May 2016 (Sunday). We’ve opened the call for event proposals, and everyone is welcome to submit your creative ideas on transforming the waterfront into something uniquely HK. It can be by art, culture, recreation, lifestyle, music – anything you can think of!

Download the ‘Very Aberdeen 2016’ open call info pack here and don’t forget to send us your proposals by 31 March 2016!

Are you ready to creatively redefine the City's public spaces in 2014? VHK will be hosting the next community led event at Wanchai Ferry Pier and we want YOU to get involved!

"Very Ferry Pier", organized by Very Hong Kong, will be taking place June 2014. We have officially issued an open call for event proposals for 'Very Ferry Pier' and welcome any creative ideas to transform the ferry pier whether it be art, culture, food, recreation, lifestyle, music etc…

Download the Very Ferry Pier 2013 open call information pack.
 

and e-mail us your proposal at joinus@veryhk.org. The submission deadline is 30th April.