Phase Two Campus Development Workshop successfully held
On the afternoon of September 16, HKUST(GZ) held the Phase Two Campus Development and Construction Workshop. It was attended by campus leaders, representatives of campus construction departments, all Hubs and Thrusts, administrative departments, lab management departments, construction units, and the Phase Two Campus Development working group, as well as external design consultants.
Prof. Lionel M. Ni, President of HKUST(GZ), and Prof. Jingshen Wu, Vice-president of HKUST(GZ) also attended the workshop, which was hosted by Dr. Bin Li, Special Assistant to
the President of HKUST (GZ) and Director of the President’s Office of HKUST (GZ).
Weico Architecture Office, a Beijing-based architectural firm, reviewed the overall situation of Phase One Campus Development and briefed the vision for Phase Two Campus Development as the technology consulting service provider for Phase Two.
According to the briefing, Phase Two will see expansion based on Phase One, with improvements and enhancements in response to campus development needs. At the workshop, attendees engaged in heated and profound discussions on topics ranging from the construction of professional labs, teaching space layout and setting, and the construction of colleges to knowledge transfer and the planning of venues for academic exchanges.
When discussing the overall campus style of Phase Two, Prof. Linge Kan pointed out that guided by the principle of “Zero-carbon Campus and Green Campus”, equal attention should be paid to architectural and aesthetic aspects for the campus design and construction with the spirit of bold innovation. The campus should be built as a benchmark rather than following other benchmarking peers. Prof. Jiang Xu said the design should accommodate both humanistic care and actual needs, requiring a more detailed survey targeting students in different majors and at different stages.
When planning the functional layout for the Phase Two campus, attention focused on how to profoundly highlight the interdisciplinary feature of the campus. A unanimous consensus has been reached on the integration of learning and living space for undergraduate and graduate students. Through daily penetration, students in different majors and at different stages can spark scientific and innovative thoughts.
Attendees also brainstormed on the design and planning of colleges for undergraduates, the most important pillar of Phase Two campus construction. Prof. Jingshen Wu expounded on the good vision of nurturing undergraduates by adopting a collegiate system. Both Dr. Kevin Zhen, Dean of the Fok Ying Tung Research Institute (FYTRI) of HKUST(GZ) and Prof. Jia Li mentioned examples of internal renowned universities offering a collegiate system such as Harvard University and Cambridge University, shared their personal experience, and expressed their hope that undergraduate colleges of HKUST(GZ) can draw on others’ merits to offset the weakness, working towards the goal of building a world-class campus.
At the same time, Phase Two will continue to uphold the design philosophy of “Smart Campus” and “Green Building”, committed to building the HKUST(GZ) into a greener, smarter and more low-carbon campus.
At last, Prof. Lionel M. Ni made a concluding statement. He expressed his gratitude for colleagues participating in the survey for Phase Two Campus Development as well as partners across all spectrums. He also proposed guidelines and specific requirements for the next stage of the work.
The in-depth survey for Phase Two Campus Development and Construction will continue. A staged crowd innovation workshop is scheduled to be held in October.