Big PICTURES An Idea-competition is the occasion to set free Utopian dreams. The difficulty may then lie in finding the correct proportions of pragmatic “grounding” and visionary concepts. In this case, the ambition was to help remediate the toxic effects of urban air pollution. A completely free brief implied the possibility to reverse parts of the process. Indeed, a specific issue was found first and a site was chosen afterwards, instead of the usual opposite. The place of intervention was picked to best stage a very robust design intervention, for its potential replication elsewhere. To make this decision, a few parameter were taken into account. The key factors however, were a country’s general affliction to airborne pollutants as well as its potential financial resources to intervene. Further research showed that other characteristics are closely linked to aerosols concentration, such as urban density and climatic specificities. Chinese cities stood out in these areas, knowing fast growth and high level of toxicity throughout the countries. Furthermore, Hong Kong proved even more appropriate because of it’s high GDP, expensive square meter price and air trapping urban density. Looking into the city’s infamous air quality issues, 2 important elements surfaced. First its pollution related losses are counted in the thousands of deaths and billions of dollars, every year. Secondly, pollutant levels go through complex intertwined cycles depending on the climate and human activities. This last characteristic was to spring the concept of a dynamic “smart” design, capable of adapting to a variety of situations.
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