Reconnect – Resist – Slow – Collect

Our vision is inspired by Yu the Great, a famous ruler in ancient China who pioneered flood water control in the heart of China. By dredging deeper rivers and creating irrigation canals which helped to relieve floodwaters into fields, his strategy was to embrace the water instead of trying to fight it. By firmly directing and diverting the water away from problem areas, the flooding was controlled and managed to benefit the land rather than destroy it.

The key to the success of this project is being able to give the city a chance to be able to react to flooding in rapid time and cost effective manner. Disaster reaction is important as well as long term water management to address the inevitable rising sea levels and the city’s lowering water table problem, starting by identifying the main problem areas and addressing them in a clear, methodological manner. We propose sustainable and complementary solutions that can work together to form a strong and successful defense. Correct identification of surge points and unprotected vulnerable waterfronts, identification of impervious surfaces, and finally identification of the lowest areas which are most vulnerable to slow draining flooding all will contribute towards the alleviation of flood damage. We have split down our multi-layered approach into 4 clear strategies: RECONNECT, RESIST, SLOW and COLLECT.

Company Name
HYHW Architects and Planners

Team Member(s)
Li Hao – Principal Architect & Urban Planner responsible for overall concept and execution. Design Director @ HYHW – Beijing.
Raquel Kieling – Senior Urban Planner responsible for concept development. Senior Architect and Urban Designer @ HYHW – Beijing.
Yi Tian – Assistant Urban Planner responsible for graphics and visualisations. Assistant designer @ HYHW – Beijing.
Tim Stonor – Principal Spatial Analyst Managing Director @ Space Syntax – London.
Stephen Law – Spatial Analyst. Associate @ Space Syntax – Beijing.
Danny Shek – Principal Transport Planner, responsible for road network planning and design. General Manager @ BaiChuan Transport Planning Consultants – Hong Kong.
Wu Chen – Overall strategy consultant. Design Principal President @ Beijing Institute of Architectural Design (BIAD) – Beijing.
Jiang Wei – Senior Water Strategy Analyst, consulting on the overall water strategy. Principal @ Luosheng Environment Technology co.LTD – Beijing.