The Forest Sports Park in Guangming, Shenzhen (China), for play, sport and relaxation is a joint design by LOLA Landscape Architects (NL), Taller architects (COL/NL) and Land and Civilization Compositions (CN). During the World Architecture Festival China in December 2020, the project won the overall WAFChina Best Landscape and the WAFChina Excellent Design award.

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The Shenzhen area is all about innovation, therefor the ambition was to make a park that is as innovative as the city itself. A park that can adapt to the constant evolution of sports and were the people can constantly contribute to a more resilient nature.

Immerse in the thick Forest

An elevated red path gives universal access to the forest. With a steady soft slope, connecting ramps and elevators it provides users from all age groups a safe and easy way to visit the mountain. To enjoy the views of the surrounding city and the ability to immerse yourself in the thick forest. The Forest and Sports Park forms a slow transition space between the city of Guangming and the forest reserve.

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The park focuses on innovation in sports and ecology

With the first phase of the 600 ha. park almost completed, the park is to become a unique destination for the Guangming Big Bay area. As this metropolitan region finds its success in innovative industries, the park focuses on innovation in sports and ecology. Two R&D centres, one for sports, one for botany are centrally located in the park. From here, a constant evolution and diversification of the park will take place. On the central park loop, a linear plant and tree nursery is integrated.

A scenic route

In a natural forest setting, visitors are able to get to know new and forgotten sports, as well as the latest techniques used in sports. A range from open valleys to lower hills and mountain forest offers the natural background for these sports and active leisure. The Red Path forms a landmark that connects the park to the city and the forest; a scenic route that passes by all different types of forest.

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Minimize the environmental impact

In the park a series of pavilions hosts functions like a restaurant, restroom, viewing platform and forest cabin. In order to minimize the environmental impact, the pavilions are modular and prefabricated. By placing them on stilts they avoid direct contact with the ground and at the same time provide shadow so that visitors can escape the summer heat. The construction of the second phase of the Forest Sports Park is expected to start in 2021.

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Location: Guang Ming, Shenzhen, China
Size: 600 ha
Design: 2018
Construction first phase: 2019-2020
Organizer: Guangming New District Management committee
Co-organizer: Shenzhen Guang Ming center for urban Development
Design team: LOLA Landscape Architects, Taller architects, Land and Civilization Compositions

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Trees and forests are the lungs of our planet. The topos issue 103 on the topic “Trees” presents concrete projects involving trees that rethink the relation of nature and society and restructure it in very distinct and very different ways.

A new report proposes that refugee camps should be relabeled refugee cities. The core of the argument is, that there would be spezial enterprise zones (SEZs), offering business opportunities for the inhabitants. The SEZs would benefit the refugees as well as the host country and investors, creating jobs and giving refugees useful skills. The report argues that governments would then welcome refugees instead of seeing a burden in them.

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Shenzhen as a best-practice
SEZs are designated areas in a country with differing business and trade laws. There new ideas could be tested without the necessity of changing the laws in the whole nation. Shenzhen in China is an example, that works remarkably well since the 1980s, and allows free-market policies.

The report says, that right now refugees avoid the camps due to the lack of opportunities they offer.

Refugee Cities is a US-based NGO and was founded by Michael Castle Miller. He said: „ The aims of the project are to expand opportunities for migrants and to thereby allow them to find dignity, meaning, and a social and economic future.“

Refugee cities would enable the inhabitants to rebuild their home country with their new-found knowledge and psychological strength, once they return.

Top-down humanitarian aid fails
The Refugee Cities report claims, that 65.3 million people were displaces by the end of 2015. In Lebanon, one million Syrian refugees now make a quarter of the population, in Jordan, 600.000 refugees are a burden on the water resources. Refugee migration is an urgent strain on international relations. The report also states, that the international aid doesn’t meet the peoples basic needs or achieve a long-term goal and fails to make use of the aspirations and skills of the inhabitants. Refugees are often tempted to find illegal work in the host country.

The former UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Kilian Kleinschmidt, agreed: „We’re doing humanitarian aid as we did 70 years ago.“

Refugee Cities has already won international support by the World Bank, who have committed to investing in refugee SEZs in Jordan and Ethiopia.