(MAIN FEATURE) Frontlines of ecological practice -- (THE FUTURARC INTERVIEW) Yu Kongjian – Lou Yongqi -- (FUTURARC SHOWCASE) Shanghai Houtan Park & New Jindai Elementary School -- (PROJECTS) Microlibrary hanging gardens -- Lakeside garden – Mandai Eco-Resort -- Vietel Academy Education Centre -- (COMMENTARY) Benchmarking the benchmark: reflections on the 10th anniversary of Malaysia’s green building index (HAPPENINGS) Milestones & events – Product advertorials

[Article: Frontlines of ecological practice / Nirmal Kishnani, p. 20-27]

Ecopuncture is a acupuncture for the built environment. Each act of design, akin to a needle inserted into a living system-of-systems, seeks restorative goodness for the whole. It enhances the connectedness of the social and ecological, seeking positive reciprocity and strengthening the resilience of the whole.

https://www.futurarc.com/commentary/frontlines-of-ecological-practice/

[Article: The Futurarc interview: Yu Kongjian & Lou Yongqi / Heather Banerd, p. 28-35]

Designers in China looking for a challenge are spoilt for choice. Rapid urbanisation has left the country struggling with environmental degradation, loss of natural resources and rising social inequality. Yu Kongjian of Turenscape and Lou Yonqi of Tektao are two designers who tackle these issues head on. Both do so from multiple angles, through their positions as teachers, academics and practitioners. Both draw inspiration from Chinese cultural heritage, looking to traditional land management techniques and a way of life more rooted in place and context. Yet from here, their approaches diverge. Yu Kongjian and his work on flood mitigation and water rehabilitation at Turenscape have influenced Chinese national land use policies, including the hugely popular ‘Sponge City’ approach that has transformed many Chinese cities. Lou Yongqi works at the opposite scale, engaging rural communities and grassroots organisations to create social change and opportunities in areas national policy has little impact. Together, they present a picture of how design at all scales can crate meaningful change

[Article: Shanghai Houtan Park / Nirmal Kishnani, p. 39-41]

[Article: New Jindai Elementary School / Nirmal Kishnani, p.43-45]

[Article: Microlibrary Hanging Gardens (Indonesia) / Florian Heinzelmann, p. 46-51]

[Article: Lakeside Garden / Heather Banerd, p. 52-57]

[Article: Mandai Eco-Resort (Singapore) / Alakesh Dutta, p. 58-61]

[Article: Singapore: a perspective on urban-nature symbiosis / Nirmal Kishnani, p.62-64]

[Article: Vietel Academy Education Centre (Vietnam), p. 66-69]

[Article: Benchmarking the benchmark: reflections on the 10th anniversary of Malaysia’s green building index / Mitchell Gelber, p. 70-77]