Guangzhou, China
Combining academic aspirations and the site’s natural beauty and urban context, American Prize for Architecture laureates Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates have designed a unique campus that fosters cultural inclusion between Chinese and international communities and protects the health of users.
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has recently been awarded a 2023 American Architecture Award by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
New buildings are routinely modeled to understand their climate impact, but there is usually a performance gap between design and operation.
HKUST is equipped with hundreds of sensors and sub-metering for energy, air quality, daylight, and water to enable continuous improvement.
All of the data are open source and available through a “data lake.”
Dedicated research and demonstration facilities will explore and educate about opportunities for sustainable living in the wider Guangzhou region.
HKUST is an entirely new university campus, totaling about 55 buildings.
Delivered in phases – the first phase opened in September 2022 – and on completion, it will accommodate more than 10,000 students and staff.
A sibling to HKUST’s Hong Kong campus, it was conceived as the catalyst for a new innovation hub, connected to the greater Bay Region by public transport.
The client wanted an inspirational campus to attract national and international talent, anchor the development of the wider neighborhood, and meet the challenges of the climate emergency.
Outdoors, thermal comfort hours are extended.
Indoors, air quality is improved through enhanced filtration and healthy materials. A car-free interior prioritizes active transport, and a “leisure loop” for cycling, walking, and running follows naturally landscaped canals.
This shared amenity unites the campus with the local community.
Passive measures, such as orientation and building design reduce energy use by 54 percent.
An innovative, fossil fuel-free district hot water system ensures >90 percent of hot water is provided by waste heat from labs and data-center cooling.
Over 40 percent reduction in potable water use is achieved through rain and grey water reuse.
All roofs support a unique utility-scale PV canopy of >300,000 square feet, while only EVs are allowed on campus.
Recognizing critical flood and heat risks ecosystem-based solutions have been adopted, increasing tree canopy to >20 percent of the site area (more than Central Park) for thermal comfort, and introducing a network of native rain gardens covering 55 percent of the landscape, that manage stormwater and support wildlife.
This is a “living lab” setting – a permanently unfinished, data-rich experiment that empowers the university to learn about and reduce, its environmental impact with results that will extend beyond the boundaries of the campus to the wider region.
Project: Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Guangzhou (HKUST)
Architects: Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates PC.
Lead Architect: James von Klemperer
Client: Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Photographers: TAL
