You’ve been living and working in Hong Kong for many years now, how has the city shaped the way you approach design?
Hong Kong is a dense metropolis and just like many other cities in China, they are building up their density and expanding vertically. This can be a rather alienating environment as space is stacked and rather disconnected, while the narrow sidewalks at ground level are crowded and frantic. This is why we always try to implement shared spaces throughout our projects; to give the end-users interactive and relaxed spaces to enjoy whether it is a tower project or a campus style project. 

We’re always looking for ways to break down the ‘stacked slabs’ and create a ‘horizontality’ through bridge spaces or some integration with the podium to introduce usable roof space or terraces. The Shenzhen Bay Innovation and Technology Centre project and the Ningbo Yongjiang Innovation Centre

Previously we have looked at various interior design changes that we see emerging in the field of hospitality design, though one additional and significant area of change has been seen with the incorporation and role sustainability and ecological choices are now playing within this. Of course, it is not just the field of hospitality that these changes are being made, it is a movement that is sweeping across all areas of architecture and is becoming one of the most prevalent themes driving design. 

Between energy costs continuing to rise and people becoming more concerned about the reality of global warming, we see a boom in supply and demand for these changes both internally and externally. As explained by Brenda Ye, RMJM RED’s Executive Director, in a recent interview with RMJM:
“The climate crisis is an immediate threat and we are in a position of responsibility when it comes to trying

Estimated reading time: 5 min

There is no other building material that comes close to glass in terms of versatility and aesthetic appeal. It is one of the oldest and most respected types of building material around the world, having been in use in one form or another since at least 500 BC. At this point in history, only the most wealthy and prominent citizens of Rome and Pompeii used glass, in the form of cast glass windows in villas, though the quality was poor. For centuries, glass continued to be aspirational and expensive, produced in small quantities. Alchemists and then scientists tinkered with its formula over this time, and by the seventeenth-century glass was more widely available and of better quality. The glass we know today had finally begun appearing in the window frames of everyday residences. 

Jumping forward in time, many believe the next big innovation in architectural