Sustainability is continuing to move toward mainstream market acceptance throughout Asia, writes Townsend. Value in terms of a high rate of financial and human return accompanied by a low rate of subsidy needs to be demonstrated to project stakeholders, who, in addition to environmental issues, will need to be convinced of the synergy of economic, social, and cultural issues.

Sustainability compels developers to view each project as a steady, long-lived organism that delivers rewards commensurate with the amount of attention and nurturing it receives. Progressive developers are great managers of their properties, and their contribution to a community is a catalyst for long-term regional growth.

Townsend cites several HOK projects as examples of recent and new projects in Asia that provide tangible examples of how sustainability can influence and enhance land development.

Among the HOK projects featured are a development plan for Hainan Bay National Seashore, off the southern coast of China; the China Resources Gardens new town development in western China; the Kai Tak Archipelago in Hong Kong; Phoenix City inland development in Sanya, China; Pudong Event City mixed-use development in Shanghai;
Qin Huang Dao Golden Dream Bay residential and commercial development on the coastline northeast of Beijing; and Kaohsiung Sports Park in Southern Taiwain.

The path toward responsible development always begins with collaboration among cities, developers, government officials, designers, contractors, and others who contribute to planning, funding, and building communities.

As awareness and interest in sustainability continue to increase throughout Asia, urban planners and designers need to form alliances with progressive decision makers to bring expertise and innovation to the communities and cultures being served. Also, the scope of project and development teams needs to be expanded to include historians, anthropologists, biologists, futurists, and other specialists who can help expand minds.

Source: "Greening Asia," Urban Land, January 2007, by Steven Townsend.