High Density Greenery

Design - by Open Journal

Hong Kong is region of extremes, where concrete and rainforest intertwine to create a true urban jungle. 75% of Hong Kong’s land is undeveloped, of which 40% is country parks and nature reserves. It’s a little known fact beyond the stark high-rise, tightly packed along Victoria Harbour. On average there are 6,650 people per square kilometre in Hong Kong’s developed areas, a far cry from Melbourne’s 440 people per square kilometre. The absurd likening of Melbourne to Hong Kong this year, while clearly factually misleading, failed to consider the rationale behind high density. For a population and geographic context such as Hong Kong, high density living is not only a neccessary reality, but one which gives rise to a hub of creativity, entrepreneurship and enterprise.

Named as one of Time Out Hong Kong‘s top 10 instagrammers, Elaine Li captures the sometimes astonishing collision between urban forms and nature. Always peaking out from amongst the pavement or from below the freeway ramps, trees and vines are defiant. Greenery exists brazenly from rooftops, to vertical gardens, to communal parks hundreds of meters above the street. Gripped with an electric pulse of inventiveness, discovery and achievement, the city makes an intoxicating case for high density living.