Date 3-4.10.2025 (Friday & Saturday)
Time
Day 1 (HKT 9:00 am - 5:00 pm)
Day 2 (HKT 9:00 am – 5:30 pm)
Venue
Day 1 - LT1 & LT2, Yasumoto International Academic Park, CUHK
Day 2 - Lai Chi Wo Village, Sha Tau Kok
Language
Day 1 - English and Putonghua
Day 2 - Putonghua and Cantonese with English interpretation
Format
In-person conference & activities
Day 1 - Full-day symposium, parallel sessions, and international exhibition of outstanding projects and papers on urban-rural integration
Day 2 - Guided tours and workshops
Symposium Theme
Contextualizing Urban-Rural Integration: Co-vision, Co-create, Co-operate
Sub-themes:
Positioning, Policy & Planning
Design, Practice & Partnership
Culture, Heritage & Landscape
Overview
Despite accelerating global urbanization, nearly half of the world’s population still resides in rural regions. Urban-rural integration (URI) is increasingly recognized as essential not only for securing resources such as food, water, and energy, but also for ensuring sustainable development including social equity and climate resilience. For Hong Kong, as part of the Greater Bay Area, URI has become a strategic priority. Rural areas like the New Territories offer valuable opportunities for ecological conservation, community regeneration and spatial innovation.
This symposium contextualizes urban-rural integration through the lens of co-vision, co-create and co-operate, exploring how inclusive governance and collaborative planning can shape resilient futures. It will examine how planning and positioning strategies, participatory practices, and the adaptive reuse of rural assets can unlock potential at the urban-rural interface. By highlighting cultural landscapes and heritage conservation, the symposium will also consider the evolving identity of rural territories under global pressures and urban expansion.
Bringing together academics, practitioners and public stakeholders, the symposium creates a platform for interdisciplinary exchange and international collaboration. Through theoretical dialogue and real-world case studies from Hong Kong, mainland China and beyond, participants will address pressing urban-rural challenges and opportunities, while laying the foundation for pilot initiatives and long-term partnerships. Ultimately, the event aims to position its organizers and partners as regional and global leaders in advancing rural revitalization and sustainable urban-rural integration.
Joint Organisers
- School of Architecture, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)
- School of Architecture, Tsinghua University
- Wu Zhi Qiao (Bridge to China) Charitable Foundation
- Institute for Rural Construction, Tsinghua University
- Centre for Sustainable Placemaking and Urban-rural Regeneration (SPUR), CUHK
Sponsors
- Faculty of Social Science, CUHK
- Countryside Conservation Funding Scheme, Countryside Conservation Office, HKSARG
- Institute of Environment, Energy and Sustainability, CUHK
Supporting Organisations
- Social Responsibility and Sustainable Development Office, CUHK
- Sustainable Development Solutions Network Hong Kong (SDSN Hong Kong)
- Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture
- Lai Chi Wo Pui Shing Tong Committee
Strategic Partner & Sponsor
- Lee Hysan Foundation
Supporting Media
- Archcollege
- Architectural Journal
- Built Heritage
- Heritage Architecture
- New Architecture
- Position
- Sankaijian
- Time + Architecture
- UniDesignLab
- Urban Planning International
- World Architecture
For more information, please visit https://linktr.ee/RRS2025
For enquiries, please call (852) 3943 6518 / (852) 2742 4668 or email RRS25@cuhk.edu.hk
To learn about Rural Revitalization Symposium 2023, please visit https://www.arch.cuhk.edu.hk/en/process/seminars/2023-rural-revitalization-symposium-2
