Team member Cherry Chung Oi-yu says existing social issues in Hong Kong were their main source of inspiration when designing their model
Konnie, Charlene, Winki and Cherry came up with innovative ways to turn Hong Kong into a smart city.The team from Sacred Heart Canossian College, who won a model making challenge, said their creation was inspired by existing social issues in Hong Kong. The runners-up in the My Smart Hong Kong 2030 Model Creation Challenge were Good Hope School and West Island School. The winning teams were announced yesterday at an awards ceremony held at the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai.
The competition, organised by the American Chamber of Commerce, asked teams to create miniature models to showcase their smart city vision for Hong Kong. Each team comprised four local secondary school students. They also had to create a video presentation to explain their ideas to a panel of judges.
Cherry Chung Oi-yu, from Sacred Heart Canossian College, said that existing social issues in Hong Kong were their main source of inspiration. “While we were designing our model, we focused on problems that Hong Kong is facing. We then came up with four concepts – social mobility, interconnectivity, energy efficiency, and smart living – and incorporated them in our model.”
One of their more innovative ideas was the introduction of “E-burial” graveyards, where pictures of the deceased could be displayed on electronic screens as their ashes are scattered. This would eliminate the need for physical space to bury the bodies.
The Grand Prize for the winning team is a seven-day tour of New York in the United States next month, where they will visit the Google offices and Otis Elevator Company to gain insights about smart technology and its integration into daily life. They also received a cash prize of HK$5,000.
Edited by M. J. Premaratne