以傳播城市化專業知識為己任
2024年11月19日
星期二
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百瑞·威爾遜
中國國際城市化發展戰略研究委員會委員、英國注冊景觀建筑師
香港園境師協會董事、香港注冊園境師
英國景觀建筑師學會和香港園境師學會成員
百瑞先生是香港城市設計學會副會長，由他創立的百瑞雋思項目咨詢有限公司在解決中國大陸和香港的城市化問題方面已有20余年的實踐經驗。www.initiatives.com.hk
Barry Wilson is Vice President of the Hong Kong Institute of Urban Design. His practice, Barry Wilson Project Initiatives, have been tackling urbanisation issues in Hong Kong and China for over 20 years. www.initiatives.com.hk
作者寄語
城市從未像現在這樣復雜，多方面的問題會影響到城市建設中的理念、規劃、開發、管理和老化。在時間維度下，人口聚集過程承載著社會、政治、健康、文化和經濟背景。故此涉及到的社會領域包羅萬象，包括社會歷史學、城市社會學、建筑史和考古學，還有醫療健康與教育、城市地理學與經濟學理論。
在這個專欄中，我將游走在世界各地，與各領域的專家、遠見者、變革者一道討論讓城市生活更美好的基本要素。并在不同關鍵維度上，分享他們對未來城市生活的獨特見解。
（百瑞·威爾遜于2018年8月深圳）
新加坡總是給人一種進步、現代化和高效率的城市印象。而新加坡目前的發展又似乎大大超越了這些，并因其在促進創新、前瞻性思維、可持續城市生活方式的領先地位而贏得了越來越多的美譽。這座曾被視為在“巨人”間立足，并勇于向別國學習的亞洲小國現如今已在彭博創新指數中排名世界第三，領先于德國和瑞士等歐洲國家。另外，在展示城市創新和轉型產業最杰出行動方案和項目的世界智能城市博覽會（Smart City Expo World Congress）上，新加坡被選為2018年度智慧城市。如今的新加坡已經成為一個展示智慧城市解決方案的“燈塔”，通過獨具價值的實現方式，不僅增強城市的功能性，還可提升市民服務并通過這些服務提高市民的生活質量。
Singapore has always given people the impression of being a progressive, modern and efficient city. But it seems to be currently developing well beyond that and forging an increased reputation for being at the forefront of promoting innovative, forward thinking, approaches to sustainable urban living. Where once it was seen as a city learning from others, and ‘walking amongst giants’ the city now ranks third, ahead of European countries like Germany and Switzerland in the Bloomberg Innovation Index and was chosen as the Smart City of 2018 at the Smart City Expo World Congress, which recognizes the most outstanding initiatives and projects in the urban innovation and transformation industry. Singapore has now become a global beacon of how to implement smart urban solutions in a meaningful manner that not only enhances the city’s functioning but also improves the services provided to its citizens and through them their quality of life.
在本期采訪中，我有幸會見了負責土地利用規劃和保護的新加坡市區重建局卓越建筑與城市設計署署長陳思慧小姐。陳思慧小姐博學多才，當她闡述在這座城市中所做令人激動的工作和由此對測試應對城市變化的替代方案在全球范圍內有著至關重要的意義時，干練且滔滔不絕的言談間無不顯露著她對此的熱情。
In this interview I meet with Elaine TAN Sze Hui, Director of Architecture and Urban Design Excellence at the Urban Redevelopment Authority, which is tasked with land use planning and conservation for the city. Brimming with erudition, Elaine is clearly well practiced in efficiently and eloquently expressing both her passion for the exciting work being undertaken in the city as well as its global importance in rapidly testing alternatives approaches to urban change.
展望未來
ENVISIONING A FUTURE
在香港城市設計學會積極老齡化行動的研討會前一天，陳思慧告訴我，“2005年是一個激動人心的時間點，我離開了私營商業部門并進入了政府公共部門工作”。現如今，你很少聽說有人離開私營部門到政府工作是因為其所帶來的興奮感與機遇。她透露：“我想加入一個團隊，去實現時代愿景，同時用一個未知的特殊因素（X因素）去創造城市。”作為前任市區重建局的戰略研究主管，陳思慧總能探索新的突破性思考，并設法將這些想法和如何支持概念規劃和構思結合起來，使其成為城市發展的塑造者。她認為“構想”是市建局最重要的職能，同時引導卓越的建筑和城市設計意味著突破“好”設計的前沿和邊界，特別是推動行業合作。這聽起來確實是令人興奮的管制方式，她進而談到的一點是，政府與學術研究人員、行業專業人士的融合合作，有助于形成具有遠見卓識的政策和形成性發展。今日之環境比往日更具挑戰性，過往來說，參考和借鑒他國的解決方案是舉世公認的行動模式，而當下的時代環境需要城市的自我創新，以產生對于新加坡獨特城市環境來說恰如其分的解決方案。
百瑞先生專訪陳思慧
Barry interviews Elaine Tan
“It was an exciting time in 2005 to leave private practice and move into the public sector,” Elaine tells me the day before her presentation at the Hong Kong Institute of Urban Design Conference on Actions for Active Ageing. It’s not often nowadays that you hear of leaving the private sector to work in government is due to the excitement of the opportunities. “I wanted to be in the team that was responsible for meeting the vision of the time, to create the city with an ‘X Factor’, that unknown something special” she reveals. As former Director of Strategic Research at the Urban Redevelopment Authority, Elaine was able to study new emergent ideas and address how these could support concept panning and envisioning as the shapers of development for the city. ‘Envisioning’ is the key role of the URA she suggests, whilst directing Architecture and Urban Design Excellence meant pushing the frontiers and boundaries of good design, particularly in working in collaboration with industry. This does indeed sound like exciting governance, one she explains where a special synthesis of the government working with both academic researchers and industry is adopted to help to forge the required visionary policy and formative development. Today’s environment is a more challenging dynamic than that of the past, where observing and adapting others solutions was the accepted mode, and this has required self-innovation in the city to generate solutions specifically suitable to Singapore’s unique urban context.
An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.
Oscar Wilde
“一個想法若稱不上危險,那么它就不值得被稱作為想法”
王爾德
新加坡的精神似乎圍繞著“愿景”、“伙伴關系”和“社區”這三個不同的核心而形成，以便通過開發實現更大程度的產權共享、產品和賦能。在解決問題的同時，加強對社區解決方案的重視是避免僅聽一家之言的一個關鍵因素。新加坡政府認識到所有問題的復雜性，并認識到在土地開發方面，包括基礎設施、住房、交通、社區治理和老齡化等方面，需要加強系統間的相互依賴性。陳思慧建議，“多維問題需要多維方法”，并進一步解釋新加坡如何越來越多地走向大眾合作。因此對于形成統籌兼顧、全面細致的綜合性解決方案來說，需要的是不僅僅征求意見，又或是公共部門和私營部門的合作，還需要學術界、非政府組織、非營利組織等的合作。
The Singapore ethos seems to form around the three distinct cores of ‘vision’, ‘partnership’ and ‘community’ in order to achieve a greater sense of joint ownership, product and empowerment through development. Increasing the emphasis on community solutions is a key factor in ensuring no single perspective dominates whilst addressing problems. The Singapore government recognises the complexity surrounding all issues and the need for greater interdependency of systems in land development, including infrastructure, housing, transport, community governance and ageing. “Multi-dimensional issues need multidimensional approaches” Elaine suggests, explaining further how Singapore is moving increasingly to mass co-operation, not just of public and private sectors but also ensuring academia, NGO’s, and non-profits are collaborators in creating holistic, comprehensive, integrated solutions and not just consulted for opinion.
老齡化
AGEING
她的目標是解決城市人口老齡化問題。我好奇的是，對于陳思慧來說為什么老齡化社會的需求至關重要？“我覺得不做一個‘被動式的公務員’很重要”她表示。這一點促使她對自己正在參與解決的問題產生了濃厚的興趣，并從一開始就清楚地理解這些問題。作為市建局的研究總監，她可以清楚地看到潛在的老齡化趨勢是未來的一個重要課題，但要真正了解一個包容社會的意義，她就必須經常性地探訪醫院、護理設施、養老院和家庭中心。她解釋說:“親臨一線是增強意識的關鍵”，“對于工作的熱情就是在這種沉浸感中成長起來的”。有一種觀點認為新加坡本可以在更早的時候著手解決人口老齡化問題，特別是考慮到已有的日本經驗。然而，真正喚醒意識的似乎是一個人們已經認識到了的事實——這座城市中的100萬人將會在2030年成為老人。這一數字讓公眾和政策制定者都引起了共鳴。不過，她認為，晚些著手解決這一問題，也使新加坡具備了更好的條件，掌握如何解決這些問題的知識，并擁有更多的數據和技術資源來解決這些問題。新型社區正在崛起,近期完工的新加坡海軍部綜合體社區就是其中一個例子。高密度老年住房單元被植入現有的社區中，并提供包含市民服務和醫療支持的綜合設施。這不僅僅是為了新的開發項目, 而且在于在構建多年齡層社區解決方案的同時給更大范圍的社區提供額外的好處。新加坡在持續研究如何擴大住房類別，通過縮小居住單元面積或提供多世代混合居住的方式來實現年齡層間的良好流動。陳思慧解釋說，混合多樣的住房產品供應和分配應滿足個體性需求、流動性和功能性，而不僅僅是滿足所對應的收入群體。社區需要允許不同形式的“老有所居”，無論是獨立生活還是輔助護理下的生活、又或是社區和居家養老。理解社會需求而不是“一刀切”，是提供一個及時反饋物理環境的關鍵。其中一個有趣的方式是，鼓勵年輕夫婦選擇離長者所在地步行可達的距離內居住。這就是我們所說的“湯模式”，你可以帶著一碗熱湯在其變冷之前來到你的家人身邊。通過向這類夫婦提供財政補貼，新加坡政府在財政上已經認識到，這樣的做法可以為老年人和年輕人的跨世代支持帶來諸多益處。雖然這樣的實踐實現在一個城市的層面上，但我也想知道，這樣的實踐是否也在更大的環境背景下依然具有價值。比如，如何利用這樣的模式進一步解決全球農村- -城市人口移徙和農村人口減少的問題呢?
With her intention to address issues of the ageing urban population, I’m curious as to why the needs of the ageing society is of particular importance to Elaine. “I feel it's very important not to be a ‘passive civil servant’ she confides. This drives her interest to become critically involved with the subject she is dealing with at the very rock face, to understand clearly the issues from the ground up. As Director of Research at URA she could identify the underlying trends showing ageing to be a critical issue going forward, but to really understand the meaning of an inclusive society she would make frequent and regular visits to hospitals, care facilities, nursing homes and family centres. “It’s essential to be on the ground to gain a heightened state of awareness” she explains. “The passion for your work grows through such immersion”. There is a school of thought that addressing demographic ageing issues could have been initiated earlier by Singapore, especially in the light of Japan’s experience, however the catalyst for such awareness seems to have been the realisation that 1 million of the city citizens would be ‘elderly’ by 2030, a figure that resonated with public and policy makers alike. Addressing the issue later however has given Singapore the advantages of being better armed with an understanding of how to tackle the issues as well as having more resources in terms of data and technology to address them she feels. New types of community are emerging, such as that recently completed at Kampung Admiralty, where high density elderly housing units have been plugged into an existing community to provide integrated facilities of amenity, service and medical support, not just for the new development but for the additional benefit of an existing wider catchment whilst structuring a multi- age district wide solution. Singapore continues to research how to widen the housing palette, to allow age mobility through both downsizing to smaller units or providing multi-generational homes. A matrix of housing product supply and allocation should respond to individual’s needs, mobility and functional capability rather than income groups alone Elaine explains. Communities need to allow for differing forms of ageing in place, both independently or with assisted living, community or family support. Understanding the social needs is key to providing a responsive physical environment where no ‘one size fits all’. One interesting facet is that of incentivising young couples to adopt housing within walking distance of their elders. What we might call the “soup model” of housing where you can travel to your family within the time it takes to walk with a hot bowl of soup before it gets cold. By supplying financial subsidies to such couples, Singapore’s government is financially recognising the significant benefits this can bring in cross-generational support of both elderly and very young together. Whilst this is employed at a large city level, I do also wonder about how this might also be relevant in a larger context. How perhaps could this be used as a further instrument related to dealing with the global problems of rural - urban migration and depopulation of rural economies?
未來
FUTURE
作為一個直接承擔開發前瞻性城市解決方案的負責人，陳思慧必然對未來抱有愿景，我忍不住要和她談談未來。雖然她不想被人們當作一個技術官僚，但她深知技術可以在智能設計方面帶來巨大的幫助。在便利贍養老年人方面，她認為通過在線預約和咨詢，輔以數字化測試和監控，我們可以預期由遠程視頻監控給我們帶來的諸多益處。新加坡也已在努力創建老年癡呆友好社區，通過教育社區成員(如零售店主)可以發揮作用，而通過技術支持似乎確實存在獨特的機會來實現這一目標。她補充提醒道，我們使用的技術和硬科學越來越多，因此也需要更多的社會科學知識來平衡。歷史表明，兩者缺一不可，對于技術變革所帶來的社會影響，我們的認識總是受到時間延遲的影響。通過采用人工智能預測模型，會改變這種情況嗎？通過提供大數據，我們每天都能獲得更多的信息，從而能夠在城市發展中做出更有針對性的功能響應，而在過去，由于缺乏確鑿的信息，規劃師和城市塑造者可能對這些更是一種期待。陳思慧向我分享著她的“箴言”，提供服務應該基于三個層次:-首先是“接近性”;其次是“可接近性”;最后是,“便利性”。持續對社會系統、特別是老年人行為進行基于數據的研究，有助于為發展規劃提供“適當規模和適當地點”的解決方案。
As someone directly responsible for developing forward looking urban solutions, Elaine must have visions of the future, and I can’t resist touching upon these. Whilst she doesn’t want to be considered as a technocrat, she does consider the massive assistance in providing informed design that technology can bring. In terms of facilitating elderly support, she feels we might anticipate the benefits of more remote supervision, initially through online appointments and consultation, assisted by digital testing and monitoring. Singapore has already made efforts towards creating dementia friendly communities, whereby educating community members such as shopkeepers can make a difference, but there do appear to be particular opportunities in providing technology support. In a note of caution, she adds that the more technology and hard science that we employ then we also need to have more social science knowledge to balance this. History shows that the one cannot go without the other and our knowledge of the social impacts of technological change has always been impaired by time delay. Can this possibly change through adoption of AI predictive modelling? Every day we are becoming better informed through the provision of big data in being able to allow more targeted functional responses in urban development, whereas perhaps in the past these have been more aspirational on the part of planners and city shapers due to lack of hard information. Elaine shares her ‘mantra’ that provision of services should be based on three constructs: - firstly ‘Proximity; followed by ‘Accessibility’; and finally, ‘Convenience’. Continued data-based research on social systems and elderly behaviour in particular are able to help to provide solutions of the “Right Size and Right Site” for development programming.
她表示，當下我們似乎處于城市變革中的一個階段，定期和實時數據應用將使規劃和設施的優化成為可能。這將允許我們“深入肌理，了解實際問題”，從而提供恰如其分的城市空間布局。我向她提出了在未來5年內急需解決的緊迫領域，并立即得到了發展抗災能力的建議優先事項，即發展硬件層面和社會層面的適應韌性，以應對氣候變化危機。其他需要新方法的關鍵領域還包括：向可持續及優化的交通形態迅速轉變；通過更優的數字化、利用率和分析來改進數據應用，從而進行問題預測; 以及解決因時變而生的社會問題，例如死亡率的上升和對共享經濟的依賴。她同時向我介紹了一個稱之為“復雜性科學”的特殊新領域，這一領域興起于過去的十幾年中，是一種研究動態、不可預測和多維度系統與問題的方法。雖然這門科學最早是在醫療行業發展起來的，但考慮到城市內部的各種聯系與構成部分，它的適用性似乎是不可否認的。與傳統的“因果”或線性思維不同，復雜性科學的特點是非線性，適合我們在21世紀初期所處的復雜世界。它使用了新的理論，讓我們以全新的視角看待老問題，強大的計算能力和龐大的數據集為我們提供了新見解，進一步理解網絡、全球化和可持續發展等概念下互相關聯的世界基本運作方式。正如陳思慧所指出的那樣，城市不是未來的問題，而是未來的解決方案。我們可預見的未來必然是不可預見的，而我們應該為這些不可預見之事做好萬全準備，然后建立相應的系統，在未來到來時從容應對。
We seem to be at a point of urban revolution she suggests, whereby regular and real time data will be able to allow us to plan and optimise facilities significantly better. It will allow us to “get under the skin and into the real issues” of providing appropriate city fabric. I press her for the urgent areas needing to be addressed in the next five years and immediately receive the suggested priority of developing resilience to meet the climate emergency, in terms of both physical and social resilience. Other key areas needing new approaches include rapid movement to sustainable and optimised transport nodes; improved leveraging of data with better digitisation, utilisation and analytics to predict problems; and the importance of addressing social issues arising from change, such as increases in the death rate and reliance on a sharing economy. One particular area she draws me into is the new field of ‘complexity science’ that has emerged in the last decade and is an approach to systems and problems that are dynamic, unpredictable and multi-dimensional. Whilst this has primarily been developed in the healthcare sector its appropriateness for considering the interconnected relationships and parts making up the city seems undeniable. Unlike traditional “cause and effect” or linear thinking, complexity science is characterized by non-linearity appropriate for the complex world we live in at the turn of the 21st century. It uses new theories that let us look at age old problems with a fresh perspective that leverages the use of powerful computation and the large data sets that are offering us new insight into the fundamental workings of our interconnected world of networks, globalization and sustainability. As Elaine points out, cities are solutions to the future and not the problems. Our future is to expect the unexpected, be as best prepared as possible for such eventualities and then to have systems in place to deal calmly with the future as it arises.
