South Sea Pearl Eco-Island

Credits
UNStudio: Caroline Bos, Ben van Berkel, Astrid Piber with Mo Lai, Dana Behrman and Maria Zafeiriadou, Chen Hu, Oana Nituica, Tiia Vahula, Daniel Christiansen, Bruno Peris, Patrik Noome,
Harlen Miller


Advisors
Structural engineers and sustainability specialists: ARUP (HK)
Landscaping: Studio Dreiseitl
Cost Control and project management: ARCADIS (HK)
Data and information systems: Frog
Terminal planning: AYDesign
Video and narrative: Digital Surgery
Visualisations: Methanoia

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South Sea Pearl Eco-Island, Haikou, Hainan, China, 2016

Located in China’s South Sea, Eco Island is a vibrant City of Leisure and a key node on the maritime Silk Road. In UNStudio’s masterplan proposal, it is a unique place for people, where hyper personalised activities, leisure and learning come together in a natural setting. These activities are augmented by the latest technologies and result in a fully immersive experience for the visitor.

Coming from one of the fastest developing nations in history, and with a mix of life sciences, technology, visionary entrepreneurship and creative leadership, The South Sea Pearl Eco Island is a blueprint for both the contemporary city and for responsible iconic urban design.

The Island is a modular platform in all layers of its built and virtual environments. Smart green, biomimetic technology and bio- productivity transform the island into a living laboratory for sustainable and healthy living. The gateway to Eco Island is the South Sea Pearl Cruise Terminal. With its enveloping geometry and intertwining central hall, the terminal shares the urban DNA of the island and creates the first and last impression of the island for visitors.

Eco Island follows a polycentric urban model with eight neighbourhoods – South Sea Pearl terminal, Golden Bay, Pearl shores, Nucleus Valley, Oyster Bay, Keshi Cluster, Akoya Shore and Pearl Peak. All are mixed-use communities, each with a unique character and specialised services. The South Sea Pearl offers bespoke destinations that provide a variety of enriching experiences. From high end dining with locally grown produce, to walking through the island’s bio-mimetics labs, communal and fitness activities and retreats for individuals.

Movement around the island is a choreographed flow consisting of numerous walkways and the implementation of a smart mobility network consisting of driverless cars and a sky tram. At the heart of the island is the Tree of Life Observation Tower, located in the Pearl Peak neighbourhood. The tower – housing vertical gardens, energy trackers and offering panoramic views above the treetops – introduces the visitor to the wonders of the island.

City of Leisure
The South Sea Pearl Eco Island is designated as a City of Play. With its predominantly leisure amenities it caters to a customer base that spans all ages. As it is intended to be used by people with ample time on their hands, the island becomes an incubator for a density of experiences.

The Creation of the Fifth Nature
Inspired by John Dixon Hunt’s The Fourth Nature, Eco Island offers the next step in biotech-advancement, grounded in the idea of the ‘Fifth Nature’. With a robust network of smart agriculture and smart vegetation, the Fifth Nature embraces technology.

Island as an SDK
Borrowing from the world of computer and software technology, the South Sea Pearl Eco Island is designed to operate and develop like an SDK (Software Development Kit). Like the SDK, the island enables new services and applications to be rapidly developed, scaled and reused by providing a range of tools and amenities. As such Eco Island becomes an efficient and resilient leisure development.

Mobility Plus
Mobility planning on the Eco Island is centred on the user and on a low-carbon footprint. The main goals are to offer a great travel experience for visitors and employees, transforming transportation into a leisure activity in order to minimise the impact of external transport to the island and to make an efficient use of the invaluable land resources.

Resilience
Thorough a strategy of Prevention, Preparedness, Response and Recovery (PPRR) the plan establishes a robust Resilience planning that is a matter of basic security for the island’s inhabitants and operations.