After Local Knowledge

"Bringing water to people and people to water" as we stated in our first presentation about our work concerning the Leokong Channel and opening it up in Taipei City, we are looking into very complex situation technically, environmentally, economically and socially. Our goal is to plan to open up some parts of the channel to enable citizens of Taipei the proximity of water that would be clean enough (for agriculture and other maintenance usage). 


Conception of water as inherent part of nature differs largely among the generations in Taipei City as the totalitarian regime alienated people from the river water by building 12 meter high walls along the river banks to control the floods of the river water. Rivers got polluted, people started to use them as dumping locations; former Leokong channel were filled and used as a sewage system. Young generation of Taipei take rivers as a source of disease, the industrialism has had a strong affect on them in terms of appreciating nature and co-existing with it in an urban environment. 


That makes the project a very interesting one as we do not only deal with technological problems of how to purify the water, in addition to how to use it, how to create the understanding of nature's natural circulation, by not establishing an amusement park for people, instead of creating a process/concept/system of action where people could get involved of developing a more sustainable living environment. Planning as sustainable technologies as possible it is relevant to see sustainability as the basis of the whole development of the project. Besides being environmentally sustainable, we try to create approaches that are driven from social contexts that embraces understanding of Taipei people's culture and their behaviours. 


Regarding to the information, Taipei people comprise of very different backgrounds and experiences concerning the comprehension of existing together with water in the city. Old generation of citizens remember how the waterways were the main source of living, means of transportation, moreover the water was clean enough for drinking - they have carried a part of that lifestyle and traditions with them, which explains, why Taipei is filled with plenty of community gardens (often illegals), surviving under industrialized city's circumstances. These people are an essential part of observation and research, whether it is possible to create linkages between the old and young generation, their so different lifestyles and conceptions of nature, so that a platform of new experiences and emotions of co-creation and interaction with environment as well with other individuals are enabled.