Future Ecologies Group
The Future Ecologies Group at the SUSTech School of Design takes a cross-disciplinary research approach to develop new intersections of the natural and the artificial in future built environments.
Research projects employ science and advanced technologies in the design of high-rise buildings for future high-density cities, including sustainable architectural technologies, structural and material aspects of green building design, integrated facades and new ecological models of artificial environments.
南方科技大学设计学院的未来生态学组采用跨学科研究方法，致力于在未来建成环境中探索自然与人工交互的新交集。
研究项目利用科学和先进技术，专注于为未来高密度城市设计高层建筑，包括可持续建筑技术、绿色建筑设计的结构和材料方面、综合立面设计以及人工环境的新生态模型。
RECENT ACTIVITIES
18th Feb 2026
Future Ecologies Research Published in The Plan Journal
Resulting from a collaboration between Prof. Mary Ben Bonham (Miami University), Prof. Kyoung Hee Kim (School of Architecture, UNC Charlotte), and Christiane M. Herr (SUSTech), a journal paper has been published in The Plan Journal. The collaboration began through shared research interests and developed over the past two years through online discussions, design reviews, and conference exchanges across continents.
Title: Biofacades: A Framework for Vertical Building–Nature Integration in Urban Ecosystems
Authors: Mary Ben Bonham, Kyoung Hee Kim and Christiane M. Herr
Published in: The Plan Journal, Volume 10 (2025), Issue 2
DOI: https://www.doi.org/10.15274/tpj.2025.10.02.10
3rd Feb 2026
Future Ecologies Research Published in Automation in Construction
A paper co-authored by members of the Future Ecologies Group has been published in the journal Automation in Construction. The paper examines how Cellular Automata (CA)—widely known for their generative capabilities in architecture and urban design—can be better controlled to support goal-oriented design processes while preserving their creative potential.
Title: Control Strategies for Cellular Automata-Based Generative Design in Architecture and Urbanism
Authors: Yiming Liu and Christiane M. Herr
Published in: Automation in Construction, Volume 183 (2026), 106754
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2025.106754
9th Jan 2026
Studio Review of the Digital Intelligence Design Innovation Program at Shenzhen University
Members of the Future Ecologies Group recently participated in the first-year studio review of the Digital Intelligence Design Innovation Program at Shenzhen University. The review provided an opportunity to reflect on fundamental questions facing architectural education today: What is architecture, and what should we learn and teach in the age of AI?
The course serves as a platform for experimentation and discussion on emerging design methodologies and the evolving role of artificial intelligence in architectural thinking and practice. The review featured valuable feedback and discussions with the Shenzhen University team as well as numerous invited guests.
Invited reviewers included Academician Prof. Meng Jiamin, and Profs. Qi Yi, Mauricio Cardenas Laverde, Daria Lisaia, Guo Xin, Ai Deng, Artem Constantinov, Chen Yinghua, Meng Jingyuan, Provides Ng, Li Shan, and many others.
The event fostered lively discussions and exchanges on the future of architectural education and design in the AI era.
20th Dec 2025
SUSTech School of Design Participates in the 24th Triennale di Milano
From May 12 to November 9, 2025, the School of Design at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) participated in the 24th Triennale di Milano, one of the most important international exhibitions dedicated to architecture, design, and contemporary culture.
Eight research-based design projects by Prof. Christiane M. Herr, Prof. Enza Migliore, and Prof. Mirna Zordan were presented on this international platform, engaging in dialogue with audiences from around the world.
The theme of the 24th Triennale di Milano, “Inequalities – How to Mend the Fractures of Humanity,” explored the realities and future implications of inequality across multiple dimensions, including social structures, cultural identities, and ecological resources. The exhibition was curated by renowned architect, curator, critic, and educator Stefano Boeri.
Through their research-driven design projects, the SUSTech School of Design contributed perspectives on contemporary challenges and potential design responses within a global interdisciplinary discourse.
17th Dec 2025
Future Ecologies Group at RIBA Architecture Festival Asia (RAFA)
Members of the Future Ecologies Group participated in the ongoing RIBA Architecture Festival Asia (RAFA) in Shenzhen, an international event bringing together architects, scholars, and practitioners from across the region. Key presentations included talks by Peter Cook and Wolf Prix, alongside forward-looking perspectives from Lay Bee Yap (Urban Redevelopment Authority, Singapore) on green and livable cities and Florence Chan (KPF) on design for knowledge and technology development. The team also enjoyed reconnecting with colleagues from XJTLU and visiting the exhibition She Is an Architect, featuring work by HAS Design.
5th Dec 2025
Future Ecologies Group at Hong Kong Business of Design Week
Members of the Future Ecologies Group attended the opening events of Business of Design Week (BODW) in Hong Kong, where several talks explored the theme of curiosity in design and innovation. Highlights included presentations by Carlo Ratti, Michele De Lucchi, and Ole Scheeren, which sparked reflections on the evolving role of architecture and design in addressing future challenges. The event provided valuable opportunities to engage with international design discourse and emerging perspectives on research-driven and forward-looking architectural practice. A memorable moment of the day was when team member Hanshu met architect Ma Yansong and received an autograph from his long-time inspiration.
28th Nov 2025
Solarpunk Futures: Perovskite and the Future of Building Facades
Inspired by recent discussions on perovskite photovoltaics and their potential to transform solar energy systems, Christiane M. Herr and Master’s student Yuqi Zhang explored how this emerging material—known for its high efficiency and transparency—could reshape urban building facades. Their research suggests that future high-rise architecture may need to move beyond conventional extrusion-based forms toward layered, sunlight-oriented geometries, where facades respond differently depending on orientation and urban context.
Their earlier study on this topic was published in 2024 and can be found here:
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-97-0621-1_31
22th Nov 2025
Future Ecologies Group at the Symposium on Biological Complex Systems
At the invitation of Prof. Wenda Cheng, Christiane M. Herr presented recent research from the Future Ecologies Group at the 2nd Symposium on Fundamentals and Frontiers of Biological Complex Systems at Sun Yat-sen University (Shenzhen). The talk introduced the concept of “Designed Ecosystems,” exploring opportunities and challenges of integrating functional ecosystems into high-rise, high-density urban environments. The presentation highlighted emerging ideas on new forms of human–nature cohabitation in future cities and emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in developing these approaches further.
15th Nov 2025
Future Ecologies Group at the International Conference on Interaction Design
At the invitation of Prof. Xin Xiangyang, Christiane M. Herr participated in the 2nd International Conference on Interaction Design, hosted by the College of Design and Innovation at Tongji University. The event brought together leading scholars including Prof. Xin Xiangyang, Dean Hu Fei, Prof. Jeung Jihong (Tsinghua University), and Ted Selker (former MIT professor).
Herr’s talk, “Interaction Beyond Convenience: An Ecological Perspective,” proposed an expanded understanding of interaction that integrates technology, humans, and other living beings, emphasizing mutuality, care, and environmental responsibility in the age of AI.
30th Oct 2025
Future Ecologies Group at the World Designers Congress, Shenzhen Design Week
Christiane M. Herr participated in panel discussions at the World Designers Congress, part of the 8th Shenzhen Design Week. Together with Dean Tom Kvan and Prof. Sun Xiaohua of the SUSTech School of Design, the panel addressed the impact of AI on design across industry, academia, and urban strategy.
Sponsored by the Shenzhen Municipal Government, the event also celebrated the 17th anniversary of Shenzhen’s designation as a UNESCO City of Design, bringing together designers, scholars, and policymakers to discuss the future of design in the age of artificial intelligence.
15th Oct 2025
Multi-Sensory XR Lecture at Future Ecologies Group
The Future Ecologies Group hosted an inspiring lecture by Anastasia Globa (University of Sydney) on multi-sensory XR and new approaches to digital design for and with environments. The talk sparked engaging discussions during a seminar session with group members, highlighting innovative ways to integrate immersive technologies into design processes that respond to ecological, spatial, and experiential considerations.
10th Oct 2025
Guest Lecture by Anca Horvath at Future Ecologies Group
The Future Ecologies Group hosted an inspiring lecture by Anca Horvath (HKUST Guangzhou), whose work crosses disciplines—from designing artificial organs for surgical training, to exploring minimal surfaces in living biomaterials, to investigating language as a design material through AI. The lecture highlighted boundary-defying approaches to design research and innovation.
The session also featured demonstrations, including the “Vibes Yeti” soft toy with a heartbeat, developed by Yu Hanxu and Tom Fischer at the School of Design’s Design Cybernetics Group.
Learn more: https://cma.hkust-gz.edu.cn/faculty-regular/anca-simona-horvath/
6th Sept 2025
Future Ecologies Group at the Goldreed Industrial Design Award Jury
Christiane M. Herr served as a jury member for the second round of the Goldreed Industrial Design Award, an international design competition established by the Xiongan Future Industrial Design Institute. The award evaluates entries across six categories, including manufacturing equipment, biomedical science, digital technology, transportation, public facilities, and future scenarios. Herr joined distinguished industrial experts and academics, including Prof. Guanzhong Liu (Tsinghua University), Director Jianye Li (Alibaba), and Hideichi Misono (Toyota), engaging in discussions on creativity, culture, and identity in industrial design.
Results will be announced at the end of the month.
17th Aug 2025
Exploring Creativity in Science: Plant Cognition
The Future Ecologies Group highlights a recent article discovered by Makayla Zheng, titled “Why studying plant cognition is valuable, even if plants aren’t cognitive” by David Colaco (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München), published in Synthese. The paper provides valuable perspectives on scientific creativity and conceptual exploration, emphasizing how unconventional research questions—such as plant cognition—can stimulate critical thinking and broaden approaches to understanding life and ecological systems.
29th July 2025
Guest Lecture by Anca Horvath at Future Ecologies Group
The Future Ecologies Group hosted an inspiring lecture by Anca Horvath (HKUST Guangzhou), whose work crosses disciplines—from designing artificial organs for surgical training, to exploring minimal surfaces in living biomaterials, to investigating language as a design material through AI. The lecture highlighted boundary-defying approaches to design research and innovation.
The session also featured demonstrations, including the “Vibes Yeti” soft toy with a heartbeat, developed by Yu Hanxu and Tom Fischer at the School of Design’s Design Cybernetics Group.
Learn more: https://cma.hkust-gz.edu.cn/faculty-regular/anca-simona-horvath/
14th Mar 2025
Three Papers by the Future Ecologies Team accepted at CAADFutures 2025!
Three papers authored and co-authored by team members of the Future Ecologies Group were accepted for CAAD Futures 2025!!! For more conference details see: caadfutures2025.hku.hk
1-Title: Interactive BIM Modelling Assistant with Multi-Agent LLM
Authors: Chao Tang (UCL), Mark Tam (HKU) and Christiane M Herr (SUSTech)
2-Title: Performance-based Urban Environmental Restoration: A Multi-Layered Cellular Automata Model for Ecological Design Simulation in High-Density Cities
Authors: Yiming Liu, Christiane M. Herr (all SUSTech)
3-Title: Digital Design Support for UAV Delivery Noise Reduction Strategies in High Density Urban Environments
Authors: Le Zhao, Thomas Fischer, Wowei Zhang and Christiane M Herr (all SUSTech)
23th Apr 2025
Prof Herr elected Fellow of CAADRIA
Prof. Christiane M Herr has been elected Fellow of CAADRIA (The Association for Computer Aided Architectural Design Research in Asia). Fellows are senior CAADRIA members in good standing (typically former presidents) who advise, mentor, and support CAADRIA on any issues. CAADRIA Fellows see to CAADRIA maintaining consistent development in the spirit of its founding charter and maintain institutional knowledge. CAADRIA currently has six Fellows, including Prof Tomohiro Fukuda, Prof John Gero, Prof Christiane M Herr, Prof Tom Kvan, Prof Walaiporn Nakapan and Prof Marc Aurel Schnabel.
22-29th Mar 2025
The Future Ecologies Team Presents 4 Papers at CAADRIA2025 in Tokyo
We had a great time attending CAADRIA2025, organized by Prof. Yasushi Ikeda and his team at the University of Tokyo. The Future Ecologies team presented 4 papers, participated in workshops, listened to inspiring keynotes by Tomohiro Tachi, Behnaz Farahi and Kengo Kuma, and generally had a wonderful time exchanging with digital design researchers from around the world – in addition to enjoying the cherry blossoms just opening that week!
14th Mar 2025
With new tools changing the learning and teaching landscape, how can education harness AI and update educational models?
These are core questions for future university education, and I was happy to be invited to join the lauch of the Hong Kong University Grant Council Community of Practice (CoP) on AI in Education as part of the HK Teaching Excellence Alliance (HKTEA) that brings together the 8 government funded universities and other key stakeholders work on how we can learn and share innovative pedagogies in Hong Kong and beyond. The initiative is led by Prof Cecilia K. Y. Chan of HKU, with speeches delivered by HKU President Prof. Xiang Zhang, UGC Secretary-General Prof. James Tang , Digital Domain Chairman Mr. Henry Hooi and Chair of the HKTEA Dr. Julia Chen.
10th Mar 2025
A delegation from the University of Campinas, Brazil, visited the Future Ecologies Group to present and discuss their work on >>Knowledge Cities<< with us.
– How can planning and design foster well-rounded, sustainable and lively innovation hubs? Our visitors included Prof. Dr. Milena Pavan Serafim, public management specialist and vice-director of the Faculty of Applied Sciences, Prof. Dr. Emilia Wanda Rutkowsky, urban ecologist and coordinator of the Architecture and Urban Planning undergrad program, and long-term colleague Prof. Dr. Maria Gabriela C. Celani, architect and urban designer and director of the Center for Studies on Knowledge- and Innovation-Based Urban Development, and former long-term chair of the CAADFutures Board!
7th Mar 2025
Together with Lizzy Hirsch, Chen Sihao and Li Wenpei, I attended the >>International Climate Change and Biodiversity Conference: Nature-Based Solutions in Action<< in HK.
The event was co-organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Landscape Architects (HKILA) and the International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) Asia Pacific Region (APR), in collaboration with the Hong Kong Green Building Council (HKGBC). A rare occasion to raise awareness on biodiversity, the conference brought together international andblocal experts from various disciplines, including landscape architects, ecologists and property developers, to discuss how to address the challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss and to foster cross-sector collaborations on nature-based solutions in the GBS and beyond.
28th Feb 2025