Future Hong Kong engineers design links for a more connected Kowloon East

The Shaping Our Future City (SOFC) 2026 campaign has come to a close with a mock public consultation where students presented proposals to improve connectivity between Kai Tak and Kwun Tong in East Kowloon, Hong Kong.

Organised by the ICE Hong Kong Association (HKA) Graduate and Student (G&S) division, SOFC provides senior secondary school students with the opportunity to experience how engineers develop and deliver infrastructure projects.

The campaign combines expert talks, site visits and interactive workshops to help students better understand the built environment and the role civil engineers play in shaping sustainable communities.

Working in teams supported by undergraduates and graduate engineers, students apply the knowledge gained throughout the programme to develop solutions to a hypothetical engineering challenge.

Redeveloping the town, connecting all around

This year's competition theme, Redeveloping the town, connecting all around, challenged students to improve accessibility and connectivity between neighbourhoods in Kowloon East.

Teams were tasked with developing a masterplan and design for a linkage system connecting Kai Tak and Kwun Tong. Their proposals needed to include pedestrians, cyclists, vehicles and public transport while promoting community wellbeing and supporting sustainable urban development. 

The campaign opened on 7 March with an introduction to civil engineering delivered by Dr Johnny Cheuk, chair of ICE HKA, followed by presentations from industry experts including ICE HKA member Ms Ellen Lee and AECOM's Dr Barry Lee. 

Throughout the programme, participants attended technical lectures covering bridge engineering, maritime construction and tunnelling.

They also played the ICE CityZen digital game, which challenged them to navigate the complex trade-offs between sustainability, stakeholder interests and development goals. 

Students visited the Kai Tak and Kwun Tong promenades to observe local infrastructure and community facilities before touring the Energizing Kowloon East Office (EKEO) exhibition hall. Here, they learned more about plans to transform Kowloon East into a smart, green and connected business district.

Presenting future infrastructure solutions

The campaign closed on 16 May at the HKSTP InnoCentre, where 10 teams presented their final proposals before a panel of judges representing government, academia and industry. These presentations were held as mock public consultations.

Then, three finalist teams advanced to an afternoon stakeholder forum, where they responded to questions raised by fellow participants acting as community stakeholders.

Ms April Kun, head of the Energizing Kowloon East Office, attended as guest of honour and delivered the welcoming speech.

The judging panel, made up of Mr Tony Ho JP, The Hon Michelle Tang, Mr Terry Chan and Professor Yang Jiachuan, praised the high standard of the proposals and the students' creativity in addressing the complex site constraints.

The champion team from Immaculate Heart of Mary College was awarded HKD 6,000 in book vouchers.

The winners

ICE HKA G&S congratulates the following teams:

• Champion – Immaculate Heart of Mary College
• First runner-up – King Ling College
• Second runner-up – Po Leung Kuk Ngan Po Ling College
• Best-performing stakeholder – ELCHK Lutheran Academy
• Most innovative design – Po Leung Kuk Ngan Po Ling College

The ICE also thanks students and teachers from the following schools for taking part:

• Caritas Tuen Mun Marden Foundation Secondary School
• ELCHK Lutheran Academy
• Immaculate Heart of Mary College
• King Ling College
• NLSI Lui Kwok Pat Fong College
• Po Leung Kuk Ma Kam Ming College
• Po Leung Kuk Ngan Po Ling College
• SPHRC Kung Yik She Secondary School