Sustaining spirit of place : the cultural landscape of Shui Hau, South Lantau

Abstract

There are several historic villages on Hong Kong’s Lantau Island that are not as famous as Tai O but their values should be recognised and conserved. Shui Hau is one such example. It is a small village with a population of less than 200 people on the southern coast of Lantau Island. The village has a closely knitted lineage of three big clans including Fungs, Chans and Chis. Most of them are indigenous villagers and Cantonese. The family of Chi Clan are said to be the first settlers of Shui Hau who moved from Shek Pik. The long history of Shui Hau has created a valuable cultural landscape comprising the settlement, a mudflat named Shui Hau Wan and Fung Shui Woodland that contain high ecological values. This landscape with diverse cultural heritage has constructed unique characters of the place. Nevertheless, the proposed facilities and activities for tourism in Shui Hau pose threats to its distinctiveness, given that Spirit of Place associated with the physical setting of the landscape as well as the culture that have made villagers proud will vanish following the top-down urban planning for rural development in South Lantau. Spirit of Place can be defined as tangible elements including buildings and landscapes and intangible elements such as traditional knowledge and memories. The “spirit” reveals how villagers spiritually and emotionally connected themselves with the place, and ultimately evoking a sense of belonging and identity among them. Hence, the concept of Spirit of Place acts as an important indicator to demonstrate what elements of the Shui Hau Village are valued by the local community and therefore, should be conserved in the development plan of the place. This thesis aims to provide a better understanding of the historical and cultural significance of Shui Hau under the context of cultural landscape, and evaluate the sustainability of the current Lantau Development plan based on the concept of Spirit of Place. It is believed that this concept utilized in this dissertation will characterize the intertwined bonding that villagers have with the natural environment. This research also serves as an exemplar for future development to be undertaken on other historic cultural landscapes in Hong Kong to achieve sustainability. With identification of Spirit of Place elements and potential threats that will harm them, this thesis will provide several recommendations on building community capacity for achieving Sustainable Development Goal 11, Target 11.3.