Award
2019 IFLA Asia-Pacific Landscape Architecture Awards – Award of Excellence

Located between Jingmao 2nd Road and Chongyang Road in Nangang District, Nangang San Chong World Trade Park occupies approximately 1 hectare at the heart of the Nangang Economic and Trade Park. Surrounded by commercial offices, residential developments, and connected by an elevated pedestrian bridge, the park serves as the district’s largest and most significant public green space.

Rather than functioning solely as a conventional urban park, the project was conceived as a multifunctional landscape that integrates recreation, ecology, and environmental education. Given its high level of daily use and strategic location within a dense commercial district, the design aims to create meaningful experiences for both local residents and visitors while promoting ecological awareness.

The park’s elongated form, combined with the presence of an elevated pedestrian bridge and underground public parking facility, guided the design toward a series of distinct landscape zones:

Eastern Zone – Designed as a native woodland, featuring wind-resistant tree species indigenous to northern Taiwan, including Ring-cupped Oak, Machilus, and Elaeocarpus. Seasonal cherry blossoms create a memorable gateway landscape facing the Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Hall. Wetland-inspired planting and landforms reinterpret the ecological character of the historic Taipei Basin.

Central Zone – The most active area of the park, accommodating major pedestrian flows between surrounding office developments. Open lawns, gathering plazas, and seasonal flowering trees create spaces for social interaction, relaxation, and community events.

Western Zone – Developed as a unique educational fern garden inspired by Taiwan’s rich fern diversity. Sculpted terrain, elevated boardwalks, and a carefully controlled humid microclimate support more than one hundred species of ferns, creating an immersive landscape often described as a “Jurassic Forest in the City.”

Inspired by the mountainous landscapes surrounding the Taipei Basin, the park introduces hills, valleys, wetlands, and water-retention features to create ecological diversity within a highly urbanized environment. The project demonstrates how public open space can function not only as a recreational amenity, but also as a platform for environmental education, biodiversity conservation, and ecological city-making.

Developed through collaboration among the Taipei City Government, CTBC Financial Group, academic advisors, and the local community, Nangang San Chong World Trade Park has become a landmark example of integrating ecology, landscape design, and public engagement within a contemporary urban district.