Kongjian Yu

Abstract

As the planet dries out and floods more fiercely, climate strategies continue to focus narrowly on carbon reduction, often ignoring the critical role of water. Meanwhile, adaptation efforts rely heavily on gray infrastructure—concrete, pipes, and dams—which frequently worsen the very crises they aim to solve. Decades of deforestation, industrial agriculture, and urbanization have hardened our landscapes, severing the natural water cycle. Soils no longer absorb rain; instead, they repel it—accelerating droughts, floods, and desertification.

To achieve real resilience, we must reimagine our relationship with water—integrating it into both climate mitigation and adaptation. Sponge landscapes offer a nature-based alternative to conventional infrastructure, restoring the Earth’s innate ability to absorb, store, and release water.

This vision is deeply inspired by indigenous monsoon cultures—civilizations that have for centuries thrived not by resisting water, but by revering and working with it. From terraced paddies to seasonal floodplain farming, from step wells to rainwater harvesting tanks, these cultures reflect a profound ecological wisdom: to live with water, to retain and celebrate it, and to transform abundance and scarcity into rhythm and resilience. These time-tested practices are not relics of the past, but blueprints for the future.

By applying three core principles—retain water, slow its flow, and embrace it—we can regenerate degraded environments, restore biodiversity, recharge aquifers, and build urban and rural systems that are climate-adaptive and water-wise. Projects in China and beyond, from wetland parks to urban sponge cities and watershed-scale rehydration, show how we can blend ancient knowledge with contemporary science.

This is not just water management—it is a paradigm shift in how we build, farm, and live. Every action, from a small rooftop garden to the design of an entire region, can contribute to a living, breathing Sponge Planet.

It’s time to soak the Earth with the wisdom of those who have long known how to dance with the monsoon—and to act boldly for a future where landscapes and water are once again in harmony.

Biography

Kongjian Yu, born into a farming family, earned a Doctor of Design degree from Harvard University. A scholar in landscape architecture and urban resilience, he is the founding dean of Peking University's College of Architecture and Landscape. Over the course of his career, he has authored more than 20 books and 300 scholarly papers, making significant contributions to the discourse on ecological urbanism. He is also the founder and chief editor of Landscape Architecture Frontiers. Yu’s research and practice have been instrumental in advancing nature-based solutions for urban resilience, particularly through his "Sponge City" and "Sponge Planet" concepts, which have influenced ecological policies in China and gained international recognition. As the founder of Turenscape, a leading landscape architecture and urban design firm, he has overseen more than 1,000 projects across over 250 cities, with a focus on sustainable strategies for flood management and climate adaptation. 

His contributions have been widely recognized, earning him 16 ASLA Excellence and Honor Awards, 9 WAF Awards, 7 AZ Awards, and the ULI Excellence Award. He has also received prestigious honors such as the Cornelia Hahn Oberlander Prize, the Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award from the International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA), and the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award. In recognition of his academic contributions, he has been awarded honorary doctorates from Sapienza University of Rome and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. He is also an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.