Mountains and water are at the heart of Suncheon Eco-city, Korea, are also  at the heart of our design for the central garden and lake for the World Garden Expo, 2013 in Suncheon, South Korea. We have used the city of Suncheon, surrounded by mountains and wetlands, as our model to describe the close relationships of man and nature, that should be celebrated at  Garden Expo. 

Geological and ecological processes over thousands of years, have created a unique urban wetland in Suncheon. It is the 5th largest tidal flat-land in the world, and provides valuable rare habitat for many local and migratory birds and mammals, reflected in its Ramsar rating. The city of Suncheon is growing towards the wetlands in the south, and so the city decided to locate the World Garden expo in this interstitial space to create a buffer zone between the expanding urbanity and delicate wetland. Also very visible in urban development in Korea is the clear distinction between urban development in the flat valley areas, and undeveloped mountain slopes. As a country which is 70% mountains, the mountains are continuously seen as protected forested zones. We wanted to celebrate these sacred mountains, and valuable wetlands, and the developed urbanity around them.  The  City/Wetland,  Urban/Mountains are dualities that we have made into a theme - Holding the Eco-Line, to protect the wild mountains and the precious wetlands.