Low Carbon Chinatown is an interactive urban intervention, participatory platform & meal-as-performance that addresses the climate crisis through the lens of global agri-food systems.
Low Carbon Chinatown Pop-Up
London Design Festival & Kakilang
The Low Carbon Chinatown Pop-Up, built from low carbon materials and processes, hosted a series of public sit-down meals that featured low carbon dishes created in collaboration with East and South East Asian communities across London.
With Asian Chinese diasporic food culture as a starting point – for its popularity & perceived high carbon footprint due to imports – LCC engages communities of East & Southeast Asians (ESEA) across UK & Europe to reduce carbon footprints of food production, sourcing & consumption.
The project showcases the collective commitment of communities tackling systemic issues like the climate crisis.
The Pop-Up, built from low carbon materials and processes, hosted a series of public sit-down meals at London Design Festival 2022 that featured low carbon dishes created in collaboration with East and South East Asian communities across London.
Low Carbon Chinatown sit-down meal under pleated tyvek canopy
“I love having the whole setup here in Chinatown and the food is amazing and super tasty. Food is cultural, and here in the project, we are learning the knowledge to make these low carbon food at home from other people.
And most importantly, having the pop-up structure in Gerrard street where historically it has always been a gathering space for people is especially meaningful.”
– Gianfranco Chicco
Head of Content & Digital at London Design Festival
Embedded displays with interactive content presented carbon footprint and other info during the meals
The core project reimagined traditional Chinese cuisine through a lens of sustainability, enabling community members to collaborate with a data scientist and renowned food writers in developing low carbon versions of beloved dishes.
Through a series of interactive workshops, and using our web platform, participants explored the interplay between food culture, tradition and carbon footprint reduction.
This culminated in the installation of a low carbon Pop-Up structure in London's Chinatown during London Design Festival 2022.
The canopy was tensioned by a structure formed from UK-grown bamboo
