A CRITIQUE OF ECO-RESORTS IN SOUTH-EAST ASIA

Abstract

This thesis seeks to act as a critique of the eco-resort concept, by questioning its definition and priorities, in the context of South-East Asia today. With an annual average growth rate of 6.8%, the tourism industry in this region is amongst the most rapidly developing in the world. This rapid expansion has then been accompanied by a surge of infrastructural development. While eco-resorts may seem like a viable solution to minimizing the impact of this growth, this building typology currently, lacks conceptual clarity and industry-wide consensus, leaving it open to interpretation, and as is often the case, misinterpretation. A field study of three eco-resorts in Thailand and Malaysia revealed that more focus is being placed on green systems and practices, than on architectural design. Systems refer to the application of technology and sustainable practices, with the intention of conserving resources like water and energy. While such systems are indeed important in reducing the physical, economic and socio-cultural footprint of a resort, on their own, they seem inadequate as a complete representation of the typology of an eco-resort. At present, their application is planned separately from the resort's architectural aspects, which include massing, material, facade and roof design, resulting in a lack of integration. This essay seeks to prove that greater efficiency in resource management and clarity in architectural language, could be achieved if these two aspects of architecture and systems were closely integrated. In this context, integration is attained when the resort's architectural strategies influence its application of systems and conversely, its systems influence its architectural design. The sustainable strategies in each resort was then studied within this framework.