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Yidan Center reaches full height

Construction of the Yidan Center in Shenzhen has topped-out.

A place of convergence and collaboration, the Yidan Center will be home to the Chen Yidan Foundation in its work to promote lifelong learning and innovation in education.

International headquarters of the renowned Yidan Prize, the Yidan Center will provide extensive facilities for academic research, cultural events and exhibitions.

Together with the adjacent Qianhai Museum, the Yidan Center will define Shenzhen’s new cultural quarter.


Established by Dr Charles Chen Yidan (core founder of the global technology company Tencent), Chen Yidan Foundation strives for the diversification of education ecosystems to achieve sustainable growth and development.

Founding the Yidan Prize in 2016 to recognise the most innovative minds in educational research and practice, Dr. Yidan is building a global community dedicated to improving the quality of education around the world.

Combining the resources of the Yidan Prize's worldwide network and the Chen Yidan Foundation's detailed knowledge of the education sector, the new Yidan Center will be home to research and practice platforms that promote lifelong learning and innovations in education. The center will also provide a nurturing environment for a broader community of institutions and organizations, supporting their growth and collectively fostering an effective ecosystem that shapes the future of education for the 21st century.

As the new international headquarters of the Yidan Prize, the Yidan Center will offer a varied program of cultural events, exhibitions and activities for its community in China and its partners across the globe.

The Yidan Center will also be the hub of the learning-focused community YiPai, providing a diverse range of learning experiences and empowering lifelong exploration and development. Situated on the lower levels of the building, YiPai will create an inclusive and welcoming environment for people of all ages and backgrounds.

Informed by the canyons and valleys of the surrounding mountainous landscapes that have been used as routes of travel and communication for millennia, the Yidan Center is designed as a place of convergence and collaboration—emulating Shenzhen’s position as a global hub of innovation and discovery. Welcoming pioneering scientists, innovators and academics from across the globe, the city of Shenzhen has become one of the world’s most dynamic cities.

Together with the adjacent Qianhai Museum, the landmark 165,815 sq. m Yidan Center will define an important new cultural destination for the city.

Incorporating terraces and balconies overlooking a central outdoor ‘canyon’, the Yidan Center’s design promotes connectivity and interaction while blurring the boundary between interior and exterior.

Verdant gardens guide visitors from the surrounding streets to the base of the center’s ‘canyon’ with views of the geologic architectural formations overhead. A large oculus skylight at the base of the ‘canyon’ floods the interiors below with natural light and enables visitors within these indoor public spaces to experience the center’s architecture above.

Designed to achieve the highest three-star standard of China's National Green Building Program as well as LEED Gold certification, the center’s external louvres provide effective solar shading that permits natural light deep within the interiors while offering panoramic views of Qianhai Bay. These louvres also enhance the striated, geological formations of the architecture.

Conveying the center’s ethos of transparency and knowledge sharing, the Yidan Center’s façade has been designed as a dynamic filter incorporating insulated double-glazed units combined with hybrid natural ventilation to achieve optimal thermal performance and enhanced visibility. The center’s variable air volume (VAV) system ensures interior comfort and energy reductions in the humid subtropical climate of southern China. To further reduce energy and water demand from the municipal networks, photovoltaic panels are integrated within the design, while the center’s architecture and gardens incorporate the collection and storage of rainwater for reuse.

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