"Remembering Professor Yu Kongjian"
I received the news this afternoon, and I'm filled with unspeakable sadness and pain. In 2000, when I first read Professor Yu's translation of <Landscape Architecture> at Hunan University, I realized that design could be about restoring and saving the lost nature. With a gamble, I sent my portfolio to Peking University. A week later, Professor Yu personally called me and invited me to intern at Turen. I initially thought it was a scam, as I had always imagined the name Yu Kongjian to be associated with an older scholar with slightly graying hair and a gruff, deep voice. Only after Professor Yu shared some details over the phone did I believe it was real. And so, the story unfolded. On that scorching summer day, I joined the Turen team, then just a few dozen people, at the Chuangye Building in Beijing. It was filled with vibrant young people. Professor Yu was still young and handsome, with a resonant voice and a strong drive. My colleagues at Turen were all lovely, talented, and even good at sports.
Later, I enrolled at Peking University for my master's degree. Back then, the landscape department at Peking University was still quite small, and we all crammed into two small rooms in a university building to conduct research. When we got tired, Professors Yu and Li would take us to Hong Lazi Restaurant in Wudaokou for dinner. The table would just fill up, and we'd chat and laugh like a family. These teachers and classmates became my lifelong mentors and good friends.
During my master's degree, I wasn't particularly interested in studying; I enjoyed reading casual books and gossiping. During a Sino-German University Joint Workshop, Professor Yu saw us still cracking jokes after lunch and got angry, saying, "Look at you guys! Compared to our German classmates, you're so sloppy and so unhardworking!" We all calmed down a bit after that. When the workshop came to its closing presentation, I went up to present my work, feeling as if I'd been blacklisted by Professor Yu and placed on "probation." After listening, Professor Yu immediately told the German professor next to me, "This student has some promise." It was this remark that drove me to work hard and kept me confident for the next twenty years, allowing me to never give up even when faced with extreme difficulties. During my second and third years of my master's degree, I had the opportunity to work with Professor Yu on projects like the Boston China Garden, Taizhou Ecological Planning, and the Grand Canal Heritage Preservation. These close collaborations allowed me to gradually absorb his knowledge, wisdom, and sharpness. Later, I decided to leave Beijing for Shanghai to explore new horizons, and then went on to study at the University of Illinois and work at the University of Hong Kong.
For years, I didn't dare tell many people that I was Professor Yu's direct disciple. I felt that while I had acquired some skills, my life aspirations, professional attainments, and dedication to the world and people were nowhere near his. I often slacked off, always thinking I still had time to catch up, and that it would be better to let other talented people take the responsibilities.
Today, I was shocked to hear that Professor Yu had passed away under the Amazon rainforest sky. I sat in my study for an hour, tears streaming down my face. In this moment of confusion, I write these rambling, diary-like words to express my grief and apology. I hope that our Peking University landscape faculty and students, as well as our supportive friends, will continue to uphold Professor Yu's spirit, working not for a single university, college, or department, but for the world, nature, and humanity, each making a small contribution, unconcerned with gains and losses, to comfort Mr. Yu's spirit in heaven. Disciple Jiang Bin wept bitterly. Sept. 24. 2025
《怀念俞孔坚老师》
得到消息是今天下午，心里无法言说的悲凉和痛苦。2000年，当我在湖南大学第一次读到俞老师翻译的《景观设计学》一书，才知道原来设计可以是关于修复和拯救正在失去的自然。怀着希望渺茫和忐忑不安的心情，我把自己的作品集寄给北大。一周后俞老师亲自给我打了电话，邀请我去土人实习。我当时以为是个诈骗电话，因为总感觉俞孔坚这个名字对应的应该是一个有点白头发、声音粗粝低沉的老学者才对。后来俞老师在电话里给我讲了一些细节我才相信是真的。就这样，故事徐徐展开。那个烈日当空的夏天，我在北京的创业大厦加入了当时只有几十人的土人团队，到处都是朝气蓬勃的年轻人，俞老师那是还很年轻帅气，声音洪亮，行动力极强，土人的同事们都好可爱好有才华还会打球。后来我加入北大修读硕士，那时候北大景观人还很少，大家挤在逸夫二楼的两间小屋里做研究，累了俞老师和李老师就带我们去五道口的红辣子聚餐，刚刚坐满一桌人，说说笑笑就像一家人。这些老师和同学，从此都成为了我一生的引路人和好朋友。硕士阶段的我其实不怎么爱学习，喜欢看闲书又喜欢搞笑八卦。有一次中德大学联合工作营间俞老师看我们吃完午餐还在讲笑话，发火说：你看看你们这些人，和德国的同学们比太不严谨，太不努力了！后来我们就都老实了一点。工作营要做结营汇报了，我抱着已经被俞老师列入黑名单被“留校察看”的心情上去讲我的东西，俞老师听完后立刻和旁边的德国教授说“这个学生有前途”。就是这句话让我在往后二十年保持了足够的自信，遇到极为困难的时候也不曾放弃。硕士第二年和第三年，开始有机会和俞老师一起做波士顿中国公园、台州生态规划、京杭大运河遗产保护等项目，这些和他近距离配合的时间让我一点点学习到他的知识和智慧以及锐气。再往后，我决定离开北京去上海闯一闯，然后就是去美国伊利诺伊大学学习和去香港大学工作。这么些年来，我也不敢和很多人说自己是俞老师的亲授弟子，因为觉得自己虽然修得一点技能，但无论是人生追求、专业造诣还是为国为民的精神力方面都不及俞老师万一。我经常偷懒，总觉得还有时间，还可以慢慢赶上去，还觉得让比我更优秀的人去努力会更好。今天惊闻俞老师在亚马逊雨林的天空离我们而去，我在书房呆坐了一个小时，眼泪忍不住往下流淌。就此心情混乱时写下这流水帐一般的杂乱文字寄托我的哀思和歉意。希望我们北大景观的老师和同学们以及支持我们的朋友们能够继续保有俞老师的精神，不为一校一院一系，不计较个人得失进退，而是为天地为自然为人类，一人做一点贡献，以慰先生在天之灵。弟子姜斌泣血。
Bin JIANG
PhD in Landscape Architecture (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
Associate Professor, Division of Landscape Architecture, Department of Architecture, The University of Hong Kong (HKU)
Program Director, Master of Landscape Architecture, Division of Landscape Architecture, HKU
Research Fellow, Urban Systems Institute, The University of Hong Kong
Founding Director, Urban Environments and Human Health Lab, The University of Hong Kong, https://uehh.hku.hk/
Associate Editor-in-Chief, Landscape Architecture Frontiers Journal
International Editor, Landscape Research Journal
