When we first conceived Project House, our goal was to test whether community placemaking and social innovation could come together. Today marks a significant milestone on that path: onebite has been awarded the DBS Foundation Impact Beyond Award 2025.
We want to express our deepest gratitude to DBS and the DBS Foundation. Traditional social services and philanthropy in Hong Kong have understandably concentrated on direct welfare, healthcare, and relief. DBS recognises and invests in an entirely new approach—one that acknowledges the challenge of loneliness and social isolation among older adults. This award delivers an invaluable boost to our team, arriving just as our city’s demographic shift makes systemic innovation an urgent necessity.
The Reality of an Ageing City
Driven by world-leading longevity paired with a record-low fertility rate below 0.8, Hong Kong is aging faster than nearly any society in history. With adults aged 65 and older already exceeding 24% of the population, projections indicate that two in every five residents will be seniors by 2050, making the city the most super-aged demographic in the world. As tens of thousands of residents enter retirement, a quiet secondary challenge follows: shrinking social circles, isolation, and a sudden void where daily routine and purpose used to sit.
While welfare programmes provide a vital safety net, they are largely structured around physical dependency. Few initiatives focus on tackling loneliness and social isolation among older adults. Without deliberate avenues for engagement, seniors risk becoming sidelined in the very neighbourhoods they spent decades shaping.
Project House+ as a silver power enabler
onebite DESIGN’s Project House+ meets this challenge by anchoring our silver power-enabling hub in Sheung Wan.
The initiative operates at the crossroads of spatial activation and community empowerment. We transform urban spaces into multi-generational neighbourhood hubs for the silver population to connect and support one another. t’s also part of the plan to create fractional employment opportunities for seniors. By aligning these opportunities with their individual schedules, capabilities, and comfort levels, the model delivers fair compensation alongside renewed self-worth. It demonstrates that purposeful, flexible work can regenerate local ties while preserving dignity and personal agency in later life.
The Road Ahead
The DBS Foundation Impact Beyond Award provides the critical momentum needed to turn this proven pilot into a broader city-wide initiative.
Over the coming grant period, onebite will establish a second Project House+ in another district facing pronounced demographic shifts, adapting the spatial principles proven in Sheung Wan. In parallel, we will expand our intergenerational programming at the Sheung Wan hub. We will build a dedicated, accessible digital infrastructure to match older adults with fractional employment opportunities, continuing to enable them to thrive.
We are profoundly grateful to DBS for sharing this conviction, and to the Sheung Wan community for building this journey with us.
More about DBS Impact Beyond Awards
