Lai See | Capturing the full ugliness of a one-size-fits-all approach

We await with interest to discover the most popular brand of waste to be found on Hong Kong's beaches. This wheeze was dreamt up by Designing Hong Kong and follows a three-month exercise in which volunteers collected and sorted waste found on beaches by brand label. The winner will be announced by Living Lamma and Designing Hong Kong this morning.

Lantau's Living Islands Movement is also fed up with the ugliness that it feels is being perpetrated on the island both by slovenly and lazy people piling up rubbish, and by insensitive government architecture and lack of planning. We are assured there is no shortage of subjects, arising out of the government's one-size-fits-all approach. So standard designs for urban areas, where space is at a premium, are transplanted to the islands where space demands are less intensive.

These buildings are distinctive for their brutish insensitivity to their surroundings. Examples abound, including the Mui Wo Centre, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department's three-storey rubbish collection depot, and poorly designed rain shelters.

In addition, there is the interesting situation whereby small village houses are given planning permission with no road access and no parking, resulting in unnecessary and unsightly informal parking arrangements.

The movement has organised a photography competition, with prizes for pictures depicting both the ugliness and the beauty of the island. The competition, which closes on April 12, is open to amateurs and professionals, and there's a special section for under 18s. Even if you don't win a prize, your efforts will not be in vain, since the photographs will be exhibited and used to name and shame government agencies responsible for ugliness.