Project Elements

In what ways did you act as "ambassadors" and spokespersons for your Cyberfair project both on-line and in person.

We visited paper offerings shops and coffins shops, places where young people rarely visit. We hope young people can learn more about these declining industries, so that the traditional Chinese culture can be preserved. Moreover, through interviewing people like Uncle Au Yueng and Ah Shing, we can understand how they deal with various kinds of difficulties in their lives.

What has been the impact of your project on your community?

The Hong Kong government has never paid much attention to traditional handicraft industries. Industrialization and the lack of young people joining these industries means that handicraft industries like the paper offerings industry is under serious threat. We think the government should pay more attention to these traditional handicraft industries, so that they will not die out while facing the challenges of mass production. We hope people who visit our website will understand how fascinating these paper offerings are. Hopefully more people will appreciate these traditional handicrafts and therefore become aware of the urgency of preserving our traditions.

How did your project involve other members of your community as helpers and volunteers?

We are grateful for the help of many people. They include Kung Sau Funeral Service’s Miss Lok，Po WA Paper Offering Shop’s Mr. Au-yeung, as well as his wife and his son, and Cheung Kei Paper Offering Shop’s Ah Sing, Their help gave us an opportunity to understand the development of Hong Kong’s industries related to funeral rites.
We would also like to thank the principal of our school, teachers, students and other people who filled in our questionnaires.

Discoveries, Lessons and Surprises

It is now difficult to survive either in the paper offerings industry of the coffin shop industry. In the paper offerings industry, the salary is too low. But there are still people who are willing to utilize the skills they acquired when they were young to provide us with high-quality handmade paper offerings. Their commitment to the industry should be respected.

For a coffin shop to survive in the contemporary era, it must adapt to societal changes. As our interviewee Ms Lok told us, business operations must be flexible. The most important thing is how to provide one-stop services and warm services to customers who have just lost their beloved ones.