When we first began planning our Futures Project, I had a long list of things I was interested in—urban greening, food waste, indoor farming, plant-based materials… it was exciting, but also totally overwhelming. I realised that while I cared about all these things, I couldn’t do everything.

One important moment was reading examples from past projects and understanding the time and resource limits. I asked myself: what can I realistically do in the time I have, with no lab access or institutional partnerships? That’s when I turned to floriculture. It felt familiar, practical, and often overlooked as an environmental issue.

From there, the real decision was whether to try collecting data (like talking to local florists) or stick to something text-based. At first, I leaned toward fieldwork—it sounded more “real.” But I quickly realised it would be difficult to recruit participants, especially during a busy season or across language gaps. Eventually, I decided to focus on a literature-based project, which felt both more realistic and equally impactful if done well.

Now I feel happy with the choice. I narrowed it down to something manageable but still meaningful—and I think that’s a skill in itself.

From Many Ideas to One: Choosing a Feasible Project / Xizhi Zhang / Circular Economy: KIPP and Futures Project by is licensed under a