Happenings

The Centre for Civil Society and Governance is appointed by the Countryside Conservation Office under the Environment and Ecology Bureau of the HKSAR Government for a sustainable village revitalisation study. This study aims to formulate the necessary building blocks for a sustainable village revitalisation model (SVRM) for Lai Chi Wo and Yan Chau Tong villages through reviewing the rural revitalisation experience in LCW while considering ESG elements and the integration of primary, secondary, and tertiary industries. The study will make reference to case examples in Mainland China as well as other cities in the Asia-Pacific region. It is expected that the study’s recommendations will help build the eco-tourism pillar of the Northern Metropolis Action Agenda 2023.   [caption id="attachment_12946" align="alignnone" width="640"] Kick-off Project Meeting: Structured Review and Formulation of Sustainable Village Revitalisation Model - A Case Study on the Experience in Lai Chi Wo[/caption]

Our Deputy Director Dr Winnie Law and Assistant Director Katie Chick participated at the Asia-Pacific Higher Education Network for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage (APHEN-ICH) General Meeting and Conference in Kathmandu, Nepal between September 21-23, 2024. The conference theme for this year is “Intangible Cultural Heritage for Building Community Resilience: Contexts of Disasters and Climate Change” where presenters discussed the challenges and solutions for safeguarding ICH as the risks associated with earthquake, flooding, storm surge, etc. have significantly increased. Many scholars and practitioners at the conference have stressed on the importance of community involvement. The “Living Heritage” approach where the community is actively involved and interacted with the ICH is a key to building resilience against the climate’s impact on heritage.   Find out more from here.   [caption id="attachment_12912" align="alignleft" width="640"] Founding universities of APHEN-ICH[/caption] [caption id="attachment_12914" align="alignleft" width="640"] Showcasing the Centre’s rural sustainability initiatives at the conference[/caption]       [caption id="attachment_12916" align="alignleft" width="640"] Honorable Mayor Sunil Pajapati of Bhaktapur Municipality, Kathmandu greeted the delegation[/caption]                       [caption id="attachment_12918" align="alignleft" width="640"] Citizens using the heritage as civic space for everyday living[/caption]          

You are cordially invited to the seventh Knowledge Primer (KP) titled “Enabling the Ecosystem for Resource Circularity in the MICE Industry” under the “Partnership for Sustainability Leadership in Business” (PSLB) project, initiated by the Centre for Civil Society and Governance (CCSG) of HKU with full support from the Hongkong Bank Foundation. Hong Kong is a bustling city that hosts a wide range of business events and exhibitions throughout the year. While they provide valuable market information, knowledge, networks and opportunities for professionals from businesses, government, and the non-profit sector, the cost of organising these events often comes at the expense of the environment, which contravenes the ideals of low-carbon and sustainable future that many businesses uphold. Therefore, it is imperative to transform the traditional ‘linear’ nature of these events into a ‘circular’ and more sustainable model. Leveraging the knowledge and practical experience of speakers from the meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) industry, this Knowledge Primer will take a close look into the necessary conditions–be they infrastructure, policy change, industry support or innovative collaboration models–for resource circularity to take root in business events. Two keynote speakers will shed light on the following topics: Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau will discuss the role of Government policy, infrastructures and capacity building in guiding the trajectory of circularity and sustainability advancement in MICE industry; Macau Fair & Trade Association will present on sustainable initiatives that incentivise the practitioners to adopt more circular and sustainable practices to achieve net zero goals. A moderated discussion featuring industry practitioners from Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (Management) Limited, Informa Markets, KPMG, New World Corporate Services Limited and ReThink Hong Kong will follow to cascade the industry’s best practices. The panellists will share views on the collaboration needed to catalyse circularity practices and innovation in the MICE industry. The event will also celebrate the launch of “A Practical Guidebook to Circular Economy (Volume 2): Collaborating with Value Chain Partners for Organising Circular Events and Exhibitions”. The Guidebook is a consolidated self-learning resource for the MICE industry practitioners to integrate resource circularity principles in business operations through the value chain-based event frameworks. A well-thought step-by-step guidance and templates are made available to help readers putting ideas into action.   The event details are as follows: Date: 6 June 2024 (Thursday) Time: 2:30pm – 5:30pm (4:30pm – 5:30pm will be the networking session) Venue: Rayson Huang Theatre, The University of Hong Kong Format: Physical and Online via Zoom* Language: Mainly English and Cantonese (with bi-lingual simultaneous interpretation) *A participant limit will be in place for physical and online attendance to cater to the maximum capacity of the venue and online streaming platform. Please sign up to reserve your space.   Should you be interested in participating, please register HERE on or before 5 June 2024. You are welcome to contact Mr. Woody Cheng at Telephone: 3910-2463 / Email: pslb@hku.hk for queries.   PSLB Team