A Word from the Convenor
HKUST is pleased to take over the Convenorship of the HKSCC at this important stage of our growth and development. After eight years of building a strong establishment, and then last year's successful transition towards our next eight years with the creation of our new Strategic Plan, the task ahead of us this year is to demonstrate our collective strength by taking the first substantial steps in achieving the goals of the Strategic Plan.
This year is especially distinctive for us as Convenors because of the COVID-19 challenge. While the crisis has slowed many down, our collective universities have shown tremendous agility in transitioning to alternative means of meeting, collaborating, and problem solving. For the first time in our history, the HKSCC Main Committee, as well as all three Working Groups, conducted business exclusively online and through virtual meetings, demonstrating that we have the will and determination to make progress even under the most difficult circumstances.
We hope that by the end of our Convenorship term we will be enjoying safe and healthy face-to-face conversations again. If not, though, we are confident that we will still take the important steps necessary to show that the higher education sector in Hong Kong is showing strong leadership in building a sustainable future.
Mr Davis BOOKHART
Senior Manager, Sustainability Unit
Assistant Adjunct Professor, Division of Environment
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Background
There is increasing global attention to climate change and the associated challenges of sustainable development. Asia is a region that is highly vulnerable— in which economic development, environmental degradation, and the growth of the higher education sector have been dramatic in recent decades. Public and private organisations around the world are seeking new ways to respond to these issues. Universities in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) recognize that they have a responsibility to take up this challenge by contributing to solutions and strategies that will serve our community and the world.Therefore, the Vice Chancellors and Presidents of the eight publicly- funded universities in the HKSAR signed the Hong Kong Declaration in May 2010 – a statement of principles which highlights the importance of sustainable development in light of climate change, and a commitment to provide appropriate responses to the ensuing challenges through the universities’ core missions of research, teaching and knowledge exchange.The Hong Kong Declaration also acknowledges the importance of universities to serve as models within the community and to work across communities to forge appropriate solutions.
Terms of Reference
With the signing of the Hong Kong Declaration, all the eight institutions joined hands to form the Hong Kong Sustainable Campus Consortium (HKSCC) in 2010.
- Encourage and promote the ongoing efforts of the member universities in their development and implementation of sustainability solutions through research and teaching, campus policies and operations, local and international outreach, and knowledge exchange;
- Provide a vehicle for mutual support and the exchange of good practices with member universities through appropriate programs, projects and activities, and the establishment of specialist groups and/or working parties, as necessary;
- Provide a platform for public discussion of these issues through regular meetings, conferences, ad hoc projects, electronic communications and other means;
- Facilitate the sharing of information and resources as the member universities’ interests and activities with regard to sustainability expand in the future.
Collective GHG Reduction Target
The HKSCC supports the Government’s latest emissions target set out in the Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2030+. In 2017, the consortium carried out a study to project our forthcoming emissions and set a medium‐term collective target for the tertiary education sector – aiming to reduce aggregate greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020/2021 (from the base figures of 2015/2016).
HKSCC Strategic Plan: From Sharing to Developing
One of the many positive outcomes of the HKSCC over the past eight years was the coalescing of a strong sustainability vision among the eight schools. While each school remained unique in character, the identity of the Consortium took shape as a collective force for promoting sustainability within our larger higher education community. First by sharing ideas, approaches, and data, and later by collaborating on areas of interest, the Consortium now has a solid foundation for promoting sustainability within the Hong Kong university sector. Over the next eight years, the Consortium has the potential to move beyond a platform of sharing to a platform for developing more dynamic and active collaborative sustainability solutions. This 2019-2027 Strategic Plan sets forth goals, strategies, and tactics for achieving this vision.
Convenor and Secretariat
Member universities will take turns to take up the HKSCC convenorship on a yearly basis, and the university with the convenor role will provide secretarial support to the Consortium for that year. In 2013, the HKSCC agreed to move the term of the convenorship from an academic year to a calendar year.
| 2020 | The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology |
2019 |
The University of Hong Kong |
2018 |
Lingnan University |
2017 |
The Education University of Hong Kong |
2016 |
Hong Kong Baptist University |
2015 |
City University of Hong Kong |
2014 |
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University |
| 2012 - 2013 |
The Chinese University of Hong Kong |
2011 - 2012 |
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology |
| 2010 - 2011 |
The University of Hong Kong |
Our members
The HKSCC’s founding members are the eight publicly-funded institutions of the HKSAR. As the Consortium’s activities expand in the years ahead, other higher education institutions in the region may also be invited to participate.List of representatives:
(as of February 2021)
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Director of Estates |
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Membership of the Working Groups