OHKF Insight Forum “Innovative Solutions for a Smart and Sustainable Hong Kong”

OHKF Insight Forum

“Innovative Solutions for a Smart and Sustainable Hong Kong”

(20 November 2023, Hong Kong) Our Hong Kong Foundation (OHKF) Insight Forum presented an inspiring session, Innovative Solutions for a Smart and Sustainable Hong Kong, featuring Schneider Electric Chairman and United Nations Global Compact Board Member Mr Jean-Pascal Tricoire as Keynote Speaker; Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Institute for the Environment Chief Development Strategist and OHKF Advisor Professor Christine Loh delivered opening remarks; The ESG Consortium Executive Director Mr Hugh Chow moderated a panel discussion.

The ESG Consortium and the GBA Carbon Neutrality Association are the supporting organisations for the forum.

In his keynote speech, Mr Tricoire stated, “Cities which are anchored in a strong region of the world and are at the same time being very cosmopolitan and where companies would naturally think of doing not only the local business but also the global business, Hong Kong is definitely qualified for that.” In stressing the need to change the priorities of technology and leverage completely on innovation, he added, “Digitisation for efficiency and electrification for decarbonisation could make the world around the earth smart and green.”

Mr Tricoire then elaborated on how sustainability connects with business performance, he said, “If you can operate your company or your city on a thin line of energy or of cost, it gives you a competitive edge, on top of making you very attractive with a number of stakeholders.” When sharing his experience of implementing five integrations to build an enterprise metaverse, he stated, “These integrations are needed because the higher level of sustainability can only come from a higher level of efficiency; on the higher level of efficiency comes from a higher level of integration. If you can connect more dots, you can really optimise large systems at scale.”

Professor Loh welcomed the audience with her visions about sustainability prospects in Hong Kong. She said, “We must be forward-looking and must be thinking about how to really do this well in the era of sustainability, in the era of climate change. Mitigation means decarbonisation, saving energy, and reducing waste. These are things that we must do as we plan and retrofit and redevelop our infrastructure as well as our buildings … Hong Kong is a town full of built environment professionals and people operating at a very experienced level. The sort of things that we need to do much better is to knit it all together.”

In the panel discussion featuring Mr Tricoire and Professor Loh, the session’s moderator, Mr Chow, inspired the two speakers by asking with their perspectives on the advantages of sustainability in financial terms.

Mr Tricoire pointed out, “Only sustainable solutions make sense. Because if it is not sustainable, one day you are going to pay for it. People today will not work for a company that is not consistent in terms of sustainability. If you can’t attract the best people, you can’t build the best company. When you have sustainable decisions and great people, then you make a great profit.”

Professor Loh stressed, “Energy and data are not things that are commonly discussed at all levels. There isn’t a deeper discussion within institutions and companies. I think this notion about how to educate ourselves and the city about data and energy is very critical.”