Business Environment Council Limited (“BEC”) held its flagship event BEC EnviroSeries Conference “Driving Business Ambition into Action for a Net-Zero Hong Kong” today (17 June) in hybrid mode, attracting over 1,200 participants including government representatives, consulate generals, business leaders, entrepreneurs, industry experts, academics and other interested participants from Hong Kong and around the world.
In recent years, BEC has witnessed greater ambition among Hong Kong business sector in driving a net-zero transition, as exemplified by the steadily growing number of BEC Low Carbon Charter signatories since its launch in 2019. The four-pronged decarbonisation strategy set out in Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2050 last year is also expected to galvanise the private sector to take more decisive action in helping Hong Kong achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. From today’s discussions, BEC will facilitate the business community to take bold steps on net-zero transition.
The Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, said in the Conference, “Striving towards Hong Kong's target of achieving carbon neutrality before 2050, the Government announced the Hong Kong's Climate Action Plan 2050. It outlines the four major strategies for decarbonisation, namely net-zero electricity generation, energy saving and green buildings, green transport, and waste reduction, with a view to tackling carbon emissions from electricity generation, transport and waste. Measures to decarbonise will not only bring about sustainable improvement to the environment, but also drive the development of a green economy, create ample job opportunities, and promote green recovery. I call on business sector to seize business opportunities arising from low-carbon transformation, leading Hong Kong towards carbon neutrality.”
Mr Kevin O’Brien, Chairman of BEC, remarked, “Echoing the words of Jim Skea, Co-Chair the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group III, we think it is ‘now or never’ to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees to tackle climate emergency. We must escalate ambition to action now. Through today’s Conference, BEC aims to inspire our members and the business sector to transform for a net-zero and sustainable Hong Kong.”
This year also marks BEC’s 30th Anniversary. To celebrate our 30 years of promoting environmental excellence and corporate sustainability in Hong Kong, we have put together a series of initiatives, with EnviroSeries Conference as one of the key events. BEC will continue to drive business ambition and commitment into real action, and to accelerate business transformation in the city.
Among the speakers, panellists and moderators at the Conference were (in order of appearance):
- Mr Kevin O’Brien, Chairman, Business Environment Council
- Mr K S Wong, Secretary for the Environment, HKSAR
- Mr Simon Ng, Chief Executive Officer, Business Environment Council
- Mr Peter Bakker, President and CEO, World Business Council for Sustainable Development
- Mr Ken O’Flaherty, UK Government’s COP26 Regional Ambassador to Asia-Pacific and South Asia
- Mr Per Augustsson, Consul General, Consulate General of Sweden to Hong Kong and Macau
- Mrs Tamsin Heath, Deputy Consul General to Hong Kong and Macao, British Consulate General Hong Kong
- Mr Torbjörn Magnusson, Chairman, Sustainability Committee, Swedish Chamber of Commerce
- Mr Joe Phelan, Director – Asia Pacific, World Business Council for Sustainable Development
- Ir C F Leung, Director – Operations, Business Environment Council
- Mr Kelvin Li, Strategy & Business Development Director, Schneider Electric Hong Kong
- Ms Anita Varshney, Global Vice President, Strategy SAP S/4HANA Sustainability, SAP
- Mr Travis Kan, Head of Digital Solutions, CLPe Group
- Prof Davis Bookhart, Director, Sustainability / Net-Zero Office, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
- Mr Raymond Leung, Chief Technical Officer, Huawei International Co. Limited
- Mr Merlin Lao, Head – Policy & Research, Business Environment Council
- Mr Hendrik Rosenthal, Director – Group Sustainability, CLP Holdings Limited
- Mr Patrick Ho, Senior Manager- Sustainable Development, Swire Properties Limited
- Ms Clara Chan, Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Lee Kee Group
- Ms Elin Wong, Head of Corporate Affairs, Modern Terminals Limited
- Mr Fengyuan Wang, Global Climate Expert, H&M
- Ms Grace Kwok, Chairman and Executive Director, Allied Sustainability and Environmental Consultants Group Limited
- Mr John Haffner, General Manager – Sustainability, Hang Lung Properties Limited
- Mr Peter Lee, General Manager, Sustainability, Airport Authority Hong Kong
- Mr Wallace Lam, Deputy Head, Institutional Banking Group, DBS Bank (Hong Kong) Limited
- Ms Ivy Lee, Managing Director, Leigh & Orange Limited
- Mr Roberto Giannetta, Chairman, Hong Kong Liner Shipping Association
EnviroSeries Conference is BEC’s flagship event that aims to provide a cross-sector forum for stakeholders to discuss and address key issues related to Hong Kong’s environmental sustainability, and serves as a BEC’s key initiative for thought leadership development on important topical issues.
Mr Wong Kam-sing, The Secretary for the Environment (middle); Mr Kevin O’Brien, Chairman of Business Environment Council (right); and Mr Simon Ng, Chief Executive Officer of Business Environment Council (left) call on Hong Kong’s business sector to escalate ambition into action for a net-zero Hong Kong
Guests of today’s EnviroSeries Conference celebrate BEC’s 30th Anniversary
Mr Wong Kam-sing, The Secretary for the Environment, speaks at today’s EnviroSeries Conference, encouraging the private sector to work together and lead Hong Kong towards carbon neutrality