二零一四年八月（只有英文版本）

BEC Monthly Feature

BEC Anniversary Dinner 2014

BEC will host its Anniversary Dinner on 17 September at JW Marriott Hong Kong. The Dinner is a major celebration of BEC’s progress as we continue our mission in promoting and supporting the development of Hong Kong’s environmental excellence by actively engaging with the government, businesses and the community on a broad range of sustainability issues.

Members who are interested in reserving tables or tickets, please contact Ms. Jill Chow (T 2784 3942 | E jill@bec.org.hk). You may also visit BEC website for more details.

 

BEC Events

17 July 2014: BEC Industry Visit to Hysan Place

In this visit, Dr. L. K. Chan, Director of Design and Project of Hysan Development Company Limited explained how the company integrated the concept of sustainability since the planning stage of Hysan Place. The participants also had the opportunity to visit Hysan Place’s outstanding green features including the rooftop urban farm, the artificial wetland and the Sky Garden.

Visit by Delegation of the Netherlands Asia-Honours Summer School

On 21 July, a group of students from the Netherlands Asia-Honours Summer School (“NAHSS”) programme visited BEC Headquarters and learned about BEC’s work in promoting environmental excellence in Hong Kong.

The NAHSS programme was funded and initiated through a public-private partnership between Dutch universities, companies and the government, with the aim of fostering closer business relationship between the Netherlands and China.  During the visit, BEC representatives introduced its sustainable solutions and professional services, including its active involvement in various environmental management and Environmental, Social and Governance advisory projects. The delegation also shared the practices adopted in the Netherlands in different areas such as waste management.

25 July 2014: BEC Industry Visit to Hong Kong Organic Waste Recycling Centre

In this visit to Hong Kong Organic Waste Recycling Centre (“HKOWRC”), Mr. Henry Ngai, CEO of HKOWRC, presented its hydroponic farming as well as one-stop-shop solution of organic waste recycling and other services. Mr. Tommy Lam, Manager of Business Centre-MCS from CLP Power, then introduced the solar energy project for the hydroponics farm, which was a research project co-organised by CLP Power and HKOWRC.

The participants also learned about how HKOWRC transformed food waste into various useful products, including making use of coffee grounds to grow mushrooms and using soybean dregs to produce biodegradable starch resins.

31 July 2014: BEC Leadership Networking Series

In July’s BEC Leadership Networking Series, about 40 BEC members and guests gained a better understanding of the proposal put forward by the Hong Kong Institute of Planners (“HKIP”) on transforming Des Veoux Road Central into a tram and pedestrian precinct.

Dr. Peter Cookson Smith, Past President of HKIP, Mr. Benson Poon, Town Planner of Masterplan Limited, Dr. Zhi Ning, Assistant Professor, School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, and Mr. Chapman Chan, Director of MVA Hong Kong Limited, introduced their proposal of transforming Des Veoux Road Central into a vehicle-free zone with the aim of improving air quality and creating a better environment for pedestrians in Central.

BEC Upcoming Events

13 August 2014: BEC Business Discussion Forum – Biodiversity and Water

BEC is inviting members to join the “BEC Business Discussion Forum – Biodiversity and Water” on 13 August to share insights on biodiversity and water management. Mr. Mike Kilburn, member of the Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (“BSAP”) Steering Committee, would give a presentation on BSAP and the impact of biodiversity to the business community. Feedback generated from this Forum would help BEC in formulating views on biodiversity and water in future policy submissions to the Government.

Please visit BEC website for event details. To register, please contact Ms. Jill Chow (T 2784 3942 | E jill@bec.org.hk).

28 August 2014: BEC Leadership Networking Series

In the upcoming event, we are pleased to have Mr. Patrick Lee, Chief Executive Officer, Inchcape North East Asia and China, to talk about the development of environmentally friendly vehicles in Hong Kong. He will also share his thoughts on the development of new technologies of these vehicles in future.

For registration and enquiry, please contact Ms. Joey Hui (T 2784 3958 | E joey@bec.org.hk).

BEC IEE Training Courses

BEC Institute of Environmental Education (“BEC IEE”) organises courses on various environmental topics. The upcoming courses are highlighted below.

Energy Management System (“EnMS”) Training Course (6 August) - This course will enable participants to understand how to implement efficient energy management systems. These systems will allow participants to know more precisely where and how much energy is consumed, identify savings potentials and adopt best practices.

Understanding “Materiality” for Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Reporting (29 August) - This course will help companies understand which elements in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange’s ESG Reporting Guide are “material” to their business. This course will also outline case studies from eight major industries and share leading examples of successful ESG reporting and corporate sustainability practices. Each participant will receive a copy of “BEC Handbook: Understanding Materiality for ESG Reporting”. Members of the Hong Kong Institute of Directors will be awarded 4 CPD hours upon satisfactory completion of the course.

Please visit BEC website to view more details and schedules of BEC IEE programmes. For registration and enquiry, please contact Dr. Veronica Chan (T 2784 3937 | E beciee@bec.org.hk).

BEC Partnership Programmes

Roving Exhibition of the “Upcycling the Tai Po Community Project”

The first exhibition of the “Upcycling the Tai Po Community Project”, a community outreach programme jointly organised by BEC and the Hong Kong Federation of Women’s Centres, was held in Sheung Shui from 18 to 20 July. The exhibition showcased beautiful pet clothes made from used garments with the efforts of the designers and trainers participating in this programme. Two more exhibitions are scheduled for the second half of 2014 and early 2015.

For more details about this programme, please visit the programme website or Facebook Fanpage.

EPD Glass Bottle Recycling Programme for Housing Estates

To promote glass bottle recycling in Hong Kong and to pave way for the implementation of mandatory producer responsibility scheme, the Environmental Protection Department has commissioned BEC to coordinate the implementation of the glass bottle recycling programme in most districts in the New Territories. Over 300 housing estates and residential buildings in these districts have participated in this programme, and over 20 tonnes of glass bottles have been collected.

Housing estates and residential buildings with property management offices in these districts are welcome to join this programme. To learn more about the programme, please contact Mr. Jonathan Li (T 2784 3921 | E em_admin@bec.org.hk).

 

BEC Members Corner

Siemens Launches Sustainability Week 2014, Dedicates to Promote Sustainability

BEC Council Member Siemens Ltd. successfully launched its Sustainability Week from 26 May to 7 June. With the aim to raise awareness on sustainability and call to action among society, a series of programmes were organised throughout the two weeks to engage diverse groups of stakeholders, including Siemens’ business partners, industry associations, employees, senior executives, university students and the community.

These activities included “Breakfast Together” and “Lunch & Learn” sessions for Siemens employees, seminars on sharing the latest technology and applications at technical forums, student visit to Siemens’ customer’s Power Academy (CLP Power) in Shek Mun and an outing with the elderly from St. James’ Settlement with Siemens volunteering team.

One of the highlights was a panel discussion on 30 May. To address the importance of sustainability and resilient cities, Siemens sponsored Asia Society Hong Kong Center for a luncheon presentation. Ms. Christine Loh, Under Secretary for the Environment of HKSAR Government, Mr. Robert Lane, Senior Fellow for Urban Design at the Regional Planning Association of America, and Dr. Thomas Tang, Director for Sustainability at AECOM Asia were invited to share their insights and perspectives on building a resilient city in face of serious natural disasters.

More information of Siemens’ Sustainability Week 2014 can be found here.