Lab to World: Together We Thrive
This year’s Living Lab Week launched on 21 October, with an opening ceremony drawing over 100 guests, comprising colleagues, industry partners, and international university representatives.
Prof. Kar Yan Tam, Vice-President for Administration and Business, delivered an opening speech that set the stage by emphasizing the vital role the Living Lab plays in reinforcing HKUST's commitment to sustainability and enhancing global partnerships.
Project Display & Campus Tour
With our 10 booth displays covering a wide range of projects, guests enjoyed engaging with project teams and understanding how their projects are addressing our campus sustainability challenges. With projects looking into water conservation, decarbonisation, waste & circularity, and more, guests were introduced to the full scale of what our Living Lab program is achieving.
In addition to the booth displays, guests had the opportunity to participate in project tours, providing them with a firsthand look at how project teams are utilizing our campus as a test bed and showcasing the accomplishments of their projects.
Living Lab Brainstorming Workshop
Holding our annual brainstorming workshop, it united enthusiastic faculty, operational staff, and students from diverse disciplines interested to submit a proposal.
Emphasizing collaboration, we welcomed industry partners Barry Lau and Timothy Luk from Swire Properties, along with campus representatives Stanley Sit from CSO, and Alan Mok & Hoyce Ho from CMO. They shared specific challenges with participants, who gained valuable insights into campus and industry issues while receiving guidance on crafting effective proposals.
Living Lab Forum
This year’s Living Lab Week had the honor of welcoming global university representatives who are also involved in Living Lab initiatives. Our Assistant Director, Marcus Leung-Shea, hosted the Living Lab Forum Session, which focused on advancing the development of Living Labs.
The forum was a lively session that spanned across 2 days, with sharing sessions from other Universities sharing their experiences and insights on their Living Labs Program and sustainability framework on their campus. This workshop was further enriched by contributions from representatives from University of Liverpool, University of South Africa, UNSW Sydney, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University and University of Malaysia.
About the Sustainable Smart Campus as a Living Lab Program
The Sustainable Smart Campus as a Living Lab program was launched in 2019 with HK$50 million commitment to funding research projects that use the HKUST Clear Water Bay campus as a test bed for sustainability innovation. The program offers project funding, operational expert advice, as well as physical campus space for advancing and accelerating research that is smart, sustainable, and visible on campus. We are now calling for the next round of Living Lab project proposals, with the deadline on 13 January 2026. For more details, please visit the Living Labs website: https://ssc.hkust.edu.hk/
