SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities
HKUST recognizes the urgent need to create sustainable cities and communities that are inclusive, resilient, and environmentally conscious. By adopting a Net-Zero Carbon Investment Strategy and partnering with experts to study and develop strategies for environmental solutions, HKUST demonstrates its commitment to creating a sustainable community for all. HKUST also strives to foster artistic awareness and cultural appreciation within the campus community by supporting arts and cultural activities in our campus and engaging in community conservation initiatives that safeguard traditions and heritage sites. The campus itself is also designed to be accessible and pedestrian-friendly, contributing to the creation of vibrant and liveable urban environments that harmonize economic growth, social development, and environmental stewardship.
Curriculum
51 related courses were offered in the 2022-23 academic year.
Research
According to Science Direct, from 2019 to 2023, HKUST published 776 research papers addressing SDG 11.
About 33% of them are in the top 10% cite score and around 73% are internationally co-authored.
Research Highlights
Sustainable Smart Cities Design
HKUST actively works on sustainable smart cities design. One notable study examines the role of smart grids in enhancing energy efficiency and reliability. This research focuses on optimizing electricity distribution by integrating renewable energy sources and demand response strategies, encouraging stakeholder engagement through economic incentives and improved grid resilience.
Other studies include Context-Aware Taxi Dispatching and Timoshenko-Beam Model Identification, showcasing HKUST commitments.
Smart Mobility at HKUST
Smart Mobility: Indoor Navigation and Bus Queue Analytics project supported by the Sustainable Smart Campus as a Living Lab initiative enhances campus transportation and navigation experience by harnessing WiFi sensing and machine learning analytics technology to provide real-time queue waits times at bus stops, optimizing bus services and convenience. Additionally, the project includes the development of Path Advisor 2.0, which utilizes indoor signal changes to determine one's precise location within campus buildings.
Blockcerts for HKUST
Blockcerts for ARO and DSTO leverages blockchain technology to provide secure and verifiable student confirmations, certification verification, and student CVs. By registering these documents on the blockchain server, they are cryptographically signed, ensuring tamper-proof integrity and enabling easy sharing. This alternative "opt-in" service complements the existing certification and verification process, offering an additional layer of transparency and trust in the academic and professional records of HKUST students.
Policy
Standards for Buildings
The HKUST High Performance Building Standards & Guidelines aims to guide our campus growth with smart and sustainable principals and policies that serve as a model for others. The policy emphasizes flexibility in spaces, anticipation of future energy needs, maximum potential for metering and monitoring, integration of surroundings, design for social interaction, and opportunities for student experimentation and research. Additionally, we integrate the BEAM Plus Standards and local Hong Kong regulations.
Housing Offered to Undergraduate Students in HKUST
Transition from Desktop PC to Laptops
The Staff Mobile Computing Guidelines facilitates remote working by equipping staff to transition from desktop PCs to laptops. The guidelines highlight the benefits in employee well-being through flexible office design and work-life balance, strengthening HKUST's employer value proposition and competitiveness, enhancing staff productivity, transparency and efficiency through digitalization, and improving university agility and resilience.
Affordable Housing
HKUST provides affordable housing and accommodations. UG and PG students can apply for affordable residential halls all throughout Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer semesters. Due to limited bedspace, Priority Housing is given for students under specific circumstances while the alternative method considers one’s travelling time, contribution to campus life, etc. Moreover, HKUST Student Housing and Residential Life Office (SHRLO) also provides assistance for students seeking for off-campus housing.
Collaboration
Partnership for Air Quality Research
HKUST's Institute for the Environment (IENV) and the HKSAR Environmental Protection Department have announced a collaboration with other universities and international experts to study and develop science-based strategies for controlling regional ozone and photochemical smog. This partnership aims to improve understanding of emission sources, transport pathways, and transformation processes in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area.
HKUST Air Quality Research Supersite with advanced equipment for real-time characterization of air pollutants
The Cosmopolis Festival
The Cosmopolis Festival is a collaboration between the HKUST School of Humanities and Social Science (HKUST SHSS) with Shaw Auditorium. It serves as a crosslinked stage for both local and international musicians to represent their diverse traditions, ethnicity and artistic styles. The festival spanned over 1 month and saw talents in orchestra, VR Music, traditional Balinese instruments as well as century-old Cantonese music.
Government Committee
HKUST is actively collaborating with the Hong Kong government on sustainable cities and communities by joining the different committee governing the development projects. For instance, Prof. Lo from HKUST joined the Aviation Development and Three-Runway System Advisory Committe and Lantau Development Advisory Committee, several academia from HKUST joined the Expanded Building Committee as well.
Community Engagement
Public Education
PRAISE-HK, developed by HKUST, is an app that provides real-time air quality monitoring, forecasts, and health risk information. The app aims to raise public awareness and engagement in air pollution issues, while contributing to the development of innovative environmental education programs for younger generations.
PRAISE-HK App
Public Library Access
HKUST commits to make buildings, natural landscapes including exhibition spaces and galleries in the complex completely accessible for public. Subsequently, despite the libraries being exclusively accessible by students, faculty and staff, non-university members can apply for temporary libraries access during Summer and Winter semesters.
Students Innovate for Susutainability
In June 2023, HKUST saw impactful solutions such as water and electricity consumption dashboards as well as a wellness promotion through generation of electricity from sports and gym training during Sustainable Design Thinking 2023, a partnership with the Tung Foundation. This initiative acts as a ground for students to showcase their innovative ideas to enhance sustainability on campus. By adopting a “For Students, By Students” concept, this initiative fostered greater sense of ownership and investment within the campus community.
Transport and Commuting
As a walkable campus, pedestrian walkways with safety railings are present next to every single wheeled-accessible road. Additionally, pedestrian crossings are marked and prioritized over wheeled vehicles. As a part of the ongoing Martin Ka Shing Lee Innovation Building Project, a bridge will be built to connect walkways on different campus buildings.
To encourage staff members to choose more environmentally-friendly commuting options, HKUST provides over 10 Shuttle Bus routes serving around 50 stop points across Hong Kong. Our goal is for over 90% of staff to utilize sustainable transportation alternatives, which not only reduces energy consumption but also minimizes greenhouse gas emissions and alleviates road congestion.
Community Outreach
Art Gallery
HKUST Library regularly organizes exhibition at the Ping Yuan and Kinmay W Tang Gallery, which is accessible to all campus visitors. With exhibitions like The Power of Diversity - Artistic Visionaries from HKUST, featuring four alumni artists who have pursued their artistic dreams, showcasing the beauty in diversity and the collective strength of the HKUST community.
August 2022: The Power of Diversity - Artistic Visionaries from HKUST Exhibition Jointly Presented by Lee Shau Kee Library and Development and Alumni Office
Shaw Auditorium
HKUST Center for the Arts (CFA) promotes the appreciation and participation in artistic and cultural activities through a range of programs, including exhibitions, concerts, film shows, seminars, workshops, and off-site visits. The CFA's mission is to integrate art and culture into the university, which is primarily focused on business and science, aiming to nurture students' artistic awareness and appreciation of the arts. In 2023, the CFA hosted HKUST Arts Festival 2023 to accentuate the multiculturalism of Hong Kong. With a mix of over 10 performances, talks and exhibitions, this festival spanned over two months and highlighted art and intangible heritage from Hong Kong, France as well as Africa through their unique singing, dancing, costumes and instruments.
HKUST Shaw Auditorium
Preserving Heritage
The Cantonese Opera Education Enrichment Project 2023 aims to introduce and educate the community, especially younger generations, about the intricacies and significance of Cantonese opera, a cherished aspect of Hong Kong's cultural heritage. The project features a series of workshops and talks where participants can learn about the costumes, makeup, and props used in Cantonese opera performances. They also have the opportunity to try their hand at basic singing and acting techniques under the guidance of experienced instructors. By actively engaging the community in these hands-on activities, HKUST is ensuring the continued appreciation and preservation of this traditional art form, contributing to the creation of sustainable and inclusive communities.
Tangible heritage from the Cantonese opera tradition were displayed in the Ping Yuan and Kinmay W Tang Gallery at the HKUST Library, allowing visitors to appreciate the visual splendor and craftsmanship of this intangible cultural heritage as inscribed by UNESCO. This project hopes to raise awareness and appreciation for Cantonese opera and contribute to its preservation and continuation as an integral part of Hong Kong's multicultural heritage.
April – July 2023: “Resplendent Beauty: On Cantonese Opera Repertoire and Costumes” Exhibition
The Division also engages in various Community Conservation Initiatives including field trips to Tai O introduce students to local traditions, academic collaborations with Pearl River Delta universities preserve the region's rich heritage, and heritage preservation projects such as the restoration of disused salt pans and the territory-wide survey for Intangible Cultural Heritage in Hong Kong since 2009.
Service-Learning initiatives include salvaging heritage in Yim Tin Tsai Village since 2007, participating in the Tai O Dragon Boat Parade since 2008, and promoting Tai Po's cultural heritage since 2009. Study trips to Northern Guangdong and Eastern Jiangxi provide opportunities to explore local history, social conditions, and culture while engaging in volunteer service and reflecting on personal practices in the eco-social environment of the communities.
Hung Shing Festival Kau Sai, Sai Kung
Tai O Fieldtrip - Tai O Local Community
The South China Research Center
The South China Research Center, an institution under The Division of Humanities at HKUST has been actively organizing community engagement initiatives to preserve and promote Hong Kong's intangible cultural heritage, collaborating with various non-profit associations such as the Joint Association of Traditional Hakka Unicorn. In 2023, they continued this effort through a series of educational fieldtrips to various locations in the Sai Kung district including Hang Hau for their traditional Hakka Unicorn Dance, and appreciate the Hung Shing Festival in Kau Sai. The Fan Lau Tin Hau Festival held on June 2023 also served as an immense opportunity for students to appreciate traditional Cantonese Opera, flower-cannons and ritual of inviting Deities.
HKUST also demonstrates commitment to enriching local arts and heritage by promoting understanding and preservation of traditional practices through workshops such as the Zhengyi Ritual Tradition. The Center also held Unicorn Dance Training as well as Docent Training to further facilitate students to reconnect with their cultural roots.
Cultural Landscapes
The "Circle of Time" Sundial Sculpture at HKUST's Piazza is a striking embodiment of the university's connection to Chinese culture. Featuring a central sundial, an ancient Chinese invention, the sculpture is adorned with a carved mural depicting 39 historic Chinese scientific and technological achievements.
At the Promenade linking the undergraduate halls, visitors can find a replica of the Armillary Sphere, an ancient Chinese astronomical instrument dating back to the West Han Dynasty. This historic artifact serves as a tangible link to the university's roots in scientific exploration and innovation, preserving an important part of the campus' cultural legacy. Further enhancing the green campus environment, the One-World-Fountain outside the LG7 canteen is a symbolic water sculpture created by renowned fountain artist, Professor Hans Muhr.