The Hong Kong chapter of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN Hong Kong) and the Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change jointly organised a forum titled ‘Business and Sustainability’ on 10 November. The forum, which falls under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Forum Series, gathered experts from different sectors to discuss effective solutions for incorporating the United Nations’ (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into business strategies.
Prof. Carlos Lo, Department Chairman and Professor of the Department of Government and Public Administration of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), was the keynote speaker and panel discussion moderator of the forum. Other guest speakers included Mr Prentice Koo, Executive Director of Fair Trade Hong Kong, Dr Simon Wong, Assistant Scientific Manger of the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong, and Mr Tony Wong, Founder of Alaya Consulting.
Prof. Lo gave a talk titled ‘Business and SDGs: Engaging Businesses in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability through the Hong Kong Business Sustainability Index (HKBSI)’. He said that the HKBSI aims to increase listed companies’ awareness of CSR, and to inspire local companies to adopt CSR as a progressive business model to achieve business sustainability. The HKBSI assessment is based on the unique ‘Values – Process – Impact (VPI)’ model. The assessment also includes a company’s contribution to economic, social and environmental sustainability, as well as its efforts to promote the UN’s SDGs. Prof. Lo added that adopting CSR as a business model is not just an effective way to build up a company’s reputation; more importantly, it will improve its competitive advantage and hence its investment value.
During the panel discussion and Q&A session, the guest speakers and Mr Toby Lau, Youth Network Coordinator of SDSN Hong Kong, had a fruitful discussion with the audience about implementing sustainable development initiatives through different business models.
Date and Time
Speaker(s)
Professor Carlos LO
Department Chairperson, Professor Department of Government and Public Administration CUHK
Mr Prentice KOO
Executive Director, Fair Trade Hong Kong
Dr Simon WONG
Assistant Scientific Manager, Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong
Mr Tony WONG
Founder, Alaya Consulting
