Liveable Cities & Transportation Theatre

People-Centric Liveable Cities

11 Sep (Thur) Day 1 : 11:10 – 12:00

This session explores how cities can be reimagined with people at the heart of their design and function. In an era where urban spaces must be more than just sustainable, we will examine how to create environments that foster community wellbeing, inclusivity, and vibrant public life. Expert urban designers, policymakers, and community leaders will explore key areas include designing for accessibility across all ages and abilities, integrating nature into urban development, and fostering social cohesion through thoughtful public spaces. This session is a must for those passionate about building cities that put people first, ensuring Hong Kong evolves into a model of inclusive, sustainable urban living.

Learnings

  • Understand how urban design can prioritise community wellbeing through inclusive, human-scale planning.
  • Explore successful case studies of cities that have transformed public spaces to enhance social cohesion and livability.
  • Learn how policy, design, and community engagement can work together to shape more equitable and accessible urban environments.

Post-event Actions

  • Review and assess your current projects or policies to identify opportunities for integrating people-centric design principles.
  • Engage with local communities or stakeholders to gather input on livability challenges and co-create inclusive solutions.

Speakers

Edwin Lau

The Green Earth Limited

Founder

Mr Edwin Lau is the Founder of The Green Earth, an environmental organization promoting resource conservation and zero-waste culture. He has been actively engaged in environmental protection work since the late 1980s. He places great concern on several pressing environmental topics, e.g., waste management, climate change, energy conservation, and air pollution.

Mr Lau keeps offering his recommendations and expressing his opinions through media interviews and open letters on several pressing environmental issues confronting humankind. Most of his published letters can be viewed from the following link https://www.scmp.com/author/edwin-lau

Mr Lau is currently a member of the CUHK Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change Expert Committee and a senior advisor of the Hong Kong Solar Industries Association.

In 2009, Mr Lau was awarded the Medal of Honour by the HKSAR Government in recognition of his long-term contribution to the promotion of environmental protection and environmental education. In the same year, he was also awarded an Outstanding Earth Champion by The Earth Champions Foundation.

My Sustainability Goals for 2025:

  • More individuals and businesses will act immediately by adopting genuine measures and practices to tackle the escalating environmental crisis.
  • The Government will act fast to roll out the much-needed environmental policies and set a good role model for others to follow suit.

Louise Bergholm

The Consulate General of Sweden in Hong Kong and Macau

Consul General of Sweden to Hong Kong and Macau

Ms Louise Bergholm is the Consul General of Sweden to Hong Kong and Macau since 2023. Having served in various capacities in multiple geographical regions, she accumulated more than three decades of diplomatic experience. Her previous positions include Ambassador of Sweden to Bulgaria, while she was also formerly assigned to Washington DC, USA, and Jakarta, Indonesia. She has been effectively handling a wide scope of topics ranging from politics to economics, with a specific focus on trade policy and promotion.

Ms Bergholm obtained a Master of Science in International Economics degree from the Stockholm School of Economics in Sweden, and studied history, political science and Spanish at the University of Stockholm, Sweden.

Edmund Chan

Civil Engineering and Development Department

Deputy Project Manager (South and Sustainable Lantau)

Edmund CHAN Ping-wa has been working in various government works departments for over 30 years. He is currently Deputy Project Manager of South Development and Sustainable Lantau Office of Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD). Edmund is responsible for the implementation and coordination of the planning, design, construction and interface issues relating to the infrastructure development projects mainly in Hong Kong Island, West Kowloon, and partly in Lantau. Edmund oversees the resource planning, contract administration and financial control matters for development projects.

My Sustainability Goals for 2025 

CEDD’s vision is to build to make Hong Kong a world-class sustainable and resilient city for living, working and playing. We are pursuing innovation and technology to enhance the efficiency, productivity, quality and safety of our works. Also, we are championing smart, green and resilient strategies and initiatives in our services. Being a collaborative client, we continue to achieve engineering excellence and people-oriented solutions.

Geoffrey Chan

RadiansPlus Technologies Limited

Co-founder & Technical Director

Mr. Geoffrey Chan is the Co-Founder and Technical Director of RadiansPlus Technologies, a trailblazing company in smart, grid-neutral EV and PV charging solutions. He is the inventor behind the patented Power System Neutral – Dynamic Load Management (PSN-DLM) platform, which enables high-density EV charging without the need for costly, time-consuming grid upgrades.

Grid limitations—such as insufficient transformer capacity, constrained distribution networks, and the high financial and environmental cost of infrastructure expansion—are widely recognized as a major barrier to EV adoption. Mr. Chan’s PSN-DLM technology directly addresses this challenge by intelligently managing energy loads within existing infrastructure, reducing embodied carbon and operational emissions. In 2025, this innovation enabled full EV charging coverage across all public housing carparks in Singapore without requiring any grid upgrades—a landmark achievement in scalable, sustainable mobility.

Mr. Chan has also led ongoing deployments in Hong Kong’s commercial centers, fleet depots in Thailand, and pilot programs in Australia. These projects are currently in progress, demonstrating the adaptability of PSN-DLM across diverse urban and regional contexts.

His vision for scalable, hardware-agnostic, and offline-capable charging has earned RadiansPlus international recognition, including the BRICS Invention Grand Prize and a U.S. patent. Mr. Chan continues to lead the company’s technical strategy and innovation roadmap, forging strategic partnerships to expand into emerging markets and support global net-zero goals through carbon-efficient infrastructure.

My Sustainability Goals for 2025:

As Hong Kong advances toward becoming a more liveable and climate-resilient city, my personal sustainability goals for 2025 focus on making clean mobility accessible, convenient, and inclusive—without the need for costly infrastructure expansion:

Goal 1 : EV Charging in Public Housing Carparks Without Grid Upgrades

I aim to make EV charging available across Hong Kong’s public housing estates using grid-neutral technology, allowing grassroots drivers to charge at home affordably and reliably. This supports the vision of a liveable city—where residents no longer need to spend time and effort traveling to distant charging stations, and where sustainable mobility is integrated into everyday life.

Goal 2: ‘Park, Fly and Charge’ at Hong Kong International Airport

Hong Kong is home to one of the busiest airports in the world, serving both long-haul and short-haul travelers. I envision enabling seamless EV charging at the airport using PSN-DLM technology, so travelers can park their vehicles, fly, and return to a fully charged car. This will bring the convenience and green benefits of “Park, Fly and Charge” to Hong Kong, similar to what’s already available at leading airports like LAX.

Goal 3: Modernizing EV Charging Codes for Smarter Infrastructure Use

I advocate for updating Hong Kong’s EV charging regulations to prioritize better utilization of existing electrical infrastructure, rather than defaulting to building new capacity. This shift will accelerate deployment, reduce environmental impact, and make EV charging more accessible across the city.

These goals reflect a commitment to practical, scalable sustainability—ensuring that Hong Kong’s transition to green transportation is not only fast and carbon-efficient, but also truly liveable for all its residents.

Kam Sing Wong

Wu Zhi Qiao (Bridge to China) Charitable Foundation

Chair

Professor WONG Kam Sing, GBS, JP

Wong was appointed as the Secretary for the Environment, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, between 2012 and 2022. During his ten-year tenure as the “environment minister”, Wong initiated a series of sustainability policy blueprints, from climate actions, energy saving, clean air, popularisation of electric vehicles, waste management and circular economy, to biodiversity, leading Hong Kong towards carbon neutrality before 2050. In mid-2024, he published the book Hong Kong Stories in the Journey towards Carbon Neutrality (邁向碳中和 香港人和事).

Wong is currently Distinguished Department of Architecture Fellow and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration at The University of Hong Kong, Adjunct Professor in the School of Architecture at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Honorary Professor at Hong Kong Chu Hai College. Since the late 2022, he has started to serve as Chairman of Wu Zhi Qiao (Bridge to China) Charitable Foundation, leading rural revitalization projects in both the Mainland and Hong Kong and integrating youth development and low-carbon green behaviour and practice in the process of volunteer service.

Wong as an architect has developed expertise on sustainable architecture since the early 1990s. He contributed to various award-winning projects and research in sustainable built environment, from pioneering high-density public housing estate Verbena Heights in the early 1990s to CIC-Zero Carbon Park in the early 2010s. Wong was the Founder Chairman of the Environment and Sustainable Development Committee of the Hong Kong Institute of Architects (1998-2002), Chairman of the Professional Green Building Council (2009-2010) and Vice Chairman of the Hong Kong Green Building Council (2012).

My Sustainability Goals for 2025:

  1. Host a conference on urban-rural sustainability in Hong Kong in early October 2025.
  2. Lead a design studio for masters of architecture students to explore sustainable design in the context of the Northern Metropolis together with an exhibition in early December 2025.
  3. Organise a low-carbon charitable luncheon event in Lai Chi Wo in early December 2025.

 

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With thanks to