Designing SAF Demand: What Global Policies and Experiments Teach Hong Kong

Mr. Merlin Lao is the Head – Policy & Research at Building Environment Council Limited (BEC). He is leading a team to share clear policy positions on pressing climate and environmental topics in Hong Kong, through research on latest domestic and international trends, engaging with the Hong Kong SAR Government and connecting insights of the local business sector. He is keen on net-zero transition that not only looks at decarbonisation, but also a more equal and liveable built environment.

Mr. Lao is a programme management professional with 15 years of climate change and environment career experience across private, public and non-profit sectors in East Asia, with major exposure in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and South Korea. Prior to joining BEC, he was the senior programme manager at an international non-governmental organisation driving sustainable cities agenda in China, Japan, Mongolia and South Korea, covering topics of air quality, low-emission development, urban resilience, circular economy and nature-based solutions. He also led the environmental protection planning at the Macao Environmental Protection Bureau and worked in a technical consultancy dedicated in carbon accounting and management in his earlier career.

My Sustainability Goal for 2026:

Hoping to see deeper work for various business sectors to look into decarbonisation roadmaps, in connection with abatement curves, economic transition and opportunities.

Grace Cheung is General Manager Sustainability at Cathay Pacific. Leading the Group Sustainability Department, Grace oversees sustainability strategy and ESG performance of the whole Cathay Group. Under Grace’s leadership, sustainability has changed from a standalone specialist function to an integrated strategic and operational imperative in the airline group.

During Grace’s tenure, Cathay Pacific has committed for its net zero carbon emissions goal by 2050, supported by its mid-term target for using 10% sustainable aviation fuel and 12% carbon intensity improvement by 2030. The airline has also launched the first major Corporate Sustainable Aviation Fuel Programme in Asia in 2022.

Grace has also led Cathay’s effort in circular economy, reducing its environmental footprint on materials and waste. The airline has reduced its customer-facing single-use plastic items from an average of 7.7 pieces per passenger in 2019 down to 3.1 in 2023. A new target is set to bring it down further to 1.5 pieces per passenger by 2025, supported by additional targets on recycled plastics usage and recycling rate.

Grace represents Cathay in a number of industry working groups advocating for supportive policies and best practices sharing for further development of sustainability in the airline industry. Grace is the Chair of the Environment & Sustainability Board at the Oneworld alliance and the Vice Chair of the Sustainability & Environment Advisory Council at the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Shutong is the Director of partnership of ASAFA Asia SAF Association. Asia SAF Association (ASAFA) is Asia’s first independent non-profit dedicated to advancing the adoption and integration of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) across Asia. We are dedicated to accelerating aviation decarbonization in Asia by promoting SAF adoption, advancing robust policies and market integration, ensuring a diverse SAF supply chain, enhancing technical expertise through collaboration, and mobilizing investments for infrastructure and innovation to drive economic growth and sustainability in aviation.

Shutong is also the founder and CEO of MotionECO, a company promoting sustainable fuel industry in China, and providing industry strategic consultancy, brokerage, and advisory on EU-RED, CORSIA, ISCC/RSB certification services etc. MotionECO covers sustainable fuels applicable to all transportation sectors, including SAF, biodiesel, , green methanol/ethanol as well as developing E-fuels project.

Based in China since 2011, Huw is a Climate and Energy Specialist at ClientEarth. His areas of expertise include carbon markets, low-carbon development and China’s energy transition. He has published a range of widely read papers and reports dealing with carbon market design and implementation. He recently served as a member of the Continuous Improvement Work Programme on Transition Credits for the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market, focussed on establishing standards for high integrity carbon credits. He has previously worked on EU-funded projects supporting bilateral engagement and cooperation with China on emissions trading, and on environment and green economy. He was also responsible for establishing the grant facility under the UK Prosperity Fund China Energy and Low Carbon Economy Programme. Huw served as Chair of the European Chamber of Commerce in China’s Carbon Market Working Group in 2021-22, and is the lead author of the annual China Carbon Pricing Survey reports, the most in-depth and extensive summaries of stakeholder views on China’s carbon market development.