Hong Kong-wide Survey RevealsYoung People's Perspectives Towards Sustainable Development Goals for the City

HONG KONG, CHINA - Media OutReach - 13 September 2018 - According tothe latest survey* commissioned by the Hong Kong chapter of the United Nations'(UN) Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN Hong Kong), Hong Kong'syoung people at the age of 15-30 believe that combating climate change, using affordableand clean energy, and eradicating poverty are the top three most important SustainableDevelopment Goals (SDGs) for Hong Kong. These are closely followed by having a healthy lifestyle, building a peaceful and inclusivesociety with justice, and eradicating inequality and discrimination.

More than nine in ten surveyrespondents (93.5%) express their willingness to support "sustainable development",with a majority of them indicating positively that they would supportinitiatives relating to the environment. This includes waste recycling andreduction (47.8%) and conservation of power and water (30.9%). Additionally, closeto four in ten respondents (38.7%) believe that their companies and schoolshave not done enough on sustainable development.

Close to seven in ten respondents(68.7%) have heard about "social enterprise" or "social innovation". Over six in ten respondents (61.8%) also find socialenterprise to be a viable means to promote sustainable development throughbusiness behavior.

The survey reflects HongKong young people's perspectives on the UN's '2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development', theSDGs, as well as the concept of social entrepreneurship and social innovation. 

The survey, entitled 'HongKong Youth's Opinions towards Sustainable Development', is part of a HongKong-wide initiative, Youth 4.0, which kicks off today. Youth 4.0 aims topromote youth development on social entrepreneurship and to increase awarenessof the UN's SDGs amongst young people in Hong Kong. This initiative is thecross-sector collaboration among the academia, business and government,featuring a strategic partnership between YouthCo:Lab and the Hong Kong SocialEnterprise Challenge (HKSEC).  Theformer is a partnership between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)and the Citi Foundation while the latter is organized by The Center forEntrepreneurship of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and sponsored bythe Home Affairs Bureau of the Government of the Hong Kong SpecialAdministrative Region.

Youth 4.0 is alsosupported by its sustainability partner -- SDSN Hong Kong, co-hosted by CUHK andthe Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, established to mobilize expertiseand resources to address the SDGs in Hong Kong.  

Youth Co:Lab, co led byUNDP and Citi Foundation, aims to establish a common agenda for Asia-Pacificcountries to invest in and empower youth to accelerate implementation of SDGs throughleadership, social innovation and entrepreneurship. Inaddition, the event also encourages an inclusive environment for youthinnovation and entrepreneurship, which is in line with the objectives of theSDGs and Youth Development Strategy for Hong Kong.

"We arehere to support young people. While we do not doubt the ability of young peopleto lead innovation, we know that the systems that have been conceived for theireconomic or social empowerment often fall short. We will only be able to workfor the good of the region's social entrepreneurs if we solidify ourpartnerships. We have to realize that driving this from the regional scale,including the partnership between Citi Foundation and UNDP, and leveraging thebenefits of country level networks, and initiatives will be crucial to thissuccess." said Beniam Gebrezghi, Programme Specialist of Youth and CivicEngagement at the United Nations Development Programme Bangkok Regional Hub.

Speaking at the launchceremony, Mr. Wayne Fong, Head of Corporate Affairs, Citi Hong Kong, said, "We are honored to collaborate with the Youth 4.0partners to engage young people in Hong Kong to address social challenges andunemployment. Through Youth 4.0, it is our hope that by providing an ecosystemconducive to youth-led social entrepreneurship and innovation, we will harnessyouth leadership, and empower them to identify solutions to pressing socialchallenges and any unemployment issues that they are facing."

Another integral part ofYouth 4.0 is the HongKong Social Enterprise Challengewhich is organized by The Center for Entrepreneurship of CUHK and sponsored bythe Home Affairs Bureau of the Government of Hong Kong Special AdministrativeRegion (SAR). The first and longest standing inter-collegiate competition ofits kind in Hong Kong, the Challenge comprises a unique combination ofeducation, competition and incubation components for the participants andoffers overseas exposure for the winners. In the past 11 years, HKSEC has brought about 1,248 social ventureplans, with 7,304 participants from 45 institutions engaged. 2018 HKSEC is openfor registration and a series of training and coaching sessions has started fromSeptember 2018 onwards. The finale presentation will be held in March 2019.

Professor Elsie Tsui,Project Director of Hong Kong Social Enterprise Challenge added, "Hong KongSocial Enterprise Challenge has been a leading platform to help local youngpeople address social problems through entrepreneurial means. Through theyears, we have given the local youngsters various types of support to launchtheir meaningful social ventures. This year, we are excited to be a part ofYouth 4.0 initiative, which enables the young local social entrepreneurs tofurther expand their horizon and meet fellow social innovators across Asia."

* The survey, conductedby the Centre for Communication and Public Opinion Survey of CUHK,polled a total of 504respondents, aged 15 to 30, via telephone between July 19 and August 7, 2018.

Photocaptions

Youth4.0, a cross-sector collaboration among the academia, business and government,kicked off today. Youth 4.0 aims to promote youth development on social entrepreneurshipand to increase awareness of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goalsamongst young people in Hong Kong. Officiating guests at the launch event were(from left):

• Prof.Elsie Tsui, Project Director, Hong Kong Social Enterprise Challenge
• Ms.Vinci Chan, Principal Assistant Secretary for Home Affairs, Home AffairsBureau, Hong Kong SAR Government
• Mr.Wayne Fong, Head of Corporate Affairs, Citi Hong Kong
• Mr.Beniam Gebrezghi, Programme Specialist, Youth and Civic Engagement of UnitedNations Development Programme Bangkok Regional Hub
• Mrs.Cecilia Lam, Director, Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change of the ChineseUniversity of Hong Kong and Network Manager, United Nations Sustainable DevelopmentSolutions Network Hong Kong

United Nations DevelopmentProgramme (UNDP)

UNDP works in about 170 countries andterritories, helping to achieve the eradication of poverty, and the reductionof inequalities and exclusion. We help countries to develop policies,leadership skills, partnering abilities, institutional capabilities and buildresilience in order to sustain development results. This is a critical time forthe world. At UNDP, we see this period as a huge opportunity to advance theglobal sustainable development agenda. In September 2015, world leaders adoptedthe 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to end poverty, protect the planetand ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. We support countries'efforts to achieve the new Sustainable Development Goals, or Global Goals,which will guide global development priorities through 2030. UNDP focuses onhelping countries build and share solutions in three main areas: Sustainabledevelopment; Democratic governance and peacebuilding; and Climate and disasterresilience. In all our activities, we encourage the protection of human rightsand the empowerment of women, minorities and the poorest and most vulnerable.

The Youth Co:Lab project is run outof the Effective Governance team at UNDP's Bangkok Regional Hub for theAsia-Pacific. Additional information can be found at: https://www.asia-pacific.undp.org/.

Citi Foundation

The CitiFoundation works to promote economic progress and improve the lives of peoplein low-income communities around the world. We invest in efforts that increasefinancial inclusion, catalyze job opportunities for youth, and reimagineapproaches to building economically vibrant cities. The Citi Foundation's"More than Philanthropy" approach leverages the enormous expertise ofCiti and its people to fulfill our mission and drive thought leadership andinnovation. For more information, visit www.citifoundation.com.

Hong Kong SocialEnterprise Challenge (HKSEC)

The HongKong Social Enterprise Challenge a social venture startup competition organizedby the Center for Entrepreneurship of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, hasbeen at the frontier in educating students and the general public about socialenterprises in Hong Kong since 2007. Through a structured competition model,HKSEC encourages students to employ a creative entrepreneurial approach tosolve real world social issues.

The Hong Kong Chapterof the United Nations' Sustainable Development Solutions Network

The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and the Hong Kong Jockey ClubCharities Trust join hands to co-host the Hong Kong chapter of the SDSN. Underthe umbrella of the global SDSN, SDSN Hong Kong seeks to mobilize expertise,information and resources from academic, philanthropy, government, business andnonprofits to address the most pressing environmental, social and economicissues in Hong Kong and advance sustainable development. More details of SDSNHong Kong can be found at: https://sdsn-hk.org/en/