Urgent need to make HK a ‘resilient city’ at heart of coming built environment summit

HONG KONG, CHINA - Media OutReach - 26 April 2019 - The RICS (RoyalInstitution of Chartered Surveyors) will take a leading rolein outlining the urgent measures needed to face ever-growing environmentalchallenges, with preparing for climate change the central theme of the RICSHong Kong Annual Conference, to be hosted at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong onFriday 24 May 2019.

Morethan four hundred city leaders, policymakers, academics, and professionals areexpected to gather for the summit, which is subtitled "Resilient andsustainable: Putting the green revolution at the forefront of our future".This theme is a direct response to the growing awareness and risks ofclimate-induced catastrophes, and the programme will cover emerging industrytrends -- such as green finance, sustainable investment and ESG -- while discussinghow Hong Kong can better equip itself as a "Resilient City".

Theprogramme will begin with an opening address from Guest of Honour MatthewCheung Kin-chung, GBM, GBS, JP, the Government of Hong Kong SAR's ChiefSecretary for Administration. Among the headline speakers and panellistsset to appear across four themed sections are Professor Christine Loh, Chief Development Strategist at Hong KongUniversity of Science and Technology; Esther An, Chief Sustainability Officerat City Developments Limited (CDL); Bryant Lu, Vice Chairman of renowned architectsRonald Lu & Partners; John Sayer, the Director of Carbon Care Asia andResearch Director of CarbonCare InnoLab; Brian Ho, Partner, Climate Change& Sustainability Services at EY; and Eric Yau, Chief Strategy Officer atThe Link Asset Management Limited.

"In 2018, an estimated US$200 billion waslost globally due to the effects of extreme weather patterns," said Ms ClareChiu, RICS' Chief Operating Officer for Greater China. "The devastationcaused by disasters such as Typhoon Mangkhut leaves no doubt that climatechange has become one of the most defining issues of our time.

"Thebuilt environment sector has a key part to play in ensuring our city is preparedfor the challenges ahead, and I am confident the programme of the RICS AnnualConference will help prepare professionals and policymakers, and inspire thesolutions which will ensure a safer, more sustainable city for future generations."

Find out more here: rics.org/hkconf2019

About RICS

Confidence through Professional Standards

RICS promotes and enforces the highestprofessional qualifications and standards in the development and management ofland, real estate, construction andinfrastructure. Our name promises the consistent delivery of standards --bringing confidence to the markets we serve.

We accredit 125,000 professionals and any individualor firm registered with RICS is subject to our quality assurance. Theirexpertise covers property, asset valuation, real estate management; thedevelopment of infrastructure; and the management of natural resources, such asmining, farms and woodland. From environmental assessments and buildingcontrols to negotiating land rights in an emerging economy; if our members areinvolved the same professional standards and ethics apply.

We believe that standards underpin effective markets.With up to seventy per cent of the world's wealth bound up in land and realestate, our sector is vital to economic development, helping to support stable,sustainable investment and growth around the globe.

With offices covering the major political andfinancial centres of the world, our market presence means we are ideally placedto influence policy and embed professional standards. We work at a cross-governmentallevel, delivering international standards that will support a safe and vibrantmarketplace in land, real estate, construction and infrastructure, for thebenefit of all.

We are proud of our reputation and work hard toprotect it, so clients who work with an RICS professional can have confidencein the quality and ethics of the services they receive.