We are in the thinking business; our mission is to advance solutions and expedite action. The annual report highlights our work and achievements, from the Fair Winds Charter to the Climate Dialogue/C40 Cities conference, as well as ongoing commitments and collaborative work on air quality, climate change, energy, nature conservation and conflict transformation, research on hydropower developments in China, flooding on the Pearl River Delta, and income equality. Download full report (3.7 MB)

2010 marked the 10th anniversary for Civic Exchange. We recently produced this special 10th anniversary publication to celebrate what we have achieved since our establishment. This publication also includes our 2010 annual report. The past year can be characterised as ‘harvest’, as earlier work has borne fruit in each of our key research areas, including land use & energy, climate change, air & health, and governance. We thank all collaborators and funders for their generous support.

Click here to download the full publication.

The work of Civic Exchange from October 2008 to September 2009 cannot be divorced from that of previous years. Since we began in 2000, we have made significant contributions in air pollution and health, energy and climate change, urban design and high performance buildings, sustainable development, the Pearl River Delta, good governance, public records management, and public budgeting. In the past twelve months, we have expanded on what we can offer to policy-makers and the public on these subjects.

Click here to download the full report.

In our areas of focus, Civic Exchange is frequently the dominant and most respected contributor of new data, perspectives, issue-framing and solutions. We are able to do this because of our ability to raise good questions in our inquiry, to adopt a multi-disciplinary approach to exploring issues and to collaborate with knowledgeable partners. We also never ignore political processes and players since public policies and politics cannot be divorced. Increasingly, the conduct of our work includes wide involvement of experts and stakeholders, and the relevance of our endeavours extends beyond Hong Kong to South China, nationally and even globally.

Click here to download the full report.

The year 2007 has always been important in Hong Kong’s political consciousness as it represents a decade after 1997, when Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China. The events relating to the transfer of sovereignty from British to Chinese rule remain crystal clear in our collective memory. The trials and tribulations of the past ten years have also left their mark. Hong Kong survived two severe economic downturns, an infectious diseases outbreak in 2003 that made the city a pariah in the world, rocky politics that bought out half a million people in protest against the government, and the downfall of the then administration.

Click here to download the full report.

Civic Exchange has spent a substantial part of the past four years working on a range of air pollution related research studies, many of which were groundbreaking. Finally in 2005, the severity of the problem caught the public imagination and it is now generally accepted that air pollution requires immediate policy attention and that businesses also need to act. Moreover, there is now an emerging interest in energy and climate change issues. Civic Exchange and our research partners have redoubled our efforts to ride this wave of interest to capitalise on this moment to help increase public understanding of the relationship between air pollution, energy usage and climate change, as well as put analyses and recommendations to the authorities in Hong Kong and Guangdong.

Click here to download the full report.

In our 5th year, it is becoming clear what areas of expertise Civic Exchange has accumulated over the years. We have developed core competence in approaching public policy from a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary basis; we are a leader in air quality and environmentally-related research; and we devote considerable time to exploring how the Hong Kong constitutional system should evolve.

Click here to download our full report.

The post-SARS turnaround in 2003 was swift for Hong Kong and for Civic Exchange. The fact that our city was able to recover quickly had much to do with its strong foundations, both economically and socially. For Civic Exchange too, SARS provided an opportunity to respond in a way that utilised our ability to act as a platform for collaboration.

Click here to download our full report.

The past year has been a defining one for Civic Exchange, as it has been for Hong Kong where we are based. The outbreak of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) made us realise the importance of building social capital in our society so that citizens can fight adversity together effectively. Although there was sadness over the many infections and deaths in the community, Hong Kong people were also proud of their ability to come together to overcome the unexpected public health challenge that paralysed the city for three months. At a time of crisis, Hong Kong people proved they could be compassionate, generous, cooperative and professional. The experience gave Hong Kong people back their sense of dignity and pride, which has suffered in recent years as a result of self doubt and uncertainty about how Hong Kong fits into a rapidly modernising China.

Click here to download our full report.

The past year has been busy and invigorating. We are stretching our abilities and producing work of high quality that we are proud of despite modest resources. In the midst of our hectic schedule, we had our first birth and our first marriage. Congratulations to Lisa Hopkinson for her best work yet in producing Lydia Bea, and to Julia Gilkes for her transformation to Julia Surman. A key project for the coming year is to design a playroom at Number 69 Wyndham Street so that Lydia can visit often.

Civic Exchange is grateful to design school students from Hong Kong Polytechnic University for creating our second annual report in CD-Rom, website and printable pdf formats.

Click here to download the full report.