Announcements

Hosted by The Social Innovation Team of ORKTS through partnership with Hong Kong Council for Social Service, the "Innovation for Targeted Poverty Alleviation" event brought together over 80 attendees to explore innovative strategies and initiatives addressing poverty alleviation in Hong Kong, leveraging the “Community Living Room” initiatives. Featuring keynote presentations, best practices sharing, and interactive design-thinking workshops, the event fostered collaboration and knowledge exchange among NGO practitioners and CUHK professors.

The event started with a thought-provoking presentation by Prof Wong Hung from the Department of Social Work, who shared key findings and insights on poverty issues in Hong Kong. Attendees gained a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted challenges faced by the disadvantaged communities, especially the three targeted groups, namely subdivided unit residents, single-parent households, and elderly households.

A notable highlight was the exploration of leveraging "Community Living Rooms" as an effective platform to reach out and serve these targeted groups. Mr. Kenny Ng, Team Leader of the Group and Community Work Unit at HKSKH Lady MacLehose Centre; Ms. Susanna Lee, Executive Director of P.C. Lee OneSky Global Centre for Early Childhood Development; and Mr. Anthony Lai, Head of Strategic Communication and Talent Development at Health in Action, shared their experiences operating Community Living Rooms. Their presentations showcased different approaches in promoting community engagement and supporting disadvantaged groups, offering valuable insights and inspiration to the attendees.

In addition to NGO-led initiatives, CUHK professors also showcased their services for communities in need. Prof Maggie Ma from the School of Architecture presented her project on specially-designed furniture for subdivided units, aiming to improve living conditions for marginalised communities. Prof Suzanne Lo from The Nethersole School of Nursing shared her project on hand rehab and hygiene outreach services, which aims to increase the wellbeing and confidence of the people with hand spasticity, especially among the elderly.

The event concluded on a high note with an engaging Idea Generation Workshop. Facilitated by the Good Lab, the leading social innovation consultancy in Hong Kong, collaborations between NGO practitioners, private funders, and CUHK professors was fostered to better address the specific needs of targeted disadvantaged groups. Participants shared experiences from their respective fields, and co-created innovative ideas to better serve the disadvantaged groups. The documentation of the workshop is available here.

The recording of the sharing session is available. Please find the links below.