Going Green with Ambition and
Passion
G r e e n bu i l d i ng a nd e nv i r onmen t a l
awareness in Hong Kong have come a long
way since the 1990s, and Dr Chan has been
present every step of the way. In recent years,
he channelled his passion in yet another
field of expertise – city planning. “We’re
now seeing rapid development in mainland
China’s cities,” he explains. “If the wrong
route is taken in the planning of buildings,
infrastructure and energy production,
etc., there will be serious environmental
consequences to live with for decades to
come”.
While he acknowledges the importance
of professional contributions to the green
building industry, he also realises that
behavioural factors and public education
are equally important. The next generation
i s i nc rea s i ng l y awa re o f human i t y ’s
responsibility to the Earth, thanks to
the green culture now starting to be
embedded in school curricula. People are
also increasingly aware of saving electricity
in various ways, such as by turning off idle
lights and other electrical appliances. With
the HK3030 campaign recently launched
by the HKGBC, Dr Chan considers the
aim of reducing the absolute electricity
consumption of buildings by 30% of the
2005 level by 2030 a very “achievable” goal.
“In terms of public advocacy and education,
the HKGBC has been quite successful.
Previously we were only known within the
industry, but we have since reached out
and contributed to positive behavioural
change in working and living environment.
We will continue to do this. Maybe in the
distant future, terms like ‘green buildings’ will
become obsolete as green standards will be
the established norm!”
With his profound vision and experience
in the industr y, Ir Dr Chan offers an
inspirational and highly personal account
of the development of green building and
the potential role it can play in the city’s
future growth. Although local development
is still at a relatively early stage, every
party in the local industry is committed
to further improving Hong Kong’s green
building standards so as to achieve long-
term sustainability, regional leadership and
ultimately, as Dr Chan’s company motto
suggests, ‘shape a better world’.
當大家尋求最頂尖的技術
時，會將目光轉向亞洲，並
發現香港在全球舉足輕重。
Maybe in the distant future, terms like ‘green
buildings’ will become obsolete as green standards
will be the established norm!
團結業界 打穩根基
在
言談間，可見陳博士早將個人
對綠色發展的熱誠注入工作。
「約十多年前，我們正探求公
司發展的方向，發現城市化、
氣候變化、能源短缺等問題正
影響世界。我相信在這幾方面我們對地球責
無旁貸，尤其身為業內專業人士，在建築、
運輸系統等範疇更為任重道遠。」
在 2008 年，時任發展局局長林鄭月娥女士希
望聯合各業界團體，為可持續建築成立一個
代表機構，陳博士居中聯絡統籌，並在 2009
年獲委以議會創會主席重任，但他未有居功：
「林局長是創立香港綠色建築議會的關鍵人
物！」他又指：「建造業議會的支持是重要
的關鍵，因它是唯一聯繫業界各方的組織，
更牽頭提供籌辦資金。當然，由於各團體關
心的範疇不同，要大家走在一起，確實需要
點時間磨合。」不過，各創會成員都以建立
持續發展為明確目標，齊心合力，終為香港
綠色建築環境建立穩固的基礎。
坐擁優勢 萬事俱備
陳博士深信香港坐擁優勢，足以在綠色建
築及都市發展領先國際。他提到綠建環評
(BEAM Plus) 專為本港人口密度高、氣候潮濕
炎熱等特色而設，不僅有利本港環保發展，
同時亦有潛力成為區內基準，發展商可善用
這套領導市場的工具，推出優質綠建項目。
他又認為只要早作規劃，綠色建築所需的額
外成本其實微乎其微，而項目長遠所節省的
成本非常巨大，可為其他項目樹立榜樣。越
but we seldom demonstrate them to others
on the international stage. “Developing
areas such as the Middle East understand
that we are more competitive than Europe
and America in providing relevant and cost-
effective solutions. We can then attract
others to learn from us while at the same
time exporting our expertise.” In fact, Dr
Chan predicts that in 10 years’ time, “when
people look for state-of-the-art green
building technology, they could look to Asia,
a part of the world we play a key role in.”
A s f o r f u t u r e t r e n d s i n l o c a l b u i l t
environment, he predicts that the scarcity
of land in Hong Kong will lead to more
urban revitalisation, which is an opportunity
to transform a district into a greener
environment. Building per formance
benchmarking is another key area of
development, and one in which the HKGBC
can play a major role in facilitating the
sharing of data, inducing peer pressure
and motivating owners to retrofit existing
buildings. “The extensive participation of
industry players should be able to make this
happen,” he predicts.
GreenMAG
Director's
Interview
6
