Ng Cho-nam

Ng Cho-nam (, August 15, 1960 – December 13, 2019), , was a Hong Kong environmental studies scholar and conservationist who taught as an associate professor within the Department of Geography at the University of Hong Kong. He served as a top advisor on numerous Hong Kong government committees in areas of conservation, sustainable development, environmental protection, urban planning, and was an active member in various environmental NGOs. He was the director of the Conservancy Association from 2000 to 2019.

Ng was among the first generation of Hong Kong environmentalists. He is most notable for his contribution to the campaign that led to the rescue of Long Valley wetlands in 1999, the JC-WISE Project (Jockey Club Water Initiative on Sustainability and Engagement) and the ongoing sustainable Lai Chi Wo program. He was awarded the Bronze Bauhinia Star (2004) and the Silver Bauhinia Star (2014) by the Hong Kong SAR Government “in recognition of his meritorious public and community service, particularly for his contribution to environmental protection and promotion of nature conservation in Hong Kong.”

Early life and education

Ng was born in 1960 in British Hong Kong. He grew up in Central, Hong Kong, where his mother and father were hawkers on Li Yuen Street East. He completed his primary education at Kei Yan Primary School and his secondary education at the Salesian English School in 1978. He became interested in nature at a very young age, and joined the Scout Association of Hong Kong in secondary school.

Ng obtained his Bachelor of Science (with Honors) in 1983 (Grizedale College) and PhD in 1987 in environmental sciences from the University of Lancaster, U.K. His doctoral advisor was Peter Young. He was a post-doctoral research associate at the Centre for Research on Environmental Systems, University of Lancaster, from 1987 to 1988.

Academic career

After earning his doctorate degree, Ng returned to Hong Kong to teach. He began his academic career as a lecturer in the Department of Applied Science, City Polytechnic of Hong Kong (now known as City University of Hong Kong) in 1988.

In 1999, he joined the Department of Geography at the University of Hong Kong as an associate professor. Ng taught a variety of courses focused on environmental impact assessment (EIAs), nature conservation, sustainable development, and water governance. His course, "Hong Kong Environment: Issues and Policies," was one of the first university courses offered in Hong Kong that focused on environmental conservation and sustainability issues related to Hong Kong. In 2014, Ng was awarded the Long Service Award from the University of Hong Kong in recognition of teaching at the university for 15 years.

Ng's academic research projects focused on environmental impacts of urbanization, urban river basin study, and water governance. His work has been published in various international journals such as the International Journal of Water Resources Development, Science of the Total Environment and International Journal of Remote Sensing. He also frequently presented at international conferences, including the International Association for Impact Assessment, the Association of American Geographers and the Riversymposium.

Ng served as an Executive Council member for the Hong Kong Geographical Association for over ten years. He was also an advisor (2014-2019) to Our Hong Kong Foundation, where he advised on issues related to Hong Kong's land and housing supply. Ng was a frequent guest on RTHK, Commercial Radio Hong Kong, and other various Hong Kong broadcast media.

KCRC Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Crisis (Long Valley Wetlands)

In 1999, Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation proposed to construct a Lok Ma Chau spur line which would cut through the wetland of Long Valley, Hong Kong According to the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society, the construction of the spur line threatened to destroy habitat of over 210 avian species and 13 globally-threatened species.

Ng served as the spokesman for the coalition of Hong Kong green groups that were against the KCRC rail project. As the director of the Conservancy Association, Ng lobbied for international support for the
Save Long Valley
campaign and wrote many letters to various Hong Kong government officials urging them to scrap the proposed spur line, stating that the KCRC claims in its environmental assessment report were “flawed” and “contradictory.” He conducted his own environmental field work and argued that there could be alternative ways to construct the spur line "without destroying the natural habitat and biodiversity at Long Valley." Ng also publicly expressed his concern of Long Valley in the RTHK radio program「香港家書」titled “Letter to Hong Kong” in June 2000.

On October 8, 2000, Ng organized the “Green Ribbon Campaign” at the Hung Hom KCRC station, outside of where the KCRC held a public exhibition to promote the construction of the Lok Ma Chau railway spur line. Various Hong Kong green groups, and local Hong Kong citizens, tied green ribbons at the KCRC's Hung Hom station to protest against the rail project.

The "Green Ribbon Campaign" and "Save Long Valley" campaign generated local and international media attention. Ng's contributions were reported in various news outlets such as ''Asiaweek'' '', South China Morning Post'' '', Sing Tao Daily'' '', Ming Pao'' '', Apple Daily'' and ''Oriental Daily News''.

On October 16, 2000, the Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department (EPD) rejected the KCRC's Lok Ma Chau rail project. ''Time Magazine'' declared the HK EPD's decision to reject the rail project as one of the top five "best environmental news" of 2000, stating that it was "one of the few times the city has favored ecology over economy."

Jockey Club Water Initiative on Sustainability and Engagement (JC-WISE)

Ng served as the co-investigator (with Frederick Lee, director of the Water Governance Research Program at the University of Hong Kong) at the Jockey Club Water Initiative on Sustainability and Engagement (JC-WISE) (Chinese:「賽馬會惜水‧識河計劃」), a water sustainability project funded by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust (awarded HK$14.7 million grant) and hosted by the Faculty of Social Sciences, The University of Hong Kong. Launched in 2016, the project "aims to raise the public’s awareness, and appreciation, of the importance of attaining long-term water sustainability goals for Hong Kong" through collaborations with the Hong Kong Geographical Association, the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society, and Green Power. In an interview for ''China Daily'' in 2017, Ng described the focus and goal of the JC-Wise project was to encourage the Hong Kong public to adopt a "river-friendly" culture mindset: "Every river has its own story. We’d like to reconnect the river with its community."

Under his leadership, the initiative organized school talks, field trips for local students, and hosted international conferences and public events such as "Water Fun Fest Day" to promote sustainability in the use of water resources in Hong Kong. JC-Wise created the first "Rivers@HK" database, an open-access and interactive GIS-based database on Hong Kong's rivers to "enhance the public's knowledge and appreciation of the multiple values of water." The initiative has also created Hong Kong's firs
Water Footprint Calculator
an interactive tool that allows the public to calculate the water footprint based on their choices of daily meals. Ng was also a key participant of the 2018 Hong Kong Biodiversity Festival (Chinese: 香港生物多樣性節), where he guided a public tour with Hong Kong Secretary of Environment Wong Kam-sing and members of the public to highlight ecology restoration of the Lam Tsuen River

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