WWF-Hong Kong

[Beyond Boundaries: On Wings of Beethoven – A Spoonbill’s Survival Journey 🦅🎼] WWF-Hong Kong is excited to be part of the extraordinary experience that transcends boundaries. Join us as The Orchestra Academy (TOA) takes you on a musical odyssey through the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, where nature, music, theatre, and dance intertwine. The concert, titled “Beyond Boundaries: On Wings of Beethoven – A Spoonbill’s Survival Journey” will be led by director and conductor Sharon Andrea Choa, with artistic advice and choreography by Justyne Li. Revel in a rich selection of music including masterpieces by Beethoven, Kam Shing Hei, Yoshimatsu, and Vivaldi. These pieces are inspired by the #BlackfacedSpoonbills migrating journey. The performance will also feature live puppetry and breathtaking footages of #MaiPoNatureReserve from WWF-Hong Kong. We extend our sincere gratitude to the sponsors, 太古基金 Swire Trust and concert’s bronze sponsor HSBC for their unwavering support of the concert and spreading the conservation message of protecting nature and biodiversity. Don’t miss this opportunity. Get early access to the performance and tour to Mai Po Nature Reserve 🦅🌿now! 📅Date: 10 August 2024 (Saturday) ⏰Show Times: 15:00-16:30 and 20:00-21:30 🏛️Venue: The Hong Kong Jockey Club Amphitheatre, HKAPA 🎟️Ticketing: Concert Booking[wwf.hk/3YabIwH] and Mai Po Tour Booking[wwf.hk/4cKc2Xl] 🌐Website: onwingsofbeethoven.com #NatureAndMusic #BlackfacedSpoonbills #MusicPerformance #TheOrchestraAcademy #MaiPoNatureReserve #Philanthropy #Conservation #Biodiversity #Concert #BeyondBoundaries

Joint Force to Restore Seagrass Bed in Hong Kong🌿 🌿🌏 Join us in restoring Hong Kong's #seagrass beds for a positive environmental impact. Despite covering just 0.2% of the seafloor, seagrass stores 10% of the ocean's carbon! It is vital for climate change mitigation and ecological balance. 🥹Unfortunately, seagrass bed habitats in Hong Kong are facing threats from #urbandevelopment, #pollution, and pressure from overwhelmed #recreationalactivities🚣🏻♂️. Urgent conservation and community involvement are crucial.   Thanks to the generous support of 太古基金 Swire Trust for "Sea for Future III" project to revitalise marine ecosystems through Nature-based Solutions like coral and seagrass restoration. Habitat restoration is one of the proactive conservation measures that can be adopted in Marine Protected Area and sensitive marine habitats. We are excited to collaborate with Professor Juan Diego Gaitan Espitia and his research team from the Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS) at The University of Hong Kong to explore effective methods for restoring local seagrass beds💪🏽👨🏽🏫. This year, we have planned a diverse range of activities to raise awareness about seagrass restoration. Firstly, an educational seagrass nursery tank at the #HoiHaMarineLifeCentre for public engagement📖💡. Additionally, we will be organising eco-tour at various seagrass bed sites, providing participants with hands-on experiences in seagrass surveys and geography field sketches. In parallel, a useful guide with a seagrass identification tips and kayaking guidelines is developed to educate kayakers on seagrass conservation, environmental protection and safety. As an exclusive experience, we are also conducting pilot restoration trials for public to participate in restoring seagrass beds while learning about their importance. Let's support building up Hong Kong's natural carbon sinks and protect marine life🌿🐠🦀! Together, we can safeguard these vital habitats and ensure a sustainable future for our oceans🌊🐡.

🌍✈️ #MaiPoNatureReserve Makes a Strong Presence at Wetland Link International Asia-Oceania Our wetland conservation and education team showcased our commitment to Mai Po Nature Reserve at the Wetland Link International Asia-Oceania (WLI-AO) Conference in Sri Lanka in June💪🏻. As a longstanding member of Wetland Link International (WLI), a global network of wetland education centres, we actively participated in this influential event. The Conference brought together government departments and NGOs responsible for wetland management and education, with representatives from Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Mongolia, India, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Germany👥.   We were excited to introduce our latest infrastructure, The Jockey Club Mai Po Peter Scott Visitor Centre, at the conference. An opportunity to present our expertise in wetland conservation and habitat management to both local communities and regional wetland managers. The attendees showed great enthusiasm and interest in our work. Additionally, we participated in an engaging exhibition at Diyasaru Park, a wetland park in Colombo and the world's first capital accredited as a Ramsar Wetland City. This experience enriched us to learn from their city planning and apply their insights in our own efforts in conserving the health and vitality of our wetlands✨. Our participation in the WLI-AO Conference and engagement with the global wetland community strengthen our commitment to conservation. We eagerly collaborate to protect precious wetland ecosystems🌍🤝🌱. #WetlandConservation #Education #EnvironmentalStewardship #GlobalConference #WLIAsiaOceania #WetlandLinkInternational #SustainableDevelopment

How do creativity, discovery and engaging participants from all walks of life incubate some first of its kind solutions for Hong Kong wetlands👩🔧👨🔬?    Supported by The Hongkong Bank Foundation, the Wetland Incubator project has engaged more than 270 incubators and 16 collaborators to develop, create and test various wetland related solutions in the past three years under 4 main themes: Migratory birds, Mammals, Future proofing wetland stewardship and Climate change mitigation & adaptation.    To share our interesting findings with the general public and to celebrate the hard work of our project participants, a Wetland Incubator Showcase at Central Market and an Celebratory Event at Musuem café took place on 22 & 23 June. Thank you for joining to learn more about Hong Kong wetlands, we hope to carry-on this momentum, and further reach out, engage and inspire more people to protect our wetlands together. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights from the weekend. #WWF #WetlandIncubator #MaiPoNatureReserve #wetland #HSBC #HBF #滙豐 #滙豐銀行慈善基金 #TheHongkongBankFoundation #ClimateChange

WWF-Hong Kong Corporate Membership Programme (CMP) is committed to partnering with companies to influence sustainable strategies in business practices. We worked with corporations toward a vision to transform Hong Kong into the most sustainable city in Asia. Since the programme was launched in 2000, numerous companies have shown their commitment to protecting the environment by becoming our corporate members. Their support has enabled us to continue and expand our conservation and education programmes. Today, we would like to express our heartfelt appreciation to eight companies that have joined our Corporate Membership Programme this year, taking an active role in advancing Hong Kong's #sustainabledevelopment agenda. We extend our gratitude to: City Super Group Computime Group Limited  Hip Shing Hong (Holdings) Company Limited HAECO Hong Kong Hutchison Ports Holdings Limited  Mitsubishi Electric Hong Kong Limited  Uni-Asia Group Limited  Zurich Watch 蘇麗鐘錶 Co. Ltd Join our programme to drive sustainable business practices and make an effort to build a better environment and secure a brighter future for all together! Check out more details in our CMP booklet 2024(https://wwf.hk/4eX6nir) or talk to our specialists at [email protected]   #WWF #Sustainability #CorporatePartnerships #CorporateResponsibility

Powering Our Wetlands – Mai Po Community Celebration The HSBC volunteers came back to the gei wai in Mai Po to celebrate the success of a ‘Nature-based Solutions (NbS)’ prototype with the villagers. They helped in planting mangrove seedlings in the pond and on the bund last year. Mr. William CHIU, Secretary, Advisory Committee, The Hongkong Bank Foundation, emphasized the importance of collaboration with the community in building climate resilience and mitigating climate risks. Climate change – more super typhoons and extreme weather – is no doubt one of the biggest challenges villagers face in Mai Po and Inner Deep Bay. The risk of flooding due to collapsed sluice gate, mud accumulation or overgrown vegetation at water channels connecting to gei wais can cause fatalities; polluted water due to lack of regular water exchange and accumulated organic matters or household sewage in abandoned gei wais can pose health risk and disease heterogeneity. With the support of The Hongkong Bank Foundation, WWF-Hong Kong in collaboration with the community designed the Powering Our Wetlands NbS prototype to address societal challenges through actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural and modified ecosystems, benefiting both people and nature. The Powering Our Wetlands project aims to explore, identify and test NbS from the ecosystem services provided by the wetlands in Mai Po through innovative, sustainable use strategies. The overall goal is to enhance the contributions of the Ramsar Site to carbon sequestration, climate change mitigation and resilience building, while providing human well-being and the diversity of habitats required to sustain the bird migratory flyway. #HSBC #HBF #滙豐 #滙豐銀行慈善基金 #TheHongkongBankFoundation #sustainability #ClimateChange #NaturebasedSolutions #NbS #MaiPo #WWFHK

Kinmen Otter Expedition🕵️♂️ - Community Taiwan’s dedication to scientific research and long-term monitoring of otter populations has provided valuable insights to refine our undertakings in Hong Kong. In Kinmen, collaborative efforts across government departments, academia, and NGOs have solidified impactful otter conservation initiatives. Kinmen’s comprehensive Conservation Action Plan for #EurasianOtter includes creating otter-friendly facilities and eco-corridors to connect otter habitats and reduce road-kill risks. The Kinmen government has also introduced the Payments for Ecosystem Services for otters to encourage public participation🐾. As community-based conservation initiatives, the establishment of otter monitoring teams, and the reporting of otter sightings and individuals in need of assistance are rewarded. Kinmen’s ex-situ conservation efforts have led to a captive population of rescued otters serving as conservation ambassadors at Taipei Zoo, promoting otter conservation to the public. Taiwan’s exceptional otter conservation efforts serve as an inspiring model for Hong Kong🦦! During our trip in Kinmen, we were fortunate to witness an otter’s calm demeanour as it enjoyed freshly caught fish. This sighting gives us hope that one day we may encounter them in Hong Kong as effortlessly as in Kinmen. By fostering coexistence and collective efforts to protect otters and their habitats, Hong Kong can offer hope for otter conservation💪🏽. #EurasianOtter #Conservation #Wetlands #OtterConservation #NatureConservation #Habitats #WildlifeProtection #CommunityEngagement #JointEffort

Kinmen Otter Expedition🕵️♂️ - Research In April, our otter conservation team travelled to #Kinmen and Taipei for a knowledge exchange trip with Dr. Jang-Liaw Nian-Hong, a leading otter expert in East Asia, to enhance our conservation efforts in Hong Kong and the region🦦🐾. Kinmen is roughly the size of Lantau Island and is home to the most stable and dense population of Eurasian otters in coastal areas of East Asia. In 2023, 94 otters were recorded. Monitoring the population involves searching for otter spraints (a specific term for otter scat💩). This reflects otter presence and fresh samples for genetic analysis provide accurate individual identification. To obtain the freshest samples, the search began before dawn, as Eurasian otters are primarily nocturnal. Spraints from Kinmen were then brought back to Dr. Jang-Liaw’s laboratory at Taipei Zoo to extract the DNA for genetic analyses🔬👨🔬. The continuous spraint sampling contributes to long-term studies on population dynamics, home range, dietary composition, and other characteristics, informing otter conservation in Kinmen. In Hong Kong, collecting spraint samples is challenging due to the elusive and small otter population. With only seven individuals recorded in Deep Bay wetlands, understanding their ecology remains a long-term endeavour. To conserve otters in Hong Kong, more resources and collaborative efforts are urgently needed from both research and societal perspectives. Stay tuned for more insights in our next post. #EurasianOtter #Conservation #Wetlands #OtterConservation #NatureConservation #Habitats #WildlifeProtection

A Wave of Inspiration: WWF-Hong Kong Sustainable Ocean Seminar 🌊 The WWF-Hong Kong Sustainable Ocean Seminar last Friday was a resounding success! We were thrilled to see our corporate members, sustainable seafood business programme members, and attendees from diverse sectors engaged in insightful discussions about marine conservation and corporate sustainability. ✅ Financing a Sustainable Future At the sharing session, Mr. Stuart Beavis, Regional Lead of Dutch Fund for Climate and Development, highlighted the critical finance gap in funding conservation projects needed to protect our nature and biodiversity. He also shared inspiring stories of successful bankable projects from across the Asia-Pacific region, demonstrating how we can channel finance towards a healthier ocean future while empowering local communities. ✅ Fostering Collaboration for a Healthier Ocean During the panel discussion, Prof. Bayden Russell from The University of Hong Kong provided a compelling overview of the challenges facing our oceans and the scientific foundation underpinning our conservation efforts. This set the stage for a lively discussion exploring the vital roles different stakeholders can play in protecting our oceans. Mr. Daniel MENCIUS from Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) shared with us how sustainable fisheries practices can revive our oceans and how purchasing sustainable seafood can improve corporate sustainability performance. Ms. Karen Ho then highlighted how conservation organizations like WWF-Hong Kong connect businesses and funders, directing funding into actionable marine conservation projects. Finally, Ms. Joey Lau provided examples of how corporates like Swire Properties can lead the way in supporting marine conservation efforts through environmental stewardship. Together, these presentations highlighted the importance of collaboration and inspired us with innovative ways to bridge the gap between corporate sustainability and marine conservation. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all our speakers for their insightful contributions and to our attendees for making this event such a success. We're excited to continue working together to build a more sustainable future for our oceans. #OceanSustainability #MarineConservation #WWFHK #SustainableSeafood #BusinessForNature #CorporateSustainability

"AI for Combating Wildlife Crime" Workshop concludes with success! The "AI for Combating Wildlife Crime" workshop, hosted by #WWF and ifaw in collaboration with United Nations University Institute in Macau, KPMG, and Atos, concluded successfully on June 26, 2024. The two-day event harnessed the power of AI to revolutionize the fight against wildlife crime. The event, held on June 25-26, brought together experts from various fields to share cutting-edge practices, strategize collective actions, and explore new funding opportunities. A key outcome was the launch of the #UNU_Global_AI_Network, a global platform uniting academia, private sector, policymakers, and civil society to tackle #AI_challenges. #Wildlife_trafficking is the fourth most prevalent criminal activity worldwide. As illegal wildlife traders adopt sophisticated tactics, traditional monitoring methods are no longer sufficient. #AI_technologies offer a game-changing solution, providing insights into biodiversity changes, detecting illegal activities, and assisting frontline officers in identifying trafficked wildlife. The successful event marks a significant step forward in the global fight against the devastating impact of wildlife crime on biodiversity and ecosystems worldwide. #AIForWildlife #WildlifeConservation #ConservationTech