The Community-based Social Innovation for Youth Program in Hong Kong Prize Presentation Ceremony for the Second “Social Innovation � Community 4.0” Competition

HONG KONG, CHINA -�Media OutReach - 9 October 2020 - The
Prize Presentation Ceremony of the second “Social Innovation · Community 4.0”
Competition, supported by Citi Foundation and organized by the Hong Kong
Council of Social Service (HKCSS), was held today. Officiating the ceremony were
Mr. Caspar Tsui Ying Wai, JP, Secretary for Home Affairs, HKSAR; Mr. Wayne Fong, Head
of Corporate Affairs, Citi Hong Kong; and Mr. Chua Hoi
Wai, Chief Executive of the HKCSS. Also attending were representatives
of the competition’s partners, supporting organisations, teachers and students
from the finalist teams.  Fourteen prototypes
were showcased for
guests attending the ceremony.

 

The winning entry “Easy Food Waste”, developed by a team from the
True Light Girls’ College, aims at raising awareness of food waste management and
improving hygiene in Kowloon City district. The
project includes a recycling machine with a six-month period of experimentation
and evaluation to develop the machine’s capabilities, and a three-month
training period to enable the eight participating restaurants to perfect using
it. The winning team will join a HKCSS-organized tour
to visit a cluster
of innovative start-ups and social enterprises in
Bali next year.

 

The “Social Innovation · Community 4.0” Competition is
open to all secondary schools in Hong Kong and was first launched last year for
the Central and Western district. This year Kowloon City district was the
selected neighbourhood. Through experiential learning in the community and
comprehensive training in design thinking, technology, and prototype making, as
well as interaction with local citizens in the district with the support of the District Office and NGOs in the area, participating students were challenged to identify a community issue and come up with solutions
to address it. Despite the pandemic, 35 teams from 28 secondary schools
submitted their proposals. Fourteen teams were invited to produce prototypes
which were exhibited to the public at the Ko Shan Theatre from July 11 – 13 and
through an online exhibition
starting from today.

 

Mr. Caspar Tsui, JP,
Secretary for Home Affairs said, “During the
competition, students had the chance to get involved in local communities and
learn more about them from different perspectives through taking part in workshops
and site visits. Such experiences helped them deepen their understanding of the
daily lives of local residents as well as government policies. The world is
ever changing, presenting us with new challenges. Our society is also facing a
number of challenges in areas such as population, economy, housing and
environment. We need caring and empathetic young people with a strong sense of
responsibility to strive for the well-being of Hong Kong by making use of
innovation and technology. I hope all participants, whether you win or not,
will continue to bring positive energy into society by caring for our community
with love and demonstrating your spirit of innovation in the days to come.
Together we will make a better Hong Kong.”

Mr. Wayne Fong, Head of Corporate Affairs, Citi Hong Kong, said, “Citi Foundation has been supporting
initiatives that improve youth employability and promote sustainability. This
program emphasizes exploring, understanding, learning and creative thinking, and
offers participants a taste of social invention which is a great nurturing
experience for the students. This program creates an
invaluable platform for our future generations to explore personal
interests and pave the way for them to get involved in the creation and
enhancement of communities.”

 

Mr. Chua,
Chief Executive of the HKCSS said, “The
competition aims to provide a chance for teachers and students to learn and think out of the box, apply STEM and design thinking skills, interact with
residents, and solve community problems in Kowloon City district. Though the pandemic this year increased the difficulties of the competition
and limited the chance for local visits, the students were able to complete
their projects using different methods, which demonstrated their perseverance
and innovation. To observe social distancing requirements, some activities of
the competition had to go online. Special thanks are extended to all our
community partners, who enabled more than 100 local residents from grassroots
families, social housing and elderly centres to participate in online Community
Trial. In this unexpected way, social innovation was brought to the community. It
provided incentives for NGOs to teach and residents to use online communication
software to share their views to the students. In return, residents have told
us that this experience greatly enhanced their confidence to use online services
in the future. “

 

Some of the
prototypes were tested in the community in September this year. Residents in Kowloon City district were engaged to interact with students from a user’s perspective, in order to improve
the feasibility and convenience of the prototypes. The third “Social
Innovation · Community 4.0” Competition will be open for applications in
November, and the focal district will be North District.

 

About HKCSS

The HKCSS is an umbrella
organisation of about 480 agency members that provide
over 90% of the social welfare services in Hong Kong.  HKCSS launched the
Caring Company Scheme in 2002 to build a cohesive society by promoting
strategic partnership among business and social service partners and inspiring
corporate social responsibility through caring for the community, employees and
the environment.  HKCSS puts much effort in building capacity of social enterprises
through the Social Enterprise Business Centre (SEBC) to advance social
entrepreneurship and mobilize social innovation.

Additional
information may be found at www.hkcss.org.hk |

Facebook: www.facebook.com/hkcssfans

About Citi Foundation

The Citi Foundation works to promote
economic progress and improve the lives of people in low-income communities
around the world. We invest in efforts that increase financial inclusion,
catalyze job opportunities for youth, and reimagine approaches to building
economically vibrant cities. The Citi Foundation’s “More than Philanthropy”
approach leverages the enormous expertise of Citi and its people to fulfil our
mission and drive thought leadership and innovation. For more information,
visit www.citifoundation.com