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Jockey Club’s Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum targets solutions for fairer societies
09/11/2023
From 11-12 September, global philanthropists and thought leaders are gathering in Hong Kong to debate solutions to global inequity and pathways to a more sustainable future for all. Philanthropy, with its proven ability to catalyse change and deliver impact, will be a major focus.
Convened by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the third Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum, which opened today (11 September) at the West Kowloon Cultural District, brings together more than 1,600 delegates from around the world, including close to 70 eminent speakers and over 200 representatives of regional and global foundations. Among them are philanthropic, academic, business, social sector and government leaders. The opening ceremony was officiated by Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region John Lee and Club Chairman Michael Lee.
“Over the past three years, we are seeing inflation outpacing wage growth, new technologies replacing old job types, climate change disproportionately impacting the vulnerable and rapid urbanisation creating uneven distribution of resources. This is a global challenge that requires collective action across borders and calls for deeper international dialogue that learns from both East and West,” said Club Chairman Michael Lee. “We hope this will provoke in-depth discussions on fair access to economic opportunities, education and healthcare, and build impetus and motivation for building fairer societies in the future.”
Delivering today’s keynote address was 2019 Nobel Laureate in Economics Professor Abhijit Banerjee from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who spoke on the topic of “Balancing economic growth and equity goals”.
For the second keynote, Professor Banerjee was joined by former Prime Minister of Thailand Abhisit Vejjajiva and Professor Justin Yifu Lin, Dean of the Institute of New Structural Economics, Peking University and former Chief Economist of The World Bank. They discussed emerging East and West welfare models and how regional welfare models can be transformed to meet the changing needs of today’s world.
Leaders from global philanthropic institutions such as The Rockefeller Foundation, the Temasek Foundation, the Wellcome Trust and others joined the plenary sessions to discuss “Post-pandemic preparedness: Driving global collaboration through philanthropies.”
In his opening address, Club Chairman Michael Lee introduced the new Institute of Philanthropy (“IoP”), a major new initiative from The Hong Kong Jockey Club. Conceived as a “think-fund-do” tank, the IoP aims to promote philanthropic thought leadership at local, regional and global levels. The Club has committed an initial sum of HK$5 billion to fulfil this mission.
More key topics will be explored tomorrow. Prominent speakers include Christiana Figueres, Co-host of “Outrage + Optimism” and Former United Nations Climate Chief, award-winning author Dr Amitav Ghosh (Jnanpith Award, Dan David Prize and more), and Academy Award-winner Ke Huy Quan.
For more of the day’s highlights, please visit: #HKJC_Community.
The Club’s support for the Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum, like all of its charity initiatives, is made possible by its unique integrated business model through which racing and wagering generate tax and charity support for the community.
The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a world-class racing club that acts continuously for the betterment of our society. The Club has a unique integrated business model, comprising racing and racecourse entertainment, a membership club, responsible sports wagering and lottery, and charities and community contribution. Through this model, the Club generates economic and social value for the community and supports the HKSAR Government in combatting illegal gambling. In 2022/23, the Club returned a total of HK$35.9 billion to the community. This included HK$28.6 billion to the HKSAR Government in duty, profits tax and Lotteries Fund contributions and HK$7.3 billion in approved charity donations. The Club is Hong Kong’s largest single taxpayer and one of the city’s major employers. Its Charities Trust is one of the world’s top ten charity donors.
Picture 1:
HKSAR Chief Executive John Lee delivers the opening remarks of the Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum convened by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust.
Picture 2:
Club Chairman Michael Lee says philanthropy must assume an even bigger role in creating fairer cities.
Picture 3:
The Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum kicked off with an exhilarating musical performance by students of the Jockey Club Power of Music Programme and the Hong Kong String Orchestra, providing the 1,600-plus attendees with an inspiring start to the two-day event.
Picture 4:
Introduced by Professor Richard Wong, Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Professor of Economics of the University of Hong Kong (left), Nobel Laureate Professor Abhijit Banerjee from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (right) delivered the first keynote address of the Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum, titled “Balancing economic growth and equity goals”.
Picture 5:
In the first plenary session “Post-pandemic preparedness –Driving global collaboration through philanthropies”, moderated by Naina Subberwal, Chief Executive Officer of the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (centre), Professor Lincoln Chen, President Emeritus of China Medical Board (2nd right), Boon Heong Ng, Chief Executive Officer of the Temasek Foundation (2nd left), Dr Naveen Rao, Senior Vice President (Health Initiative) of The Rockefeller Foundation (1st right), and Dr Paul Schreier, Chief Executive Officer (Interim) of the Wellcome Trust (1st left) explored the potential for global philanthropic collaboration to prevent and prepare for future public health crises.
Picture 6:
In the second plenary session, “Trust-based philanthropy as an alternative model to traditional grant making”, moderated by Cecilia Ho, President of the Lee Hysan Foundation (centre), Deepali Khanna, Vice President of Asia Regional Office of The Rockefeller Foundation (1st left) , Dr Michael Moody, Professor of Philanthropic Studies of Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy (2nd left), Cherie Nursalim, Vice Chairman of Giti Group (1st right), and Professor Wang Zhenyao, Board Chairman of the China Philanthropy Research Institute of Beijing Normal University (2nd right) debated the pros and cons of trust-based philanthropy as well as lessons to guide philanthropic giving in the future.
Picture 7:
Professor Abhijit Banerjee (1st left) joined former Prime Minister of Thailand Abhisit Vejjajiva (2nd right) and Professor Justin Yifu Lin, Dean of the Institute of New Structural Economics, Peking University and former Chief Economist of The World Bank (2nd left) for the second keynote titled “Grand debate on emerging welfare models from the East and the West”. The session was moderated by Dr Rosanna Wong, Senior Advisor of The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups and Chairman of Asia International School Limited (1st right).
Picture 8:
In the track session: “Serving the undeserved”, moderated by Bernard Chan, Chairperson, The Hong Kong Council of Social Service, Club Steward (1st right), Faustina Fynn-Nyame, Executive Director (Africa), Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (1st left), Aditya Natraj, Chief Executive Officer, Piramal Foundation (2nd left), Professor Uta Schönberg, Professor of Economics, The University of Hong Kong (Centre), Pritha Venkatachalam, Partner and Co-Head, Asia and Africa, The Bridgespan Group (2nd right), discussed how cities can ensure access to economic opportunities for marginalised groups.