Newsletter No. 15

CUHK Newsletter No. 15 Feb.1991 Environmenta l Protectio n a tTh e Chines e Universit y A successful university must have an acute sense of direction in its pursuit of academic excellence. When formulating development and research plans it has to be both insightful and pragmatic: insightful so that needs of the future can be taken care of in advance and pragmatic so that immediate problems will receive due attention. In recent years, an increasingly polluted environment has caused world-wide concern. Faculty members and researchers in various departments of The Chinese University have been looking into ways of protecting the environment from different angles such as air and water pollution control, waste treatment, noise pollution control and occupational safety and hygiene. Here is a summary of some recent developments on the campus. A Special Research Unit to Strengthen External Academic Ties Centre for Environmental Studies A Centre for Environmental Studies was established last December on the campus t o stimulate interdisciplinary collaboration on environmental research and to develop joint research projects with tertiary institutions inside and outside o f Hong Kong. I t will work closely with major international research centres, consultancy firms, the Hong Kong Government, and other local interest groups to solve environmental problems. Idea and Planning The idea for such a centre originated about a year ago when Prof. S. T. Chang of the Department of Biology brought to the attention of the Office of Industrial and Business Development (OIBD) such a need and suggested that OIBD carry out a feasibility study. Dr. Leung Yee of the Department o f Geography, then also project director of OIBD, took up the planning project. Dr. Leung first made a detailed analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the University for developing environmenta studies. He also approached faculty members and researchers o f various departments t o determine i n depth their interests and ideas as far as environmen studies are concerned. He discovered that i n addition to having expertise i n certain aspects o f environ studies, many academic staff members are interested i n multi-disciplin environmental research. After meticulous planning, and thanks to a $5,000,000 donation from Mr. 4