Media

International Symposium on Mega-City Regions: Innovations in Governance and Planning

05 Aug 2008

 

World renowned scholars speak at the International Symposium

World renowned scholars and high rank government officials in Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta gathered at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) campus today (August 5) to discuss the challenges mega-city regions face in an era of increasing globalization and rapid population growth.

They also endeavoured to identify solutions to address mega-city region issues, especially those related to the development of the mega-city region of the Greater Pearl River Delta, at the International Symposium on Mega-City Regions: Innovations in Governance and Planning.

World renowned scholars have also presented international experiences, such as in the Western European, Australia and China, which provide the more than 100 symposium attendants with a lot of useful insights on the development of the Greater Pearl River Delta mega-city region in which Hong Kong is a key player.

The Symposium is organized by the Centre of Urban Studies and Urban Planning, HKU, and sponsored by the Zhong Hua Real Estate and Construction Research and Development Foundation.

The topics discussed by the heavy-weight speakers at the Symposium included:-

- Professor Sir Peter Hall of University College London, UK, discussed the polycentric metropolis in Western Europe;
- Professor Saskia Sassen of Columbia University, USA, discussed the novel spatial interactions of mega-regions and global cities;

- Professor Willem Salet of Amsterdam Institute for Metropolitan and International Development Studies, The Netherlands, presented the innovations in governance and planning of Randstad region in the Netherlands;

- Professor Jim Harvey of the University of South Australia, Australia presented a case study of intra-regional cooperation in regional development in Australia;

- Professor Linda McCarthy of University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, USA, compared regional cooperation in the mega-city regions of the US and Western Europe;

- Professor Gu Chaolin of Tsinghua University, Beijing, discussed spatial planning for urban agglomerations in the Yangtze River Delta; and

- Professor Anthony Yeh and Dr Xu Jiang of HKU discussed the role of the State in coordinating the fragmented mega-city regions in China, using the Pearl River Delta as an example.

For enquiries, please contact Manager (Media) Ms Denise Wong (Tel: 2859 2600 / E-mail: denise.wong@hku.hk)