Media

500 Academics and Professionals Turn a New Page for Successful Ageing at the CADENZA Symposium 2008

11 Oct 2008

CADENZA: A Jockey Club Initiative for Seniors and the Faculty of Social Sciences of The University of Hong Kong (HKU) bring together approximately 500 participants, including professional practitioners from government units, non-government organizations, academia and professional bodies, to the second CADENZA Symposium entitled "Successful Ageing" which is held at HKU today (October 11) and tomorrow (October 12).   Fourteen local and overseas renowned scholars and experts share their experience, insights and research findings in creating an elder-friendly environment and the factors in public health, legal and financial aspects of population ageing contributing to successful ageing.

Professor John G Malpas, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President of HKU said that The University supported activities that would help develop solutions for an elder-friendly Hong Kong.  He hoped "the expertise and enthusiasm of internationally respected academics, professionals and service providers brought to this Symposium will be further developed into long-term partnerships between academia, professionals and governments", and these partnerships would help transfer knowledge and findings effectively to society, so that elders, and the whole community, could benefit from their research.

Mr Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, Chief Executive Officer of The Hong Kong Jockey Club noted that CADENZA, launched in 2006 by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, was a far-sighted project eyeing on the future of our society.  "Like the theme of this year's Symposium, 'Successful Ageing', we hope that both individuals and society as a whole can see ageing as an opportunity, as a celebration, rather than a problem or a burden," he commented.

Officiating at the opening ceremony, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, Secretary for Labour and Welfare, said, "the Government's elderly policies and service parameters are formulated along the underlying philosophy of 'encouraging ageing in the community' and 'promoting active ageing'", and added that "a number of new initiatives have been launched last year to better meet the evolving demands and enhance the quality of life of the elderly."  He further highlighted that "any support system for elders and carers in Hong Kong has to be financially viable and sustainable in the long run."

In his keynote address, Dr the Hon Leong Che-hung, Chairman of Elderly Commission noted that, "No ageing could be successful unless our elders are also healthy", so "not only should they be taught the major personal responsibility to keep healthy they must also be provided with proper to effective medical care when they get sick". 

On the first day of the Symposium, Professor Ann Bowling, Health Services Research, University College of London, introduced different definitions of successful ageing to share her insights into the key attributes composing a successful ageing model. (Part 1 - Oct 11)

Professor Shah Ebrahim, Public Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, University of London will explain how socio-economic factors, gender and health service provisions influence survival and impose effects on future disability by adopting a life course approach.  He will also talk about the ways China can respond to make their elderly people live safely and independently. (Part 3 - Oct 12)

Professor Helen Bartlett, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Gippsland), Monash University, with the example of Australia, will explore the understandings of ageing well from a policy perspective, how the older people interpret this concept, and highlight the challenges and opportunities for engaging older members in working towards ageing well. (Part 3 - Oct 12)

Professor Catherine Tang, Deputy Head and Director, Clinical Psychology Programme, Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, will discuss the implications of elderly caring modes and challenges to traditional Chinese attitudes towards ageing and family relationship on elder abuse.  She will further identify risk factors and importance of detrimental impacts in designing elder abuse prevention and intervention programmes. (Part 4 - Oct 12)

Dr Fung Hong, Cluster Chief Executive, Hospital Authority, will explain the strategies New Territories East Cluster Hospitals employ for enhancing capability of care in the community and collaboration between private doctors and public sector in bridging the gaps in service provisions. (Part 2 - Oct 11)

Professor Jean Woo, Project Director of CADENZA, will share the implications of an ageing population for Hong Kong by examining the desired outcomes for people who are ageing and how health and social services can adapt to this demographic change. (Part 3 - Oct 12)

"CADENZA: A Jockey Club Initiative for Seniors" is a wide-reaching five-year project initiated by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust with a funding of HK$380 million in collaboration with local and overseas experts in social gerontology.  It aims at creating an elder-friendly community which fosters positive community attitude towards older people and continuously improving the quality of care and quality of life for Hong Kong's elderly.

Notes to Editors:

1. Please visit for photos of the event.
2. For programme rundown and other information, please visit
3. Interviews with speakers to be arranged upon request by press members.
4. According to Hong Kong census population projections, up to 26% of the city's populace will be 65 or over by 2036. This is an increase from about 852,000 in 2006 to 2,261,000 in 2036.
5. Medium: English
6. For media enquiries, please contact:
Miss Erica Leung, CADENZA (Tel: 2219 4479, email: ericale@hku.hk ) or
Miss Vanessa Sit, Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU (Tel: 2859 2983, email: vansit@hku.hk )