Catherine is a writer, editor and consultant specialising in architecture and design. Born in Zambia and raised in South Africa, she obtained a Master degree in urban planning, before moving to Asia 30 years ago. After completing a Master degree in environmental science, she worked in London and Hong Kong for leading environmental specialists on major urban regeneration projects.
In 2000, she relocated to Tokyo, Japan, where over a decade she wrote on Japanese architecture, art, and design. She returned to Hong Kong seven years ago. Catherine has authored five editions of the Wallpaper* Tokyo City Guide and edited the first book in English on design essays written by the Japanese product designer Sori Yanagi. She is also responsible for the Louis Vuitton City Guide for Hong Kong, and is currently writing a book on Hong Kong for Assouline. She contributes to a wide range of leading magazines including Interior Design, Wallpaper*, Design Anthology, Vogue, as well as news media including The Telegraph and the South China Morning Post. She is the Asia-Pacific contributing editor for the New York-based Metropolis magazine. Catherine is a regular speaker and moderator at design events.
Professor Christine Loh, SBS, JP, OBE, Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite, is Chief Development Strategist at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. She was Under Secretary for the Environment in the HKSAR Government (2012-17) and a Member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council (1992-97 and 1998-2000). Loh has been active in public policy and politics since the 1980s. She founded and was the CEO of the non-profit think tank, Civic Exchange (2000-12), and helped to establish several non-profit organisations in Hong Kong related to the environment, equal opportunity, arts and culture, as well as human rights.
Professor Loh is currently a board member of the Robert HN Ho Family Foundation, board member of CDP Worldwide, and an Advisor to the WYNG Master Award in photography. She is a published author of many academic and popular works. Her expertise in environmental policy is well-known, including advising the World Health Organization and International Energy Agency on issues relating to air pollution and public health. Loh is a lawyer by training, and a commodities trader by profession. She received her legal training in England, and received honorary degrees of Doctor of Law from the University of Hull and Doctor of Science from the University of Exeter.
Stanley Wong is the recipient of more than 600 local, Asian and international awards for his art, design, photography and advertising works, including two One Show Gold Awards from U.S., D&AD Yellow Pencil from UK and Tokyo TDC Annual Awards. Many of his art works have been exhibited in local and overseas galleries and museums at more than 100 shows including a solo show in Tokyo ggg in 2015, and are now part of their permanent collection, including Hong Kong M+ and London V&A Museum. In May 2012, He was also awarded the Artist of the Year 2011 (Visual Arts) by Hong Kong Arts Development Awards and the Hong Kong Contemporary Art Awards 2012 by Hong Kong Museum of Art.
Justin Yu is a founder and investor in several startups and has also been invited to serve as a member of the Executive Yuan’s Youth Advisory Committee. In 2010, Yu co-founded Plan b, a planning consultancy that promotes the notion of sustainable development as a tool. Over the years, Plan b has provided distinctive solutions for a diverse clientele including domestic and international businesses, NPOs, and government agencies. In 2015, the Produce Department was added to the firm to engage in in-house projects for spaces (by Plan b). The goal is to reimagine spaces to promote the use of sustainable development as a tool, and to showcase how to effectively integrate sustainable development with other tools, such as design thinking and big data. The Produce Department specialises in revitalising idle urban spaces and has reinvented a number of spaces that have been recognised through various design and social innovation awards. Projects include the Center for Innovation Taipei (CIT), an innovative office space transformed from the former Zhongshan Soccer Stadium, and ParkUp, a series of urban open space placemaking projects.
Markus Shaw has a history degree from Cambridge University and spent six years as a corporate lawyer in London, Singapore and Hong Kong, before joining his family business. He is active in civic society, having co-founded NGOs in the fields of better urban planning (“Designing Hong Kong” and “Walk DVRC”) and air pollution (“Clean Air Network”), and sits on the boards of several philanthropic organisations. Markus was a member of WWF’s International Board of Trustees from 2005 to 2015 and was Chairman of WWF-Hong Kong from 2000 to 2008. He was also a member of the Government’s Advisory Council on the Environment from 2004 to 2008.
David Yeung is a noted environmental advocate and Founder of Green Monday, an innovative social venture that takes on climate change, food insecurity, health issues and animal welfare with a diverse platform that shifts individuals, communities and corporations towards sustainable, healthy and mindful living.
Under Green Monday Mr. Yeung launched Green Common – the world’s first plant-based green living destination – to introduce a revolutionary food and lifestyle experience. The movement of Green Monday has now spread to 33 countries, with 1.6 million people practicing Green Monday at its Hong Kong origin.
Awards and recognitions won by Green Monday and Mr. Yeung include “50 Most Innovative Companies”, “100 Most Creative People in China”, “Asia 100 Pioneers”, “Ten Outstanding Young Persons Hong Kong” and “Best Idea of the Year”. He is also the author of a number of best-selling books on Zen wisdom and mindfulness. Mr. Yeung is a graduate of Columbia University and a Director of Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute (SIYLI), Hong Kong AIDS Foundation and Hong Kong Buddhist Association.
Tim Stock is the Co-founder of scenarioDNA, a consultancy that leverages the union of consumer anthropology and data science to advise global clients on cultural trends with a systems-thinking approach to innovation. He is the co-inventor of a patented methodology of Culture Mapping that analyses patterns in culture using computational linguistics and machine learning to visualise trend narratives and forecasts. Clients include Campbell’s, IKEA, Nike, Hilton Worldwide and Honda. Tim is a frequent speaker on culture and innovation and has appeared in various publications such as The New York Times, The Financial Times, Advertising Age and Quartz.
Martha Thorne is the Dean of IE School of Architecture and Design, part of the innovative IE University in Madrid/Segovia, Spain. She is also the Executive Director of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, a position she has held since 2005. From 1995 to 2005, she worked as curator in Department of Architecture at The Art Institute of Chicago. She has written numerous articles for books and journals on contemporary architecture and cities. She served on the Board of Directors of the International Archive of Women in Architecture and the Graham Foundation for Fine Arts. She has participated on juries for the new National Museum of Chinese Art, Zaryadye Park in Moscow and the international jury for ArcVision – Women and Architecture Prize among others.
Martha received a Master of City Planning degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Urban Affairs from the State University of New York at Buffalo. She undertook additional studies at the London School of Economics.
Professor Tom Kvan is the founding Director of AURIN, a national digital infrastructure to support urban research, and Professor of Architecture. Tom has many years of experience in senior leadership roles in three universities inMelbourne, Sydney and Hong Kong. Before taking up an academic career, Tom was in design practice in Africa, Europe, Hong Kong and the USA. Internationally recognised for his pioneering work in design, digital environments and design management, he has published over 200 papers in academic, professional and popular channels.
James Corner is the CEO of James Corner Field Operations, a leading-edge urban design studio based in New York City, San Francisco, London and Shenzhen. He has devoted the past 30 years to advancing the field of urbanism, primarily through his leadership on high-visibility, complex urban projects at Field Operations, as well as through teaching, public speaking and writing. Important public realm design projects include New York’s highly-acclaimed High Line; London’s South Park at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park; Santa Monica’s Tongva Park; Chicago’s Navy Pier; Cleveland’s Public Square; Philadelphia’s Race Street Pier; Hong Kong’s Salisbury Gardens and Tsim Tsa Tsui Waterfront; and Shenzhen’s new city of Qianhai.
He is currently leading the design for San Francisco’s Presidio New Parklands, a 14-acre park connecting the Presidio to the Bay. James’s works have been recognised with the National Design Award; the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Architecture; The Daimler-Chrysler Design Excellence Award; and the D&AD Black Pencil Award. His works have been published broadly and exhibited at the New York Museum of Modern Art; the Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum; the National Building Museum; the Royal Academy of Art in London; and the Venice Biennale. His books include The High Line (Phaidon, 2015); The Landscape Imagination (Princeton, 2014), and Taking Measures Across the American Landscape (Yale, 1996).
