Latest news with #GlobalInnovationCentre
South China Morning Post
18-07-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
HKU innovation hub must move forward, but community engagement is vital
Integration with the local community should be a priority for universities. Everyone benefits from the connections which enrich student experiences and foster innovation, so it has been disappointing to see growing tension between residents of Pok Fu Lam and the University of Hong Kong (HKU) over a planned innovation centre. The Global Innovation Centre will provide space for teaching, conferences, offices, staff quarters, catering and support facilities, and even landscaped areas open to the public. It is envisioned as a world-class, deep-technology research facility that will focus on the interdisciplinary, blue-sky investigations giving rise to innovative solutions to global challenges. HKU says the facilities are needed to attract talent the city needs to evolve into an international innovation and technology hub as envisioned in the national five-year plan. The sticking point has been over the centre's proposed location at a government-owned green belt along Pok Fu Lam Road. Residents have pushed back over concerns about traffic, environmental impact and a lack of consultation. The university has responded by downsizing initial plans announced last year to preserve more than 75 per cent of the green belt and shifting to a smaller nearby residential plot. Some residents say the centre should instead be built on nearby Mount Davis or land set aside for the uncompleted Northern Metropolis. University planners said Pok Fu Lam is a faster and cheaper option. It is also near HKU's main campus, Queen Mary Hospital and Cyberport – proximity that is needed to draw innovators. HKU said it held four meetings with district councillors and lawmakers and another three each with a residents' group and representatives from a nearby home for the visually impaired. Two groups representing residents said HKU only spoke with them for three hours and did not seriously consider alternative sites. The project is important and should not be delayed. Reasonable balance between the concerns of residents and planners must be found. It will require proper communication and dialogue, as well as neighbours being open and understanding about the project.
South China Morning Post
07-07-2025
- Science
- South China Morning Post
University of Hong Kong plans to cut size of development site after backlash
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) plans to reduce the size of a development project by 15 per cent following a public backlash, leaving most of a Pok Fu Lam green belt untouched, the Post has learned. A source said on Monday that the university was considering building on a residential plot nearby. The revised proposal for HKU's Global Innovation Centre will be discussed at a town planning board meeting on Friday, after the university gathers feedback from the community. HKU originally planned to build the academic and scientific research facility on 4.72 hectares of land along Pok Fu Lam Road, primarily on a government-owned green belt. The project would have required the removal of more than 2,000 trees. Last year, more than 3,000 Southern district residents expressed strong opposition, urging the university to either relocate or downsize the project by 60 per cent due to concerns about the impact on the environment and traffic impacts. They even threatened legal action, leading HKU to agree to rework its plan. Under the revision seen by the Post, the site area would be scaled down by 7,000 square metres, a 15 per cent reduction compared with the original plan. The reduction is equivalent to 16 to 17 basketball courts.
New Indian Express
24-06-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Global innovation centre by Logile opens in Bhubaneswar
BHUBANESWAR: Leading retail optimisation and supply chain solutions provider Logile opened its new global innovation centre in the city on Monday. The new centre will focus on developing cutting-edge retail solutions using cloud-native SaaS platforms, including AI-driven supply chain execution, store-level inventory planning, workforce management and generative Al-powered retail tools. The company in a statement said, these innovations will leverage NVIDIA graphics processing unit (GPU) architecture to enhance forecasting accuracy and enable smarter retail operations. Announcing the opening of Logile Global Innovation Centre at an event, Electronics and IT minister Mukesh Mahaling highlighted the exponential growth of IT sector in the state and the way Odisha has transformed into a major IT hub of the country by attracting major IT companies and investors.
