Innovating into the Future: 30 Years of CityUHK's Impactful Engagement

Thirty years ago in 1994, City University of Hong Kong came into being. Since then, it has developed into an institution with 10 colleges/schools, 28 academic departments, and more than 25,000 students. Currently #62 in the QS World University Rankings, it is one of just two universities that has achieved the fastest upward trajectory in global university rankings.

In recent years, CityUHK opened the first veterinary school in Hong Kong and launched HK Tech 300 to cultivate a startup ecosystem in the city. Building on these successes, we've launched the Academy of Innovation, College of Computing and the Institute of Al for Science in 2024, and are planning College of Biomedical Science and Engineering for 2025.

As we celebrate this important milestone anniversary, it is an opportune time to not only review how far we've come, but also what we can do to lead the way in future. This book, together with the companion volume in Chinese, do just that.

The English version of CityUHK's 30th anniversary publication is organised into four different sections. After a brief reflection on the university's past, present, and future, we take a closer look at several examples of our cutting-edge academic research on topics ranging from passive radiative cooling technology and nanotechnology for hydrogen fuel cells to advanced antennas and more.

The next chapter highlights CityUHK's outreach to the wider Hong Kong community through projects such as Hour of Code, focused on computer programming; Jockey Club Project IDEA, designed to enhance art tech education; and CoolThink@JC, which promotes computational thinking.

Finally, we feature just a few of the ways that different disciplines at CityUHK are fulfilling our 30th anniversary theme of innovating into the future. This includes the College of Business, College of Computing, College of Engineering, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, College of Science, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, School of Creative Media, School of Energy and Environment, School of Law, and Chow Yei Ching School of Graduate Studies.

My heartfelt thanks go to all the CityUHK professors who've contributed to this volume, taking time out of their busy schedules for interviews and discussions. In addition, I am most grateful to the CityUHK 30th Anniversary Book Editorial Committee for spearheading this important project and turning the university's story into attractive publications that can be used to tell the world about our successes.

I trust that everyone will enjoy learning about CityUHK's unique history and outstanding accomplishments over the past 30 years. More than that, I hope you will be inspired to join us — whether as a student, teacher, donor, or community partner — as we scale up our academics and research while innovating into the future for the betterment of Hong Kong and beyond.

Professor Freddy Boey
City University of Hong Kong President and University Distinguished Professor