Building greener hospitals for a sustainable future

The climate affects people’s everyday life. The illustration Spring Ox and Cowherd forecasted the weather and crops for farming communities to plan their harvests and lives. Today, most of us live in cities, but the challenges of climate change and the associated extreme weather seriously affect our daily lives which require our urgent actions.

The Hospital Authority (HA) is keenly aware of its social responsibilities to address global warming and in 2016 signed the 4T Charter with a pledge to cut energy consumption by 5% before 2023. By March this year, extended energy savings to around 7%.

Our hospitals have introduced innovative energy conservation measures in new building projects. In recent years, the redevelopment of Haven of Hope Hospital, Hong Kong Children’s Hospital, and Tin Shui Wai Hospital achieved Gold and Platinum ratings in the Building Environmental Assessment Method (BEAM) Plus accreditation scheme. The HA has also been awarded the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Hong Kong Chapter 2024 Technology Award for existing healthcare facilities in recognition of its outstanding performance in the design and operation of energy efficient buildings. The HA had earlier received the Regional Energy Project of the Year Award for Asia-Pacific by the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) for three consecutive years starting in 2017.

HASLink turns the spotlight on just some of our environmental initiatives in hospitals. They represent the first steps on a long journey to sustainability. Many more environmentally friendly measures are in the pipeline as we move forward on the road to a greener, brighter future for generations to come.