Numerous animal species are now at risk of extinction around the world. As the largest and fastest-growing continent on earth in terms of economics and population, Asia has been identified as the epicentre of this environmental crisis. The region is home to the highest number of endangered species on earth, with 3,330 at risk across […]
Every day, young girls in Moldova are trafficked abroad and sold to brothels as sex slaves. Rohingya refugees flee persecution in Myanmar. Domestic workers in Hong Kong support families back home at exorbitant personal costs. In the fight against humanitarian crises, social entrepreneurs are turning to a new tool: blockchain. While far from a silver […]
When she was two years old, Hung Hung* announced that she was a boy. Open-minded, her parents allowed her to play with boys’ toys, cut her hair short, and wear what she liked. But her mother, Wong* felt it was “too early to say that she identifies as a trans person,” choosing instead to describe […]
Over the past two years, Sarah Yip and her fiancé Rex Law have encountered many alarming situations in the seas surrounding Hong Kong during their marine conservation work. They’ve discovered piles of waste on remote beaches and marine wildlife tangled up in ghost nets, as well as toxic chemicals flowing into the ocean… But saddest […]
Without major changes, Macao is a long way away from a waste-free future, says environmental activist Benvinda dos Santos. Macao is struggling to handle its garbage problem. With a population of 670,900, the city’s municipal solid waste (which includes food waste and materials such as plastic, metals and paper) reached 522,548 tonnes in 2018. That’s […]
“Puberty was f***ing horrendous,” exclaims Ashton Power, an 18-year-old transgender man who wears black-rimmed glasses and streaks of purple in his light hair. Born in Germany, Power lived in Eritrea, in East Africa, before moving to China, Singapore, and finally Hong Kong where his family has been for the past seven years. Shortly after arriving […]
Fourteen years ago, the West African nation of Togo erupted into violence following the death of the country’s long-serving dictator, Gnassingbé Eyadéma, who had ruled for almost four decades. Among the scores of protestors rallying against the coronation of the dictator’s son was the brother of Muhammad Bilal*. Amid the chaos, Bilal’s brother was imprisoned. […]
As one of the world’s densest cities, Hong Kong is known for its tightly packed residential complexes. But many don’t realise that Hong Kong’s green spaces – including 24 protected country parks and 22 special conservation areas – account for 75 per cent of the 1,100-square-kilometre territory. Thanks in part to a sub-tropical climate […]
Harmony “Anne-Marie” Ilungaa, founder of refugee support programmes Harmony HK and Learning Together, talks about the biggest challenges facing asylum seekers: “When I first came to Hong Kong with my mother and brother from the Democratic Republic of Congo, I was 12 years old and I could only speak Lingala and French. This made it […]
Never before has inequality been more apparent than during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some “essential” must continue working in high-risk situations, while remote professionals can do their jobs safely at home. Many have been buoyed by government assistance, but too many have been furloughed or unemployed, left on their own to navigate imploding economies on dwindling […]