The following is issued on behalf of the University Grants Committee:
 
     The University Grants Committee (UGC) held a presentation ceremony for the 2024 UGC Teaching Award today (October 7) to honour academics from the UGC-funded universities for their outstanding teaching performance and achievements, as well as their leadership and scholarly contributions to teaching and learning within and outside their campuses.
 
     Through a rigorous process, the Award Selection Panel selected the following three recipients from among over 20 outstanding nominees for the Award:
 
General Faculty Members
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Dr Kristen Li Yuanxi, Lecturer, Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Science, Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU)
 
 
Early Career Faculty Members
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Ms Anna Qin Lai-yin, Assistant Dean (Teaching and Learning) and Assistant Professor, Academy of Visual Arts, School of Creative Arts, HKBU
 
 
Collaborative Teams
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Holistic Competency and Virtues Education Team led by Professor Cecilia Chan Ka-yuk (Professor, Teaching and Learning Innovation Centre; Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong (HKU)), with Professor Albert Ko Wing-yin (Director of Service-Learning, Lingnan University), Professor Ben Chan Yui-bun (Associate Dean of Students and Associate Director of Center for Engineering Education Innovation, the Hong Kong University Science and Technology), Dr Theresa Kwong Fuk-ning (Director, Centre for Holistic Teaching and Learning, HKBU) and Professor Samson Tse Shu-ki (Dean of Student Affairs, HKU) as team members.
 
     The citations of the awardees are in the Annex.
 
     The Chairman of the UGC, Mr Tim Lui, congratulated the awardees, finalists, and nominees on their remarkable achievements and expressed gratitude to all UGC-funded universities for their support for the UGC Teaching Award. He said, "Teaching is a timeless mission, and the UGC cannot emphasise enough that this is also the cornerstone of the global reputation of our higher education sector. The UGC shall continue to devote priority and additional resources to support pedagogical innovation and teaching excellence as we strive to develop Hong Kong into an international hub for post-secondary education."
 
     The Chair of the 2024 UGC Teaching Award Selection Panel and member of the UGC, Mr Philip Tsai, remarked, "The panel was deeply satisfied that all awardees have demonstrated exceptional acumen and passion for teaching. Dr Li is an innovative educator who skilfully combines educational design with cutting-edge technologies. Ms Qin equips students with real-world design skills while connecting them to meaningful community initiatives. The Holistic Competency and Virtues Education Team enriches the professional development of educators through impactful cross-institutional programmes and the establishment of a Community of Practice. They all truly deserve the prestigious honour as ambassadors of good teaching."
 
     The presentation ceremony was attended by members of the UGC and the Quality Assurance Council under it, council chairmen and senior management from the UGC-funded universities, as well as nominees for the Awards. Attendees also applauded the spectacular achievements of the Hong Kong Teaching Excellence Alliance under the leadership of its Chair, Professor Isabella Poon, over the past six years, and welcomed Dr Julia Chen as the new leader of this inter-institutional body dedicated to propagating the impact of the Teaching Award.
 
     The UGC has also produced a series of short video clips to promote best practices by showcasing the teaching approaches of the 2024 UGC Teaching Award recipients. The clips, together with the selection criteria and the composition of the Selection Panel, as well as the list of other finalists, are available on the UGC website www.ugc.edu.hk/eng/ugc/activity/ugc_teaching_award/result.html.

      

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The spokesperson for the Hospital Authority (HA) made the following appeal today (October 7) regarding the condition of a patient who requires urgent lung transplant:
 
     A patient who requires urgent lung transplant is currently hospitalised at Prince of Wales Hospital in critical condition. In response to an urgent appeal from the patient and family members concerned, the HA appeals to members of the public to actively support organ donations and consider donating the lung of deceased relatives to give new life to others.
 
     Given the critical condition of the patient, in addition to proactively searching for suitable lung locally, the HA will also seek assistance from the Mainland through relevant procedures as soon as possible. When a patient willing to donate an organ has passed away and no suitable recipient is identified on the Mainland, the cross-boundary organ donation and matching mechanism will facilitate a transplant in Hong Kong to bring hope to a critically ill patient.
 
     The spokesperson emphasised that when suitable lung is found, the HA will strictly follow the relevant organ transplant regulations and make an application with the authorities to ensure that all procedures comply with relevant standards and regulatory requirements. The HA will arrange transplant operations with an aim to save the patient's life as soon as possible.
 
     For critically ill patients with organ failure, an organ transplant is often the only hope for extending life. When deceased patients and their families make the selfless decision to donate organs for patients in need of organ transplantation, it not only gives critically ill patients the hope of life but also eases their families' hardships. The HA appeals to the public to extend their compassion, blessings, and care to those still fighting for their lives.

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (October 7) that in view of a notification from the Ministry of Agriculture of Hungary and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) about outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok County in Hungary and Lincoln County of the State of Idaho in the United States (US) respectively, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above-mentioned areas with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that Hong Kong has currently established a protocol with Hungary for the import of poultry meat but not for poultry eggs. According to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 40 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Hungary, and about 40 950 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 13.86 million poultry eggs from the US in the first six months of this year.

     "The CFS has contacted the Hungarian and American authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the WOAH and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council Panel on Environmental Affairs visited the Lamma Power Station of the Hongkong Electric Company, Limited (HEC) today (October 7) to gain a deeper understanding on local power generation, its efforts in achieving carbon neutrality as well as measures to cope with climate change and extreme weather.
 
     Members first visited the Viewing Gallery where they received a briefing from representatives of the HEC on the operation of Lamma Power Station and the company's decarbonisation roadmap. Members noted that Lamma Power Station was undergoing a transition from coal to gas to generate electricity, gradually replacing the retiring coal-fired units with newly constructed gas-fired units, thereby reducing carbon emissions and boosting the electricity output from natural gas to about 70 per cent. They also gained a better understanding of the future operation of the Hong Kong Offshore Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal, which is under construction. In addition, Members learnt that breakwaters and flood walls had been installed at key locations in the power station to mitigate the impact of storm surges and overtopping waves in the face of more frequent extreme weather events. The foundation of two new gas-fired units have also been raised to seven metres above principal datum to reduce the risk of flooding.
 
     Members then toured the facilities at the power station, including the central control room and gas turbine hall of gas-fired unit L12, which is equipped with a Selective Catalytic Reduction System that reduces nitrogen oxide emissions by 90 per cent. They also visited the solar power system. During the visit, Members exchanged views with representatives of the HEC on a number of issues, including the development of, and challenges faced in, providing greener and sustainable energy sources for Hong Kong, as well as related work on public education.
 
     Members who participated in the visit were the Chairman of Panel on Environmental Affairs, Mr Lau Kwok-fan, the Deputy Chairman of the Panel, Mr Chan Siu-hung, Panel members Mr Frankie Yick and Ms Judy Chan; as well as non-Panel members Ms Yung Hoi-yan, Mr Andrew Lam, Mr Edward Leung and Mr Yim Kong.

      

     The Lands Department (LandsD) announced today (October 7) that three pre-sale consents for residential developments involving 213 residential units were issued in the third quarter of 2024.
      
     Details of the above residential developments with pre-sale consents issued are as follows:
 

 
     As at September 30, 2024, 31 applications for pre-sale consent for residential developments involving 17 642 residential units were being processed. Details are as follows:
 

 
     In addition, five applications for consent to assign involving 2 742 residential units and two non-residential units as well as three applications for pre-sale consent for non-residential developments were being processed.
      
     Members of the public can obtain up-to-date information on consents issued for the past quarter and cases pending approval by visiting the LandsD's website (www.landsd.gov.hk).
      
     Intending purchasers are advised to carefully study the details of the development and the sale procedures, through information available from public advertisements, sales brochures and price lists released by the developer, before making a deposit for purchase. The sales brochure for a development also contains a summary of the provisions of the Deed of Mutual Covenant, including information on the common parts, the number of undivided shares assigned to each unit, the term of years for which the manager is appointed, the basis on which the management expenses are shared among the owners of the units, and a summary of the provisions of the government land grant, which intending purchasers are recommended to read carefully.