GIS Conference Chairman

Director of Fok Ying Tung

Foundation

Mr. Fok Chun Yue, Benjamin was born 1954 in Hong Kong and graduated from the Uni-versity of British Columbia (UBC) in Canada, majoring in Mathematics and Computer Science. He then continued his studies in a master’s programme at UC Berkeley in the USA.

Upon returning to Hong Kong in 1978, Ben took up responsibilities in the extensive busi-ness and philanthropy interests initiated by his father, Dr Henry Fok Ying Tung, who was already well-known as a property owner and developer. Amongst other positions, and side-by-side with his business activities, Ben became a permanent Governor of the Fok Ying Tung Foundation Limited, a flagship non-profit established by his father, and subsequently came to hold a number of official positions in government-related and other organisations, both in Hong Kong and mainland China. ​

In the mid-1980s, as China began to open up and reform, Ben worked with his father on a pioneering major project in Nansha, in southern China, where he was in charge of the comprehensive urbanization and development of an area of some ten square kilometres. A first step in the project involved miles of water bank reinforcement, followed by the construction of new roads and bridges connecting the then remote area to the greater Pearl River Delta. This paved the way for the building of a ferry and cruise terminal, a container terminal, China’s first high-tech science park, the Fok Ying Tung Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Graduate Research Centre, residential communities, a shopping mall, school, medical clinic, hotel and culture and recreational destinations such as a golf course and yacht marina. Ben also upgraded an outdated local shipyard and then led the design and construction of the world’s fastest 400-passenger commercial catamaran to facilitate quick and easy connections between Nansha and Hong Kong. After years of work on this massive and innovative project, Nansha today is becoming a key hub for the Pearl River Greater Bay Area and has been designated by the central government as a window for international convergence.

Ben continues to be very active both in business and social services and his concern about the many challenges facing the world, together with the rapid changes that AI is already bringing about, have reinforced an already-strong interest in sustainable and ecological development and the ways in which science and technology can better serve humanity. This recently led him to establish the Humanity Vision Trust which, from its base in Hong Kong, may serve as a platform for bringing together from around the world leading thinkers and people of action who are committed to a vision of a more harmonious relationship between people and between people and their development needs.

The Trust also aims to help forge connections between leading institutions working for the better-ment of humanity and support a positive interface and constructive engagement between China and the rest of the world.