The CityU-ASU energy group outside Kowloon Walled City Gate.
Leaving a new world
Hard to believe this trip is already over; it was as short as it was jam-packed with activities and hard work. I can now say that I’ve visited four continents, and I hope that the rest will follow soon (including Antarctica). Hong Kong is the perfect model of a metropolis. The city copes incredibly well with very difficult spatial and geographic constraints and has set a high standard for urban design.
The final grind
In terms of classes, this week was a lot different than the last. Field trips and lectures were mostly replaced by group work time to be devoted to our final poster and policy presentation. We spent numerous hours every day this week refining our ideas, phrasing policy statements, absorbing feedback from Dr. Melnick and Robert Gibson (one of the CityU faculty working with our class) and deciding on poster layouts.
We presented our policy recommendation to the class in a 30-minute session where we explained our solution for solving a potential energy security problem in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is entirely reliant on outside sources for their energy, so we emphasized that cutting usage and expenditures on the demand side would reduce the likelihood of an energy crisis.
With two excellent CityU students and two ASU graduate students, our group created a fantastic policy solution and poster. While energy is one of the less pressing problems in Hong Kong, waste management and land use are two much more important areas for Hong Kong today. Therefore, our energy policy was a pre-emptive one, as we weren’t addressing a crisis but were trying to avoid one in the future.
The last few hours
After a busy Friday that included a delicious final dinner and many heartfelt goodbyes, those who decided to stay in Hong Kong, including myself, hiked the most famous trail in Hong Kong, The Dragon’s Back. This trail is world famous for its beautiful vistas and fascinating topography; it really does seem like you’re hiking along the ridges of a dragon’s back!
After the hike, we made our way to a nearby beach and got to experience a different side of Hong Kong that we hadn’t really seen since our visit to the SWIMS lab early on during this trip. The small beach town was an astounding contrast to the dense, urban metropolis only a few miles away.
To my delight, one night I had a chance to watch the U.S. men’s national team in the World Cup, but they were defeated by Germany. With a good number of U.S. supporters watching with us, we were pleased to see that other results in the pool allowed us to move forward in the competition. I look forward to watching the World Cup back home.
Overall, it was an amazing trip, an informative class, and I made a great new group of friends. I got a lot out of this trip, and I think I’ll only begin to digest the trip as a whole in the weeks ahead.