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Top tips on how to reduce your carbon footprint

Fly direct, fly less, choose vegetarian meals over meat – these were some of the tips shared during a panel discussion on responsible tourism.

Guest speakers Sonalie Figueiras, founder and editor-in-chief of Green Queen; Impact Travel Alliance Vincie Ho, and author and wildlife photographer Jan Latta explored practical ways to enjoy travel without the guilt of increasing your carbon footprint.

While some solutions appeared obvious, the panel members agreed that much more needed to be done by each of us in order to minimize the impact on our environment.

All panelists highlighted useful resources to help us understand and monitor how we can be greener when we travel. Sky Scanner, for example, now shows your potential carbon footprint when you search flights through its website. The Global Sustainable Tourism Council establishes and manages global sustainable standards and awards accreditation to hotels/accommodations, tour operators, and destinations as having sustainable policies and practices in place.

Another site, Choose.Today offers a subscription that allows you to support effective C02 reduction on a monthly basis. The money goes directly to C02-reducing projects in developing countries that are verified by the United Nations.

A further useful resource highlighted by the panel was the blogging site, In Locamotion, which offers a comprehensive guide to sustainable tourism.

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Hong Kong Protests: Experts offer guide to the evolution of weaponry and tactics

The physical and legal risks for journalists covering the increasingly violent Hong Kong protests were outlined by two experts at the FCC on October 23.

Sharron Fast, Deputy Director of Master of Journalism Programme and lecturer at University of Hong Kong, discussed the anti-mask law introduced by the HKSAR using emergency powers on October 5. She said there was much uncertainty surrounding the ban, particularly for journalists lawfully covering an unlawful protest. She also said she was certain the law doesn’t protect freelance journalists and students.

Fast was joined at the breakfast briefing by Stevo Stephen, News Risk Senior Manager for the Wall Street Journal, who demonstrated the evolution of weapons and tactics by both the Hong Kong Police and protesters since the unrest began in June.

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The challenges China faces in securing global dominance

China’s foreign relations have come a long way in the last 70 years, but major powers are held to higher standards and more is expected of Beijing, according to an expert on contemporary China.

Professor David Shambaugh outlined some of the major challenges facing China, including how it manages its reputation among its neighbours, and globally.

Speaking at the October 22 club lunch, Prof Shambaugh said another challenge the country faced was its relationship with the United States, which he said had deteriorated in recent years because the previously dominant cooperative element had been superseded with a competitive element. At the same time, China had significantly strengthened its relationship with Russia, he said, a relationship that at its core was driven by anti-Americanism.

“The so-called strategic triangle is back and orientated again at the United States at this time,”  Prof Shambaugh, the Gaston Sigur professor of Asian Studies, Political Science & International Affairs, and director of the China Policy Program in the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University in Washington, said.

He pointed to China’s multibillion-dollar investment in overseas propaganda as an example of its push for soft power but suggested it wasn’t getting a “return on its investment” as it slips down the global image rankings.

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Video and photojournalists reveal life on the frontline of the Hong Kong protests

A panel of experienced video and photojournalists shared their on-the-ground experiences of covering the ongoing Hong Kong protests at a discussion on October 15.

L-R: Anthony Kwan, May James, Chieu Luu, Aleksander Solum, and moderator Shibani Mahtani. Photo: Sarah Graham/FCC L-R: Anthony Kwan, May James, Chieu Luu, Aleksander Solum, and moderator Shibani Mahtani. Photo: Sarah Graham/FCC

The panelists spoke amid increasing concern over the safety of the media covering the protests, after an Indonesian photographer was left blind in one eye from a police bean bag round, and a NowTV driver was allegedly attacked by police and left with injuries.

Photographers May James, who has been covering the protests for a variety of local and international outlets including Hong Kong Free Press and AFP; and Anthony Kwan, a prize-winning photojournalist who has been covering the protests over the past months primarily for Getty, both agreed that arguing with the police during protests was not advisable.

Joining them on the panel were Chieu Luu, video journalist for South China Morning Post; and Aleksander Solum, a senior video journalist at Reuters Video News. The two men agreed that, when recording while tensions are running high, the safety of their teams remains the top priority.

“I’m in charge of keeping my team safe – no shot is worth one of my team members getting hurt,” Chieu said.

Possibility of China using military force in Hong Kong “quite low” says expert in Chinese politics

China’s Communist Party has learned from the past and wants to resolve conflicts without force, a tactic it is currently trying with regards to the current unrest in Hong Kong, according to an expert in Chinese politics.

Professor Yan Xiaojun, Associate Professor in Politics and Public Administration at the University of Hong Kong, said that China wants to uphold One Country, Two Systems and believes that the city’s government and police were managing the crisis adequately. He said the likelihood of China using military force in Hong Kong was “quite low”.

Prof Yan appeared at the FCC on October 3 to reflect on 70 years of the People’s Republic of China. He said China had transformed from one of the poorest nations into one of the strongest over the last seven decades because the Communist Party had learned lessons from its own history and that of the collapsed Soviet Union.

He said the party understood it had to continue to learn in order to survive.

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‘Social media platforms need to do more to stamp out hate crime’

Hate crime is on the rise globally, facilitated by social media which presents an opportunity for people to say things online they don’t have the guts to say face-to-face, says a member of a leading Jewish human rights organisation.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, said social media firms needed to take more responsibility for the content posted on their platforms. He also discussed the spread of anti-Semitism, showing examples from around the world of the use of Nazi imagery including the swastika.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper’s presentation slides (PDF)

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Silent protest at FCC highlights concerns over police violence against journalists covering Hong Kong protests

Members of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Hong Kong held a silent protest on September 18 to highlight the club’s concern over the increasing limits to media access and violence against journalists covering the ongoing protests in the city.

Jodi Schneider, FCC president, leads the silent protest at the club. Jodi Schneider, FCC president, leads the silent protest at the club.

Carrying banners reading “Yes to press freedom, no to violence against journalists”, a dozen members gathered outside the club in Central.

“The FCC is gravely concerned about the growing number of incidents of police violence against journalists who are doing their job covering the protests in Hong Kong,” said Jodi Schneider, FCC president. “We are holding a silent protest against this violence and any attempts to interfere with media coverage.”

“We are also calling for press freedom — for support of our right as journalists to cover the protests; a right provided us under Hong Kong law,” she said.

The FCC continues to call for an independent investigation into all forms of violence and intimidation directed at journalists since the start of the protests in June. The organisation also calls on the Commissioner of Police to publicly address these reports of violence.

“We want access to cover the protests and answers from the authorities,” Schneider said.

 

FCC silent protest

It’s a dangerous place out there for journalists, says veteran Washington Post editor

The mainstream media needs to be fair and give people the chance to make up their own minds in order to survive the current climate that has seen an erosion of trust in the press, according to veteran journalist David Ignatius.

Washington Post Associate Editor, David Ignatius, spoke of his fears for global press freedom at the FCC. Photo: Sarah Graham/FCC Washington Post Associate Editor, David Ignatius, spoke of his fears for global press freedom at the FCC. Photo: Sarah Graham/FCC

Speaking about his fears for press freedom against the backdrop of increasing global hostility towards the media, fueled in part by US President Donald Trump and his ‘enemies of the people’ rhetoric, Ignatius said news organisations need to remain objective in their reporting to win back support.

The Associate Editor of The Washington Post said it was a dangerous time to be a journalist, citing figures on the reporters currently imprisoned around the world, and urged journalists to “cover the story progressively, we don’t want you to take risks that would lead to death or serious injury”, adding that for editors the hardest thing was to say no to a reporter who wanted to put their safety at risk to get the scoop.

Ignatius also talked movingly of his friend and colleague, journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered a year ago at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. The CIA concluded Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the assassination.

“He was a complicated person… he had very extreme views as a young man. Over time he decided the way in which the world would be purified of deep corruption was journalism,” Ignatius said.

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How fake news is shaping the Hong Kong protests

The phenomenon of fake news and the spreading of disinformation have increased sharply since the Hong Kong protests began, with conspiracy theories in particular taking off in recent months.

These were the observations offered by three experts who have been covering the protests since June. They were taking part in the September 12 panel on the topic.

L-R: Host Eric Wishart, Selina Cheng, Rachel Blundy, and Masato Kajimoto. Photo: Sarah Graham/FCC L-R: Host Eric Wishart, Selina Cheng, Rachel Blundy, and Masato Kajimoto. Photo: Sarah Graham/FCC

Rachel Blundy, a fact-checker for Agence France-Presse, revealed how her team analyses claims being made on social media and investigates them to debunk fake news. Joining her on the panel was HK01’s Selina Cheng, who gave examples of fake news stories and how they quickly spread. “If the story sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” she said.

Masato Kajimoto, an assistant professor of practice at the Journalism and Media Studies Centre (JMSC), the University of Hong Kong, discussed China’s propaganda war and its attempts to smear the pro-democracy camp through the spread of fake news. He added that the more polarising the topic is, the easier it is for people to believe misinformation.

The discussion was the latest in the FCC’s series of workshops for journalists covering the ongoing Hong Kong protests. You can find the rest of the series here.

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The Hong Kong Protests: An FCC Workshop Series for Journalists

Since June 2019, journalists in Hong Kong have been on the front lines covering what began as anti-extradition bill protests, often dodging tear gas and rubber bullets in the course of their work.

This FCC series of workshops brings together a wide range of experts, from journalists to tech specialists to health professionals, all of whom offer valuable advice for any media covering the protests.

Presentation slides:

Hong Kong Red Cross introduction (PDF)

Hong Kong Red Cross presentation (PDF)

Professor Paul Yip presentation (Slideshare)

Lokman Tsui (PDF)

Fake news panel (PDF)

You can download the Centre of Suicide Research and Prevention’s recommendations on suicide and mental health reporting here.

The Hong Kong Samaritans website can be found here, and the 24/7 hotline number is 2896 0000.

Watch the video series

The Hong Kong Protests: What Next for Hong Kong?

Stevo Stephen: A Workshop on Journalists’ Safety

Sharron Fast: A Workshop on the Legal Risks for Journalists

The Hong Kong Protests and Press Freedom

Lokman Tsui, Assistant Professor: A Workshop on Digital Security

Paul Yip: The Hong Kong Protests – Covering Mental Health and Suicide

Brian Wong: First-Aid and Health Safety

Information Wars – How Fake News and Disinformation Have Been Weaponized in the Hong Kong Protests

From Water Cannons to the Face Mask Ban: Increased Risks in Covering the Hong Kong Protests

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