People
Meet our team members and friends.
Team founder
Kar Him, MO
Co-Founder and Chairman
Prof. MO Kar Him, also known as Mo, is Assistant Professor at the School of Architecture. Before joining CUHK, Mo has led several consultancy projects on policy review advocating for sustainable development. His current research focuses on positive ageing in the built environment and intergenerational living, and advocates for community participation in the process of design and planning. He believes empathy is the foundation of moral design. The act of design starts with thorough understandings and good observation, not problem-solving.
Rina KO
Co-Founder and Director
Rina Ko is a Registered Architect and has a professional interest in the well-being of older people. She has joined the CUHK Jockey Club Institute of Ageing since 2018. Her cross-disciplinary research explores how urban and architectural intent could have spiral effects on the physical and cognitive health of the elderlies, from daily encounters to societal implications. Before joining CUHK, she practiced as a Junior Architect in Herzog & de Meuron for two public cultural projects, Tai Kwun and M+ Museum, in Hong Kong. She believes a concerted effort of design research can produce collective meaning and social values for our home, Hong Kong.
William SIN
Co-Founder and Director
William is the Research Director of the Hong Kong Public Space Initiative and is involved in a number of community innovation projects on different capacity in recent years. He received his undergraduate training in the University of Oregon in History, Geography and Archaeology and later on obtained his Master of Science in Geoinformation Science in The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His interdisciplinary academic training allows him to be able to “read” a place from different perspective and to appreciate the importance of social interaction between people. He believes the relationship between urban space and people. The nurturing of social relations in a community is the key principle to create a good place.
Team member
Kar Him MO
Co-Director & Chairman
Prof. MO Kar Him, also known as Mo, is Assistant Professor at the School of Architecture. Before joining CUHK, Mo has led several consultancy projects on policy review advocating for sustainable development. His current research focuses on positive ageing in the built environment and intergenerational living, and advocates for community participation in the process of design and planning. He believes empathy is the foundation of moral design. The act of design starts with thorough understandings and good observation, not problem-solving.
Esther NG
Research Associate
Esther is currently working on a study on a pilot implementation of intergenerational housing in Hong Kong. Her initial interest in housing stemmed from learning about spatial justice issues through interning and volunteering with housing advocacy organizations. Prior to joining Happy Ageing Lab, she was an Associate Project Manager at a real estate development consulting firm based in Philadelphia, PA, where she coordinated the planning, financing, and construction of affordable housing projects in the US. In her spare time, Esther can be found getting calligraphy ink all over her arms, attempting to find the pangram on NYT’s spelling bee, or at Broadway Cinematheque—somewhere in the last few rows, finishing off a box of Maltesers (pre-pandemic, of course).
Danyang LEI
PhD
Danyang LEI(Dannie) holds a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture from Guangzhou and a Master of Urban Design at CUHK. Now she is pursuing her PhD in the School of Architecture at CUHK with the main field of interest in public space and healthy ageing, social inclusion, and intergenerational space. She believes there is causality between the built environment and human action and tries to demonstrate it scientifically. She hopes her research and practice could inform different sectors of society for a better future. Dannie has a wide range of hobbies yet is a master in none, including but not limited to drawing, dancing, music and cooking.
Weixuan CHEN
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Weixuan Chen (Victor) is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the School of Architecture, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. With a PhD in Built Environment from the University of Nottingham, his research keenly focuses on urban regeneration and governance within the Chinese context. His contributions to the academic community are highlighted by his work published in respected journals such as Political Geography and Habitat International.
David LIN
Project Manager
With a background in urban studies and planning, David has always been fascinated by the organic interactions between urban environments and individuals. While recognising the reality of an urban environment is often limited by its framework, depending on multiple physical and socio-cultural constraints, he is keen on pushing boundaries. David started his planning career in a community based creative start-up where he was responsible for bringing communities together through innovative ways. He later joined the CUHK Jockey Club Institute of Ageing, focused on developing the understanding of older people's needs in the residential environment. With his experience working closely with the two ends – built professionals and individual users, he sees Happy Ageing Lab as a bridge that connects all parties, and he hopes it will empower individuals for a better, more people-oriented society.
Alumni
Alison LI, Carina CHAN, Henry CHAN, Joyce YIU, Kani AU, Kelly LIN, Owen TANG (in alphabetical order)
The Advisory Board
+ Prof. Jean WOO
Emeritus Professor of Medicine and Director of CUHK JC Institute of Ageing
+ Prof. Wallace CHANG P.H
Associate Professor, HKU Faculty of Architecture
+ Prof. Wong Hung
Associate Professor, CUHK Department of Social Work
+ Mr. Timothy MA , JP, MH
Business Consultant, CUHK S-KPF Fund
Our Strategic Partners
