Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change
The Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change is a museum dedicated to the theme of climate change located in Sha Tin, Hong Kong. Opened on 16 December 2013, it is the world's first museum focusing on climate change. The museum was initially established by the Jockey Club's Initiative Gaia at The Chinese University of Hong Kong and funded by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, and is situated on the 8th floor of the Yasumoto International Academic Park building at CUHK.
The museum houses a large collection of exhibits gathered by explorer Rebecca Lee from around the world. It features permanent exhibitions on polar climates, environmental protection technologies, and other topics, as well as periodic special exhibitions. Additionally, the museum offers eco-tours outside the museum, where visitors are guided to various environmental protection facilities and measures.
History
The history of the Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change can be traced back to the explorer Rebecca Lee, who began to focus on climate issues as early as the 1980s. In 1987, when she accompanied an expedition team from the State Oceanic Administration of the People's Republic of China to the South Pole, she conceived the idea of establishing a polar museum in Hong Kong. She hoped to raise awareness among Hong Kong people about the severity of climate issues and to attract young people to engage in natural science research. Lee encountered a dangerous situation in Antarctica in 1991, which made her feel that action was urgently needed and that it was necessary to establish a museum to organise information for the next generation. She later founded the Polar Museum Fund in 1997 and served as its director. She considered various locations for the museum, including industrial buildings, small buildings in the New Territories, and schools, but all attempts failed, and she even considered abandoning the plan.During a 2010 speech by Lee at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, the university's presidentJoseph Sunglearned of the matter and offered his support. Sung successfully invited the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust to fund the museum's establishment, while the 8th floor of the Yasumoto International Academic Park building at CUHK was chosen as where the museum would sit. The museum covered an area of approximately and was built using green building techniques, including natural lighting, sun shading, heat insulation devices, and energy-saving facilities. The collaborative programmethe Jockey Club Earth Resources Centreofficially launched on 1 June 2012, and the museum officially opened on 16 December 2013 as the "Jockey Club Museum of Climate Change", bearing the name of its main sponsor.
During the opening of the museum, Lee stated that the museum could promote climate conservation and cultivate new scientific talents. Sung hoped that the museum could provide the public with information on climate change and promote sustainable development in Hong Kong. Christine Loh, then Undersecretary for the Environment of the Hong Kong Government, believed that the Environmental Protection Department and the university could strengthen cooperation through the museum to promote the development of environmental protection in Hong Kong.
After the completion of the collaborative program "Jockey Club Earth Resources Centre" in 2016, the Jockey Club provided funding again in 2017 to implement the three-year "Jockey Club–CUHK Climate Action" plan to support the operation and development of the museum.
Permanent exhibitions
The museum is located in Ma Liu Shui, at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, adjacent to the University MTR Station. The campus itself is surrounded by mountains and faces the sea, boasting rich biodiversity, making it suitable for hosting ecological activities based on the museum.The museum features four permanent exhibition halls, along with thematic exhibitions, covering a total area of approximately. The four exhibition areas are the "Polar Corridor", "Satellite Remote Sensing and Environmental Monitoring", "Innovative Research at The Chinese University of Hong Kong", and "Jockey Club Environmental Conservation Corner". The museum houses over 100 exhibits related to climate change or global warming, including specimens of animals and plants, replicas, tools, and various types of images. The exhibitions include over 40,000 photos and videos taken by Rebecca Lee, some of which involved life-threatening risks and incurred high costs to capture scenes from the polar regions. Additionally, the museum incorporates over 50 multimedia installations to help visitors understand climate change issues and research findings from around the world.
Furthermore, the museum offers online virtual tours of its permanent exhibitions, allowing the public to browse information, exhibits, and related explanations on the internet.
Polar Corridor
The design of the Polar Corridor resembles the icebreaker of the Polar Research Institute of China,. It displays a model of the Xue Long to represent the origin of the exhibits and its symbolic significance to China's polar scientific research. The exhibition area features a large projection screen measuring, along with deck design, air conditioning simulating polar cold winds, polar bear models, and projected images of glacier melting on the ground, providing visitors with an immersive experience. The screen primarily showcases segments of climate and ecological changes discovered by the Xue Long during its expedition to the Arctic Ocean in 2008, including record-high temperatures in the Arctic Ocean leading to rare sightings of polar bears feeding near the ship, aiming to help visitors understand environmental issues related to climate change.The exhibition area displays exhibits donated by Rebecca Lee, most of which were collected from North Pole, the Arctic, and Mount Everest. Numerous exhibits include fossils and specimens of animals and plants, such as emperor penguin eggs from Antarctica, seals from the Arctic, and Tibetan ammonites from Mount Everest, as well as tools and instruments used in polar expeditions. Additionally, a replica of a room at Rebecca Lee's Antarctic scientific research station is displayed to provide insights into the living conditions of expedition members, along with some polar expedition essentials and souvenirs. Concurrently, the exhibition area features a 1:1 model of Lee working outdoors in her expedition attire.
The Chinese Antarctic Research Expedition presented the museum with a giant Antarctic stone eroded into a wind chime shape for exhibition purposes. Due to restrictions under the Antarctic Treaty System, objects on Antarctica cannot be easily taken away. Therefore, Rebecca Lee regards this rare Antarctic wind chime stone as the "treasure of the museum."
Satellite Remote Sensing and Environmental Monitoring
The exhibition area of Satellite Remote Sensing and Environmental Monitoring is designed to resemble the control room of the satellite remote sensing ground receiving station at the peak of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Its purpose is to allow visitors to simulate monitoring personnel, observe various geographical information and satellite images of meteorological, oceanographic, and geological changes in Hong Kong, southern China, and the South China Sea, showcasing the actual impact of climate change on Hong Kong and neighboring areas. This information involves the application of geographic information science in various fields of environmental protection, including air pollution, marine oil spills, and virtual geographic environments.Innovative Research
The exhibition area of Innovative Research at the Chinese University of Hong Kong mainly showcases the innovative research achievements of the Chinese University in the fields of environment, energy, and sustainable development aimed at addressing climate change issues. This exhibition area presents research projects of scholars from the Chinese University in natural sciences, applied sciences, and social sciences. In terms of environmental technology, the exhibition area features technologies such as an electronic tree identification system. In the field of energy technology, the exhibition area displays exhibits such as solar cells and technologies for hydrogen production through photocatalytic oxidation of water. Additionally, the exhibition area includes an experimental model demonstrating the existence of the urban heat island effect, emphasizing the importance of sustainable urban design and planning. The museum aims to provide visitors not only with an understanding of research outcomes but also to offer insights into the future development of technology.Hong Kong Jockey Club Environmental Hub
The exhibition content focuses on environmental projects participated in by the Hong Kong Jockey Club and community environmental projects supported by its charitable trust fund. The Jockey Club collaborates with McDull, a cartoon character by Brian Tse, to promote low-carbon living in this area. The goal of the exhibition area is to inspire visitors to develop new environmental thinking and promote community environmental projects.The exhibition area also features artworks made from recycled horse horseshoes provided by the Jockey Club, as well as a simulated factory showcasing the process of recycling glass bottles into synthetic bricks.