ADM Capital Foundation

20/08/2026

As the Government's preparation of Hong Kong's first Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development (HKFYP) gets underway, we have submitted recommendations as part of the Hong Kong Biodiversity Expert Group (HKBEG).

The HKBEG constitutes a wide swathe of the expertise in biodiversity and conservation outside government and provided considerable input to the Hong Kong Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (BSAP) 2035 consultation process.

For the HKFYP, our recommendations center on adopting an ecological civilisation framework, elevating the strategic importance of the BSAP 2035, and offering concrete suggestions to strengthen key areas of both the BSAP 2035 and the Climate Action Plan.

Our eight major areas of recommendations:
1️⃣ Embed the principles of ecological civilisation across policy and planning
2️⃣ Adopt a whole-of-society approach to biodiversity action
3️⃣ Build Hong Kong into a hub for nature and conservation finance
4️⃣ Strengthen nature's resilience to climate change
5️⃣ Scale up nature-based solutions as a structured, city-wide approach
6️⃣ Position the Northern Metropolis as a flagship for nature-positive development
7️⃣ Highlighting opportunities in ecotourism and nature-based rural development.
8️⃣ Partnering across the Greater Bay Area to conserve endangered species.

Read the full recommendations here: https://www.admcf.org/research-admcf/recommendations-for-hong-kong-first-five-year-plan-for-economic-and-social-development-of-the-hksar-2026-2030/

Biodiversity is foundational to Hong Kong's resilience, competitiveness, and quality of life. We look forward to making BSAP 2035 truly count.

Photo from AFCD/ HKBIH

14/08/2026

🌧️🔥 Summer 2026 has been a season of extremes for Hong Kong: The wettest July in 32 years was immediately followed by the hottest day on record — 36.9°C on August 9. These are signals that climate change is reshaping Hong Kong’s risk landscape. As developments like the Northern Metropolis expand, nature can no longer be an afterthought, it must be integrated into infrastructure planning and financial decision-making from the start.

But as nature finance scales, so does the risk of greenwashing. Without rigorous baselines, consistent metrics, and credible causal links, we risk vague pledges and “nature-positive” claims that don’t deliver real ecological outcomes.

🔍 So what’s the path forward? We need:

✅ Outcome-based indicators and regulated disclosures

✅ Science-based projects with robust baselines and long-term monitoring

✅ Independent verification and open data platforms

✅ Community participation to capture social values

Hong Kong already has strong policy foundations, from the Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance to the NbS Design Guidelines. The opportunity now is to build trust across society so capital flows to projects that deliver real restoration and real integration of nature into urban development.

If we get this right, Hong Kong can become a high-integrity biodiversity finance hub where nature is truly valued.

Read our analysis by Hilary Lai, co-author of the book chapter “Can the Finance Sector Be Trusted? Greenwashing, Greenhushing and Greenwishing” https://lnkd.in/g5izUxyb

04/08/2026

ADMCF is excited to invite our community to join us at ReThink HK 2026 – Asia’s Hub for Climate Action & Sustainable Business Solutions – on Sep 10 & 11 at HKCEC. This is where Hong Kong’s business leaders, innovators and sustainability practitioners come together to share practical solutions, real-world case studies and proven pathways for climate and business resilience.

As a Programme Partner, we’re pleased to offer you an exclusive Early-Bird delegate rate – simply use promo code PP20ADM by August 31 when you register to enjoy the special discount. Secure your place today, start planning the sessions and connections that matter most to your organisation, and be part of the collective effort to accelerate a more sustainable future for Hong Kong.

📌 View the full programme: https://rethink-event.com/2026-conference/
🎟 Register for your delegate pass at https://register.rethink-event.com/general
Stay tuned with the event updates at www.rethink-event.com

We look forward to meeting you at ReThink HK 2026 on Sep 10 & 11!



Sophie Le Clue Stan Shea Nadia Negm CWR

03/08/2026

🎙️ Listen to some recent interviews by RTHK 香港電台 with our friends and team members:

🐊 Sam Inglis and Hilary Lai from our Wildlife team discuss the recent rise in wildlife trafficking cases, including everything from turtle and parrot eggs to crocodiles hidden in Hong Kong residential buildings. Find out about the hidden illegal wildlife trade and how to better protect endangered species.

Listen here: https://www.rthk.hk/radio/radio3/programme/brunch/episode/1111757

🐠 Kathleen Ho and Wai Hong Yiu from BLOOM Association/ ADM Capital Foundation chat about their new field guide "Fantastic Reef Fishes and Where to Find Them" including the impact of biodiversity research on Hong Kong.

Listen here: https://www.rthk.hk/radio/radio3/programme/brunch/episode/1117865

Photos from the wonderful host of RTHK "Brunch" Cruzanne Macalligan 麥美琦

29/07/2026

Hong Kong’s Dried Seafood Street ("Hoi Mei Gaai") is a vivid intersection of culture, commerce... and biodiversity concerns. It is a culturally significant centre of trade in dried gourmet foods that are highly prized in Chinese cuisine, including controversial products such as sharks fin and other endangered marine wildlife.

We sat down with Kathleen Ho from BLOOM, a marine conservation NGO that has conducted extensive research at Dried Seafood Street, partly supported by ADM Capital Foundation. This long-term work provides critical insight into how global trade impacts endangered marine species.

"The abundance of products at the traditional shops belies the urgency of the biodiversity crises stemming from unsustainable trade in marine species," says Ho.

We chat about the realities of conducting research at Dried Seafood Street, their research findings, and their future direction towards the fish maw trade (HK imports fish maw from over 110 countries/ territories with an average annual import of US$280 million per year).

Read our interview: https://www.admcf.org/hong-kong-dried-seafood-street/

Photos by Stan Shea, ADMCF/ BLOOM.

“Hoi Mei Gaai” is the familiar Cantonese name that we use to refer to Hong Kong’s “Dried Seafood Street” in Sheung Wan. Literally meaning “Taste of the Sea Street,” Hoi Mei Gaai is a culturally significant centre of trade in dried gourmet foods that are highly prized in Chinese cuisine...

16/07/2026

In light of recent record-breaking heatwaves around the world, revisiting the NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Climate Spiral with its updated data feels particularly haunting. One thing is painfully clear: what used to feel like abstract data is now showing up in real life as fatal heat.

NASA’s visualization compresses 140+ years of monthly global temperature anomalies into an image of acceleration. It shows that the last three years were the warmest in its 146-year record, and the latest climate spiral keeps extending that story month by month.

The spiral makes visible what people living in Hong Kong, Europe, and beyond can already feel in their daily lives. Countries in Europe reported over 10,000 excess deaths during the extreme heatwaves that cooked the west of the continent towards the end of June. The record-breaking high temperatures would have been "virtually impossible" without climate change, the World Weather Attribution group of scientists said: https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/07/13/europe-records-10000-excess-deaths-during-june-heatwaves-new-data-shows If we want fewer heat emergencies in the years ahead, adaptation and emissions cuts both need to move faster.

14/07/2026

Hong Kong is the top importer of CITES-regulated turtles and tortoises ( .) globally between 2015-2024, with more than 4.3 million live CITES-listed turtles entering the city. This is almost twice as many as the second‑largest importer, mainland China.

Our article, “Shell Shock: Hong Kong’s Role in the Turtle Trade Crisis,” dives into the issue: the majority of these imports may come from captive‑bred sources overseas, but several species rely on wild populations of critically endangered turtles such as the Madagascan big-headed turtle.

According to the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems-affiliated Turtle Conservation Coalition, more than half of the world’s turtle and tortoise species are threatened, or already extinct, making them the most at-risk animals amongst reptiles.

Many species are in high demand across rapidly growing Asian markets. Rare turtles and tortoises are highly sought-after as exotic pets and status symbols, while their meat, shells, blood, and eggs are used in remedies.

Hong Kong’s significant role in the global turtle trade makes it an important pressure point in conservation efforts. The critical situation is underscored by a thriving illegal trade that puts already vulnerable species at even greater risk. Protecting turtles and tortoises requires stronger regulation, better monitoring and greater public awareness. Understanding the supply chain and the impacts of trade helps prevent criminals from profiting at the expense of biodiversity.

Read the article here: https://www.admcf.org/shell-shock-hong-kongs-role-in-the-turtle-trade-crisis/

07/07/2026

Learn all about Hong Kong’s incredible marine biodiversity in a Cantonese-language documentary series by RTHK and our friends at BLOOM Association HK. Beautifully shot underwater, it showcases a variety of species inhabiting Hong Kong’s seas, including seahorses, clown fish, shrimp goby, and more.

The hosts interview Stan Shea, Kathleen Ho, and Wai Hong Yiu about the recently published “Fantastic Reef Fish” field guide to Hong Kong reef fish, which documented 422 species, including nine that have not been recorded in Hong Kong before.

Shea tells interviewers that although Hong Kong has a subtropical climate, their decades-long research revealed that it is the tropical climate species populations that are increasing, while subtropical climate species populations remain relatively stable.

The researchers intend to compare environmental data, such as water temperature, with data collected from their reef fish survey to see how climate change has affected Hong Kong’s marine biodiversity.

Watch the documentary series here: https://www.rthk.hk/tv/dtt31/programme/biodiversityinmagazine4/episode/1089148

Read our interview with Stan Shea here: https://www.admcf.org/hong-kong-reef-fish-survey/

03/07/2026

Watch mini-documentary, "Monkey Business," by the financial crimes investigators at HSBC and see how Sam Inglis, Head of Wildlife for ADM Capital Foundation, collaborated with stakeholders to expose a vast network linked to the trafficking of long-tailed macaques.

The film explores the multi-billion-dollar illegal wildlife trade, the intricate world of money laundering that underpins it – and the role we can play in rooting it out.

https://youtu.be/2kIFt_q7I54?si=Hc8tW-q5CSl4xAei

Sophie Le Clue Nadia Negm Zoe Li

"Criminals are constantly evolving and getting better at what they ...

17/06/2026

The public can now have a say on a proposed Coastal Protection Park (CPP) that spans the ecologically and culturally significant areas of Tsim Bei Tsui, Lau Fau Shan and Pak Nai – an important step for coastal conservation in Deep Bay in the northwest of the New Territories in Hong Kong.

The government launched a public consultation exercise for the proposed park, inviting views from the public and all sectors of the community. The consultation runs until July 31, and submissions can be sent by email to [email protected]. Review the preliminary recommendations here:
https://lnkd.in/gBWt5yvD

The proposed hashtag covers an area of approximately 2,370 hectares of land and sea. Key goals include:

🐚 Conserve mangroves, marshes, and intertidal habitats
🐚 Protect coastal ecosystems and biodiversity to serve as the feeding, roosting, and breeding habitats for waterbirds and wetland wildlife
🐚 Preserve the natural landscape of Deep Bay
🐚 Provide eco-recreation opportunities
🐚 Support existing pond fish culture and oyster farming

To balance eco-recreation with traditional practices, the CPP will include three zones:
🐦 Biodiversity Conservation Zone
🦪 Oyster Culture Heritage Zone
🌿 Eco-Learning and Discovery Zone

This initiative reflects a growing recognition of nature-based solutions and integrated coastal management in Hong Kong’s environmental planning and aligns with broader sustainability goals. More details on the CPP can be found at The Nature Conservancy:
https://lnkd.in/dgk9ciiY

Photos are from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department.