WEBINAR: Tracie Lorenzo on rural revitalization and collaboration

 

On Tuesday, 15th of August 2023, the PECS working group on collaborative governance and management hosted another webinar: Michael Schoon invited Tracie Lorenzo to talk about ‘The Role of Collaboration in Rural Revitalisation‘.

Rural revitalization aims to address historical inequalities between urban and rural areas through the transformation and innovation of rural systems, including agriculture, economic structure, and governance. Strengthening connections across the urban-rural spectrum is a significant boost for rural revitalization, which can then benefit stakeholders across the spectrum. The webinar will focus first on lessons learned from the Centre for Civil Society and Governance’s experience in facilitating collaborative rural revitalization in Hong Kong. From 2013-2023, the Centre spearheaded a programme on rural revitalisation and sustainability centered around Lai Chi Wo village in northeast Hong Kong. The programme was built on a collaborative model, partnering with NGOs, government agencies, private businesses, other academic departments, and working closely with local villagers. Its main aim was to develop a sustainable model for rural revitalization for Hong Kong and beyond. Tracie will also share her current work on analyzing the role of collaborations in rural revitalization in four Asia-Pacific jurisdictions (Hong Kong, Mainland China, Thailand, and Taiwan) through case study collection.

 

Theresa Lorenzo Bajaj is a Honorary Fellow at the Centre for Civil Society and Governance at the University of Hong Kong, where she was also a Postdoctoral Fellow. She holds a Master of Science in Natural Resource Sciences (specialization in Hydrological Sciences) from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and received a Ph.D in Biology, with a concentration in Biology and Society, from Arizona State University. Theresa’s broad research interests lie in collaborative governance and resource management to ensure sustainable development, particularly in developing countries. At present, her research focuses on the governance of different commons across the rural-urban spectrum in both Hong Kong and neighboring jurisdictions, and how collaboration across the same spectrum strengthens rural and peri-urban sustainability and revitalization.

You can listen to the recording of the webinar here.

All other past webinars hosted on behalf of the PECS Collaborative Working Group are available here.

Text by Michael Schoon/ Upload by Johanna Hofmann