Watt-A-Thon

An 8-hour Cycling event for clean electricity generating     Promotes low carbon future with innovation

Under the influence of climate change, extreme weather becomes more and more frequent, causing serious damage and loss in many parts of the world. Climate change does not only affect humans, but also affects the ecosystem, threatening the survival of many species. Fighting against climate change is the most urgent challenge facing the humankind.

Almost 70% of Hong Kong’s greenhouse gas emissions come from electricity generation. Coal makes up around half of the energy mix; renewable energy only accounts for 1-2%. Therefore, to reduce carbon emissions, we must increase the share of renewable energy in Hong Kong’s energy mix. To promote the development of renewable energy, the Hong Kong Government has introduced the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) system and promoted related projects such as building floating solar power panels on reservoirs. However, both the pace and impact of these actions are far from adequate.

The Paris Watch Project initiated by CarbonCare InnoLab rates Hong Kong in the critical areas of climate action as outlined in the Paris Agreement and compares Hong Kong with 6 other cities also from the “C40 Cities Climate: Leadership Group”. The result has revealed that Hong Kong’s renewables (1-2%) and target (3-4% by 2030) were shockingly low and far behind the other cities which expect the majority of their electricity to come from clean sources. (Learn more)

The clock is ticking. Only 11 years are left to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. We hope to gather together the power of the business sector, the government, the media, NGOs and individuals in urging Hong Kong to take a great step forward in renewable energy. Through this 8-hour Watt-A-Thon in which energy is generated by bike pedalling, we hope to make energy generation a memorable experience of the public, and put Hong Kong on its path to a low carbon future through innovation, imagination and collective effort.