The Hong Kong Jockey Club Professorship in Economics

On World Environment Day, June 5, 2024, The University of Hong Kong (HKU) established the HKU Jockey Club Enterprise Sustainability Global Research Institute through its HKU Business School, with funding from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust.

It was established as a world-class hub for best sustainability practices, and to foster dialogue and collaboration on Environmental, Social, and Governance challenges. Its mission is to promote excellence in the field of sustainability by bringing together distinguished scholars from diverse fields, integrating knowledge and practice, inspiring innovation, and conducting impactful research.

Professor Guojun He, an economist working on environmental, development, and governance issues, is The Hong Kong Jockey Club Professor in Economics

at HKU Business School, HKU. Professor He is also the Director of The HKU Jockey Club Enterprise Sustainability Global Research Institute and the Associate Director of HKU’s Institute of China Economy. He also holds a concurrent appointment at the Energy Policy Institute of the University of Chicago (EPIC) and leads research activities of its China centre (EPIC-China).

Professor He’s research addresses some of the most challenging problems faced by developing countries and seeks to produce empirically grounded estimates for optimal policy design. Much of his work focuses on understanding the benefits and costs of environmental policies, and he also has broader research interests in development and governance issues, with particular focus on how governance structures affect policy outcomes.

His influential works on China’s air pollution and water pollution policies have profoundly shaped the understanding of environmental regulation, public health, and governance in China. His interdisciplinary approach and extensive engagement with citizens, corporations, and policymakers have advanced the understanding of how data-driven research can promote equitable and environmentally sustainable economic growth in rapidly developing economies.

Professor He’s studies integrate economic analysis with policy evaluation, seeking to establish empirical foundations for effective governance and sustainable development. His research has been featured in leading economics journals, including the American Economic Review and Quarterly Journal of Economics, as well as in science journals, including Science and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

He obtained his PhD from UC Berkeley and received undergraduate education from Peking University. ​Before joining HKU, he worked at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Harvard University.​ He is a Fellow of the Asian Bureau of Finance and Economic Research, an external research affiliate of the Institute of Sustainable and Green Finance at the National University of Singapore, and a visiting scholar at the University of Chicago.

Professor He has received several prestigious academic honours, including the European Award for Researchers in Environmental Economics under the Age of Forty, the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the 9th Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Achievement Award (Humanities and Social Sciences) from the Ministry of Education of China, and the Zhang Peigang Development Economics Outstanding Achievement Award (the highest award in the field of development economics in China).