HKUST INTERNATIONAL

CASE COMPETITION 2022

HKUST
INTERNATIONAL
CASE
COMPETITION

ORGANIZER
2022
SPONSOR

1
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

VERONIQUE LAFON-VINAIS
MINYI HUANG

Impact Kommons: New World Development’s

Accelerator Program to Achieve Sustainable
Development Goals
We are committed to recruiting young entrepreneurs with innovative technologies and a
sustainable development mindset through Impact Kommons, which embodies New World
Group’s “Creating Shared Value” (CSV) and works hand in hand with these start-ups in
transforming their creativity into a driving force that truly benefits and propels society.

~ Adrian Cheng, Founder of Eureka Nova and CEO of New World Development 1

Impact Kommons, developed by New World Development Company Limited (NWD), was Asia’s first start-up accelerator
targeted at achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs). Impact Kommons facilitated business
integration between the start-ups and NWD’s business units based on clearly defined problems to achieve the sustainability
targets aligned with the UNSDGs.

As the 12 start-ups of cohort 3 enrolled in November 2021 moved onto the right track to integrate with the business units,
Miranda Wong, Senior Manager of Sustainability and one of the champions of Impact Kommons, wanted to review the
completed cohort 1 and 2 to see how the program could be improved. Based on the experiences gained from the previous
2 cohorts, Miranda was wondering what a start-up really wanted when participating in Impact Kommons and how to further
improve the design of the program to prepare for the future cohorts.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015 the United Nations (UN) identified the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) [Exhibit 1] in the 2030 Agenda
for Sustainable Development with the aim to achieve sustainable development in economic, social, and environmental
dimensions in a balanced and integrated way. The UN called for a global partnership among all countries to end poverty,
improve health and education, reduce inequality, facilitate economic growth, tackle climate change, and preserve the oceans
and forests.

Each UN member state should set its own national targets based on their national circumstances to pursue sustainable
goals. Guided by SDGs and targets, governments should decide how to incorporate these targets into their national planning

1. New World Development, “New World’s Impact Kommons embarks on a new phase to nurture global green technology start-ups. Adrian Cheng: Green tech set to redefine
‘new normal’ after the epidemic,” 23 December 2020,
https://www.nwd.com.hk/content/new-world%E2%80%99s-impact-kommons-embarks-new-phase-nurture-global-green-technology-start-ups, accessed 10 December 2021.

Dr. Minyi Huang prepared this case under the supervision of Professor Veronique Lafon-Vinais solely as a basis for class discussion. The authors have disguised certain data to protect confidentiality. Cases are
written in the past tense; this is not meant to imply that all practices, organizations, people, places or facts mentioned in the case no longer occur, exist, or apply. Cases are not intended to serve as endorsements,
sources of primary data, or illustration of effective or ineffective handling of a business situation.

For inquiries regarding ordering and permission to reproduce the case and its materials, please write to [email protected] or visit cbcs.ust.hk.

© 2022 by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. This publication shall not be digitized, photocopied or otherwise reproduced, posted, or transmitted without the permission of the Hong Kong
University of Science and Technology.

2
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

processes, policies and strategies. The success depended on inclusive partnerships at the global, regional, national, and local
levels based on principles and values, as well as a shared vision and common goals centered on people and the planet.

UN member states were also encouraged to conduct regular and inclusive reviews of progress at the national
and sub-national levels by drawing on contributions from indigenous people, society, the private sector, and
other stakeholders. Drawn on national level reviews, periodical reviews on the regional and global levels were also
conducted. 2

New World Development

It’s very important that we build platforms to cross-pollinate and cross-fertilise ideas between
sectors, cultures, and age groups. The main aim is not only to have meaningful dialogues
between business leaders, cultural changemakers, and younger generation, but to encourage
collective actions.

~ Adrian Cheng, Founder of Eureka Nova & CEO of New World Development 3

New World Development Company Limited (NWD) was founded in 1970. Listed in Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 1972, NWD
was a constituent stock of the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index. The Group had two listed companies, including NWS Holdings
Limited (61%) and New World Department Store China Limited (75%), and wholly owned New World China Land Limited
[Exhibit 2].

NWD developed its connected ecosystem of businesses [Exhibit 3], covering property development and investment, retailing,
transportation, infrastructure development, healthcare, insurance, hospitality, construction, logistics and other strategic
investments. NWD’s total revenue in the FY2020-2021 was HKD68,233.2million [Exhibit 4 for financial performance].

NWD’s brand featured the Artisanal Movement. NWD hoped to leverage its business and innovation to give back to society
by focusing on three areas: culture and creativity, sustainability, and social innovation.

The Artisanal Movement is a cultural vision, a celebration of the human values of craftsmanship,
heritage and imagination. Today, as our business evolves in step with the society, we look ahead
to bring a new purpose to this vision: create shared value for all stakeholders in communities that
we serve, in order to make a positive impact on the world.

~ New World Development Annual Report 4

NWD put sustainability at the forefront [Exhibit 5 for the corporate governance structure]. With “creating shared value” as
its corporate vision, NWD wanted to achieve business sustainability by both bringing significant returns to shareholders and
responding to the community and stakeholders’ needs.

2. Department of Economic and Social Affairs, “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” United Nations, https://sdgs.un.org/2030agenda,
accessed 3 January 2022.
3. New World Development, “Driving Change through Partnerships,” https://sustainability.nwd.com.hk/highlight/driving-change-through-partnership/, accessed 3 January 2022.
4. New World Development Annual Report 2021.

3
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

NWD developed the New World Sustainability Vision 2030 (SV2030), which was based on its business priorities, stakeholders’
needs and the UNSDGs. NWD focused on four key pillars — including Green, Wellness, Smart, and Caring, and developed a
series of strategies and targets based on 2015 baseline levels to achieve by 2030 [Exhibit 6 for SV2030]. It aimed to bring
long-term value to different stakeholders and benefit the whole community [Exhibit 7 for Maturity Matrix].
NWD was working hard toward its SV2030 targets. While these targets represented performance to be achieved by 2030,
NWD conducted annual assessments to ensure its strategies and performance were appropriate and on track to meeting the
longer-term targets. In fiscal year 2021, for example, their carbon emission intensity was reduced by 33% as compared to their
fiscal year 2015 baseline, which assured the company’s strategies were effective and moving in the right direction to meet the
SV2030 target of a 50% reduction. 5

NWD’s sustainability performance was well recognized globally. NWD had been listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability Asia
Pacific Index since 2019. In 2020 NWD was also the first Hong Kong real estate company to become a member of the World
Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), a CEO-led organization with over 200 international companies to
help businesses leverage their expertise to deliver solutions to tackle the most challenging sustainability issues [Exhibit 8 for
NWD’s selected global ESG ratings and awards].

IMPACT KOMMONS
As the first accelerator program to target the UNSDGs, Impact Kommons was designed to enable start-ups to integrate with
NWD’s business units to solve well-defined sustainable development problems. Impact Kommons enabled NWD to move
fast to achieve its SV2030 sustainability goals and provided opportunities for start-ups to leverage NWD’s business network
to gain more business exposure and enter and expand in HK and explore the Great Bay Area (GBA) market.

In Impact Kommons, the Sustainability Department and Eureka Nova worked together to architect and curate the program.
Eureka Nova was the open innovation division of NWD, which empowered start-ups to co-create within the New World’s
ecosystem of culture, creativity, and innovation. Eureka Nova had built and run different accelerators for different purposes in
parallel since 2018, successfully bridging start-up innovations with NWD’s business units and external partners. For instance,
Mizuho Bank from Japan, one of NWD’s commercial building tenants in Hong Kong, leveraged Eureka Nova’s start-up
network to start their fintech accelerator. In December 2021, Eureka Nova partnered with Microsoft HK to start the first cohort
of the GBA Accelerator Program, focusing on start-ups who wanted to use robotics and artificial intelligence to scale up their
businesses across the GBA.

While Eureka Nova helped to reach and recruit start-ups, Impact Kommons also had network partners, including Cyberport, 6
Science Park, 7 InvestHK, 8 some family offices with a start-up investment unit, foundations, and even overseas organizations.
Each network partner could refer eligible start-ups from their own network to Impact Kommons.

Among the accelerators available in the HK market, Impact Kommons as a sustainability-related open platform to welcome
different public and private sector players to join was unique in several aspects:

5. New World Development Annual Report 2021.

6. Cyberport, wholly owned by the HKSAR government, provides all-around services, state-of-art facilities and smart workspaces to over 1,650 start-ups and IT companies.
Cyberport aims to develop into a digital technology hub and to foster the transformation of Hong Kong into a smart city. [Source: Corporate website, https://www.cyberport.hk,
accessed 13 January 2022.]
7. Science Park was set up by the HKSAR government in 2001 as an innovation incubator. Its 22-hectare campus is adjacent to the Chinese University of Hong Kong, providing
Hong Kong’s largest R&D collaborative platform to more than 1,100 IT companies of all sizes and stages of development. [Source: Corporate website, https://www.hkstp.org,
accessed 13 January 2022.]
8. InvestHK belongs to the Department of Foreign Direct Investment, the HKSAR Government. It offers free advice and services to overseas and Mainland entrepreneurs, SMEs and
multinationals and helps them to set up an office and expand their business in Hong Kong. [Source: Organizational website, https://www.investhk.gov.hk, accessed 13 January 2022.]

4
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

First, the program aimed to transfer the UNSDGs related contents and know-how to the start-ups. As Asia’s first UNSDGs-
focused accelerator, Impact Kommons benefited from NWD’s previous experience of adopting the UNSDGs in their own
sustainability corporate strategy to guide the Group’s daily operations and disclosures and so on so forth.

Second, Impact Kommons was an in-house accelerator, which allowed the start-ups to access to all New World’s business
units. New World was a premier brand in the real estate industry, but start-ups were able to access to the whole side range of
business sectors of NWD, including the K11, retailing, construction, infrastructure and services. This straightforward access
made it different from other accelerator proponents such as banks, Cyberport and Science Park. Moreover, as an in-house
accelerator, they knew clearly where the pain points, business challenges and opportunities were across business units.
Therefore, they were able to clearly outline the problem statements before selecting start-ups.

The problem statements are the real problems we want to solve throughout our ecosystem.
We allow the start-ups to integrate their solutions into our ecosystem. Different from other
accelerators in the region that might solely provide start-ups with financing or working space,
we are providing real-life business cases to scale their solutions.

~ Miranda Wong, Senior Manager of Sustainability, NWD and K11 9

Impact Kommons, NWD business units, and their business partners identified the problem statements in relation to sustainable
development. The problem statements were prepared by the respective business units after consultation with Impact Kommons,
which clearly stated what needed to be solved [Exhibit 9]. DBS Bank was Impact Kommon’s Social Impact Partner, and
Amazon Web Services was its Cloud Solution Partner. For instance, DBS could contribute to the problem statements and
select their own start-ups to integrate into their business operations.

After a business unit submitted their proposal, Impact Kommons would visit the business unit to have a better understanding
of their requirement, selection criteria, timeline, and the resources available before moving on to search for start-ups.

Each project had a delegated project manager. Throughout the whole process, the project manager worked with the start-up,
talked to the business unit about how they needed solutions, and helped the start-up to understand and adapt to the way of
working in NWD.

Admission Stage

Different from incubator programs, Impact Kommons as an accelerator had a shorter duration. It shortlisted those more matured
start-ups that had proven products or services. Some of them already had a very robust clientele or experience working with
corporations, while others had experience with venture capital (VC) pitching and fundraising. A suitable start-up should meet
the following requirements: 10 [Exhibit 10 for more details]
1. Must create a sustainability impact value
2. Have a proven technology with results
3. Possess proprietary technologies
4. Generate revenue from its main technologies
5. Intend to expand business in both HK and Mainland China markets

9. Interview with Miranda Wong on 22 December 2021.

10. Impact Kommons, “Application Requirements,” https://www.impactkommons.com/application-requirements, accessed 13 January 2022.

5
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

To apply to Impact Kommons, start-ups were required to prepare the following information: 11
1. The problem the start-up aimed to tackle and solve
2. The UNSDGs the start-up was looking to address
3. The background of the start-up’s team members
4. The revenue generation model
5. Case studies to show the start-up’s past experiences of working in HK and Mainland China markets
6. The start-up’s future plans for the HK or China market
7. The barriers to entering the HK or China market
8. The start-up’s plan to work with New World
9. Relevant certifications or test results, if any
10. The start-up’s product development timeline, key projects, milestones and so on.

From the admission stage, Impact Kommons encouraged start-ups to indicate their level of awareness of the UNSDGs, such
as whether they understood or had heard of the UNSDGs. Some more matured start-ups had incorporated the UNSDGs in
their business strategy models and even products.

After receiving the applications from start-ups, for instance, in Cohort 3 Impact Kommons spent several weeks to review the
applications and talked to the respective business units. Then, they spent another several weeks learning about the shortlisted
start-ups and assessing the viability and potential barrier to business integration.

Integration Stage

At the start of each cohort, an Intro Day was hosted by Eureka Nova and the Sustainability Department to welcome the new
start-ups to join Impact Kommons. Start-ups from previous cohorts also shared their integration experiences with NWD. In
the following four months, the start-ups worked closely with the business unit to co-create solutions that aligned with the
SV2030’s four pillars and fulfilled the UNSDGs.

NWD organized a lot of corporate events, such as hackathons, corporate heritage, sustainable building tours, and stakeholder
events. By attending these events, start-ups could learn more about how New World functioned, which helped make their
solutions better stay in the business units and stick around.

DBS Foundation gave the start-ups a grant to develop their prototype or scale up so that they could be the show piece by
the end of the program. There were successful cases where Impact Kommons injected capital in the start-ups, but providing
funding support was not the focus of this accelerator program.

Evaluation Stage

The good thing about having Sustainability as our partner and having New World backing this whole
operation: What doesn’t work inside Impact Kommons doesn’t mean we need to write out the start-up.
We’ll keep in touch and they will stay in our database, come back and work with us in another capacity.
There are countless touch points and integration opportunities across the New World ecosystem.

~ Ben Wong, Head of Open Innovation, Eureka Nova 12

11. Ibid.
12. Information was provided by the company.

6
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

Approaching the end of each cohort, Impact Kommons would hold a Demo Day. On the Demo Day, each start-up presented
their sustainable development solutions to internal and external stakeholders, as well as the public. For various reasons, some
projects were more successful than the others.

After the cohort, we will continue working with the start-ups. In fact, for some of the start-ups
in Cohort 1 and 2, we are still working with them on even more business opportunities.
As their solutions have been proven within our ecosystem, more colleagues have
come to ask for collaboration.

~ Miranda Wong, Senior Manager of Sustainability, NWD and K11 13

To quantify the impact of each startup’s integration, Impact Kommons carried out a formal assessment at the end of the
cohort.

As start-ups worked in different areas and provided different kinds of solutions, the measurement was very product specific
and varied by start-up. For example, the results of recycling projects might be measured by the number of plastic bottles
collected, their weight, or the number of upcycled products made from plastic collection. Another project of installing metering
software would be measured by power saving.

Learning by Doing

Impact Kommons asked the startups what they thought of the accelerator program at the end of the cohort. By getting
feedback from participating start-ups, Impact Kommons was able to refine its future offerings.

The organization of Impact Kommons was constantly improving. Cohort 1 had 5 start-ups, and the program was very
structured, like a curriculum. Besides the integration discussions between start-ups and business units, they had weekly
workshops covering a wide range of issues, including how to carry out digital marketing, how to cope with the legal challenges
that start-ups usually faced and how to structure the impact business strategy.

The feedback from the start-ups was that since they were at different stages, the weekly workshops were not always useful
or relevant to the attendees. Considering the fast-growing businesses, they would prefer to have more time during this short
program to focus on getting to know the business units that they were assigned to and were supposed to provide solutions.
They considered only having regular meeting with business units was insufficient. Therefore, in Cohort 2, instead of providing
mentorship, project managers played a more coaching role throughout the program to advise start-ups on how to work with
the business unit and how to work in a corporate setting to adapt and scale their solution.

In Cohort 2, Impact Kommons chose 14 start-ups among the applications from 30 countries and regions, including 9 home
grown companies in HK. 14 The feedback from participants suggested that some integrations with business units were
not originally expected at the start of the cohort. Therefore, before the actual acceleration started in Cohort 3, program
administrators spent more time making the problem statements crystal clear by going back and forth between the business
units, the network partners and the start-ups to articulate what the business unit actually needed and what the start-up could
realistically provide and achieve. The integration between start-ups and business units involved a time-consuming diligence
process.

13. Interview with Miranda Wong on 22 December 2021

14. New World Development Co. Ltd., “New World’s accelerator Impact Kommons drives UNSDG-focused sustainability and social impact technology adoption across the group
with second cohort demo day,” 17 May 2021, https://finance.yahoo.com/news/worlds-accelerator-impact-kommons-drives-085500133.html, accessed 10 December 2021..

7
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

Achievements

We provide start-ups with opportunities to work with a large-scale corporation, so they can go
out and sell their successful case to other clients and build their track record that way. We hope
that in the short corporation we will be able to help the start-ups to find tune their propositions.

~ Ben Wong, Head of Open Innovation, Eureka Nova 15

Cohorts 1 and 2 of Impact Kommons had tackled 14 of the 17 UNSDGs. By April 2021, more than 200 active New World
and partner stakeholders had been involved in Impact Kommon’s Cohorts 1 and 2 bringing positive impacts to over 5,000
stakeholders. A total of 2,750 kilograms of construction wood waste and more than 5,000 recyclables were collected and
diverted from landfills. 16

The solutions provided by start-ups helped solve HK’s environmental problems. For instance, HM Environmental Technologies
recycled wood waste and turned it into multi-purpose wood boards. Rice Robotics used robots to deliver goods and sanitise
Victoria Dockside, which helped to reduce human contact under the COVID-19 pandemic. The following was one of the
example to show how Impact Kommons partnered with start-ups with innovative solutions that created shared value with the
stakeholders and helped to achieve SDGs in HK.

V Cycle and K11

Research found over 20% of the solid waste going to landfills was plastics in 2019, equivalent to 2,322 tons generated
daily. 17 In August 2021, the Waste Disposal Bill 2018 was passed in HK, and the municipal solid waste (MSW) charging
started an 18-month preparatory period. Therefore, K11 18 intended to work with its tenants to tackle the plastic recycling
problem by collecting plastics and repurposing them into products.

Moreover, HK mainly relied on cardboard grannies to collect and sell waste boxes for recycling. While HK had the world’s
longest life expectancy, the government was struggling to support the growing ageing population because one third of the
elderly lived in poverty. 19 The monthly Old Age Living Allowance provided by the government was insufficient, and was
insufficient, which was dubbed “fruit money”.

The government regards what the cardboard collectors do as picking up rubbish which they
deem unlawful, consequently there is little to no protection in terms of health and safety for them.
They don’t view these grannies as official members of the recycling industry.

~ Wing-him Tang, Ministry Officer, Hong Kong School of Poverty Caring 20

15. Information provided by the company.

16. Impact Kommons, Impact Report, April 2021.
17. Environment Protection Department, Monitoring of Solid Waste in Hong Kong: Waste Statistics for 2019, https://www.wastereduction.gov.hk/sites/default/files/msw2019.pdf, accessed 17
January 2022.
18. Founded by Adrian Cheng, K11 is a global high-end lifestyle brand operator under New World Group and the world’s first original brand to pioneer the blend of three essential elements of
Art • People • Nature.
19. Matthew Keegan, “Hong Kong’s ‘cardboard grannies’: the elderly box collectors living in poverty,” 24 April 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/apr/24/hong-kong-cardboard-
grannies-elderly-box-collectors-recycling-poverty, accessed 17 January 2022.
20. Ibid.

8
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

Established in 2017 by Eric Swinton in HK, V Cycle employed local waste collectors to collect plastic bottles and
upgraded the bottles into eco-friendly products, such as bags and umbrellas. V Cycle had six employees working in the
areas of waste management, recycling, and poverty alleviation. The social enterprise addressed 4 UNSDGs, including
SDG 1 No Poverty, SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities, SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production, and
SDG 17 Partnerships for the Goals.

In the pilot study, V Cycle repurposed the plastics recyclables collected from about 30 K11 MUSEA 21 tenants into stylish and
durable K11 upcycled umbrellas [Exhibit 11], with each umbrella’s fabric upcycled using plastics equivalent to 14 standard 0.5
liter bottles. It reduced the burden of solid waste, uplifted the living standard of the underprivileged elderly and closed the loop
of the circular economy advocated by New World. A total of 300 kilograms plastic recyclables were collected between April
and September 2021, creating 120 working hours for 3 elderlies to do the sorting and data tracking. 22

My colleagues start to collect plastic bags actively after we have joined the recycling program.
I am moved to witness how it raised their environmental awareness and
caused actual behavioral change!
~ K11 ANTONIA employee testimonial 23

The success of the pilot program had attracted more K11 tenants to join. By the end of 2021, V Cycle was working with over
50 tenants from K11 MUSEA and K11 ATELIER Victoria Dockside office complex; over 550 kilograms plastic recyclables were
collected.

Challenges
Despite the success, Impact Kommons was facing a lot of challenges. Some start-ups had prepared their business integration
plans before joining the accelerator program, but they were unable to materialize in the end. For instance, Impact Kommons
was attracted by a start-up’s solution to upcycle construction waste to some useful products. But it was a challenge for a start-
up to take in and digest the large amount of construction waste, and in fact the collection took up a lot of time. Therefore, the
start-up might not have the time to upcycle and create the final products within the short program period.

Making a project work was just like successfully putting together many different pieces of puzzles within a short timeline. For
instance, there was a project involved installing a system in NWD’s buildings in operation. In order not to disrupt normal daily
operations, the project team had to find the right time and the right people to install, test, and get the system running.

Project managers played a critical role in the program and they were supposed to be problem solvers working alongside with
start-up founders and business units. But project managers had their full-time job responsibilities. Some of them were junior
or short-term employees who might not fully understand what worked and what did not in the New World Group. It would be
a learning process for these colleagues to get up to speed.

Moreover, the allowance provided by DBS might not be sufficient for the start-up to develop a prototype because some
prototypes cost more to develop than others. It depended on the start-up’s business model and its technology. Hence, some
start-ups required the business unit or program administrators to invest more in business integration.

21. K11 MUSEA was a flagship museum-retail complex that opened in August 2019. To provide consumers with immersive experiences in nature, art, culture, and commerce, it brought
together local and international environmentalists, artists, designers and architects to create Hong Kong’s “Silicon Valley of Culture” that was inspired by culture, creativity, and innovation.
[Source: New World Development, “About K11 MUSEA,” https://www.k11musea.com/about-k11-musea/, accessed 9 January 2022.]
22. Impact Kommons, “K11 x V Cycle: Plastic Recycling Initiative for K11 Tenants,” Presentation, October 2021.
23. Information was provided by the company.

9
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

We might not have previously budgeted for the project for that fiscal year. So one of the lessons
we’ve learned from the previous cohorts is to have business units consider this program and the
resources required ahead when budgeting.

~ Miranda Wong, Senior Manager of Sustainability, NWD and K11 24

The uniqueness of each start-up might bring different challenges. While working with a European start-up that offered eco-
friendly foodservice packaging, Impact Kommons discovered that their foodservice packaging was not suitable for local HK
food, which often contained more sauces than western food. Their packaging services could not be used also because
the timing was in conflict with the contracts with existing foodservice package suppliers and the minimum order quantity
(MOQ) 25 was too high.

Looking Forward
The successful integration of innovation is crucial to New World Development’s business
units and partners. These innovations have contributed great value to the group,
and they are especially important to our expansion in the Greater Bay Area.
I look forward to the start of the new cohort for more innovative and groundbreaking solutions
which can bring synergy to companies across the Group.

~ Adrian Cheng, Founder of Eureka Nova and CEO of New World Development 26

Impact Kommons brought positive sustainability impacts to New World and the stakeholders. As Cohort 3 was on the
right track, Miranda thought it was a good opportunity to pause and see whether they could fine tune the program design,
admission criteria, and other program arrangements for the future cohorts. Could the program be improved to attract more
suitable and innovative start-ups to apply? What measures should the program take to smoothen the business integration
process between start-ups and business units? How to improve the design of the program to help NWD, its business partners
and stakeholders to achieve SDGs?

24. Interview with Miranda Wong on 22 December 2021.

25. MOQ means the minimum number of products required to be purchased in an order.
26. New World Development Co. Ltd., “New World’s accelerator Impact Kommons drives UNSDG-focused sustainability and social impact technology adoption across the group with
second cohort demo day,” 17 May 2021, https://en.prnasia.com/releases/apac/new-world-s-accelerator-impact-kommons-drives-unsdg-focused-sustainability-and-social-impact-
technology-adoption-across-the-group-with-second-cohort-demo-day-318728.shtml, accessed 10 December 2021.

10
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 1: UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Reduce inequality within and among

End poverty in all its forms everywhere
countries

End hunger, achieve food security and

Make cities and human settlements
improved nutrition and promote
inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
sustainable agriculture

Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being Ensure sustainable consumption and
for all at all ages production patterns

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality

Take urgent action to combat climate
education and promote lifelong learning
change and its impacts
opportunities for all

Conserve and sustainably use the oceans,

Achieve gender equality and empower all
seas and marine resources for sustainable
women and girls
development

Protect, restore and promote sustainable

use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably
Ensure availability and sustainable
manage forests, combat desertification, and
management of water and sanitation for all
halt and reverse land degradation and halt
biodiversity loss
Promote peaceful and inclusive societies
for sustainable development, provide
Ensure access to affordable, reliable,
access to justice for all and build effective,
sustainable and modern energy for all
accountable and inclusive institutions at all
levels

Promote sustained, inclusive and

Strengthen the means of implementation
sustainable economic growth, full and
and revitalize the global partnership for
productive employment and decent work
sustainable development
for all

Build resilient infrastructure, promote

inclusive and sustainable industrialization
and foster innovation

Source:
UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, “The 17 Goals,” https://sdgs.un.org/goals; “Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” United Nations,
https://sdgs.un.org/2030agenda, accessed 3 January 2022.

11
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 2: NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT GROUP STRUCTURE

Source:
Corporate Website, https://www.nwd.com.hk/corporate/about-NWD/corporate-structure, accessed 3 January 2021.

EXHIBIT 3: NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT’S ECOSYSTEM

Source:
Information provided by the company

12
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 4: FIVE-YEAR CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENTS

(For the years ended 30 June)

2021 2020 2019 2018 2017

HK$million HK$million HK$million HK$million HK$million
Revenues 68,233.2 59,007.8 76,763.6 60,688.7 56,628.8
Operating profit 8,528.9 12,035.4 25,202.1 30,975.3 11,751.3
Net financing income/(costs) 53.3 (2,010.9) (756.3) (704.3) (446.1)
Share of results of joint ventures 1,783.3 769.9 4,683.1 3,082.6 3,925.1
and associated companies
Profit before tax 10,365.5 10,794.4 29,128.9 33,353.6 15,230.3
Taxation (5,661.6) (7,528.0) (7,489.8) (6,272.4) (4,755.6)
Profit for the year 4,703.9 3,266.4 21,639.1 27,081.2 10474.7
Profit attributable to shareholders 1,171.6 1,096.2 18,160.1 23,338.1 7,675.7
Dividend per share (HK$) 2.06 2.04 2.04 1.92 1.84

Source:
New World Development Group Limited, Annual Report 2021.

EXHIBIT 5: NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT CORPORATE GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE

Source:
New World Development, “Our Management Structure,” https://sustainability.nwd.com.hk/sustainability-governance-policies/, accessed 3 January 2022.

13
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 6: NEW WORLD SUSTAINABILITY VISION 2030

Green
NWD strives to avoid, reduce and, where possible, reverse the causes of climate change across its
operations. To achieve this, the Group will identify pressing global environmental issues and use a life
cycle approach to minimise impacts across the Group’s ecosystem.
UNSDGs

SDG 11.6
Reduce adverse environmental impact of cities
Targets Energy Intensity (MWh/million HKD revenue) reduced by 50%
Carbon Emission Intensity (tCO₂e/million HKD revenue) reduced by 50%
Water Intensity (m3/million HKD revenue) reduced by 25% 27
Waste-to-Landfill Intensity (tonnes/million HKD revenue) reduced by 15% 28
Progress by FY2021
Energy Intensity reduced by 20%
Carbon Emissions Intensity reduced by 33%
Water Intensity reduced by 30%
Waste-to-Landfill Intensity reduced by 59%
Areas of Focus Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience
Energy and Carbon Management
Waste Management
Water Resource Management
Biodiversity Protection

27. The target covers New World Construction Company Limited only.
28. The target covers New World Construction Company Limited only.

14
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 6: NEW WORLD SUSTAINABILITY VISION 2030

Wellness
NWD strives to promote the health and well-being of their employees, customers, and communities.
The Group provides innovative wellness and healthcare solutions, health and safety measures and
collaborates with stakeholders such as NGOs to advance their efforts.
UNSDGs

SDG 3.4
Promote physical / mental health and well-being
SDG 3.9
Promote healthy built environments that reduce hazardous chemicals and pollution
Targets 20 million stakeholders’ well-being to be improved 29
≦3.0 lost-time injury rate (LTIR 30)
Progress by FY2021
13 million stakeholders’ well-being improved
LTIR: 0.5
Areas of Focus Customer Wellness Improvement
Employee Wellness Enhancement
Occupational Health and Safety

29. Cumulative number from baseline year FY2015 to FY2030 covering the Sustainability Reporting Scope.
30. LTIR (Lost-time injury rate) is the number of injuries every 100 employees a year.

15
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 6: NEW WORLD SUSTAINABILITY VISION 2030

Smart
NWD believes Smart solutions will accelerate the realization of SV2030 and future-proof their internal
work processes. The Group fosters an entrepreneurial culture and provides relevant partnership support
both internally and within the community
UNSDGs

SDG 17.16
Enhance global and multi-stakeholder partnerships to support the SDGs through
knowledge, technology, and resource sharing
Targets Use innovative solutions to achieve sustainability
Progress by FY2021
178 active patents 31
26 integration via Impact Kommons 32
Areas of Focus Digitalization of Processes and Customer Experience
Cultivating Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Innovation for Sustainable Communities

31. Counting the number of active patents granted since FY2015 and held by New World Group under the Sustainability Scope as at 30 June 2021, excluding design registration or
patents.
32. Cumulative integrations from FY2020 to FY2021 between Impact Kommons start-ups and New World Group Ecosystem.

16
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 6: NEW WORLD SUSTAINABILITY VISION 2030

Caring
NWD acts as a responsible corporate citizen through fostering a trusted, engaged, and motivated
workforce, advancing community development, and educating for sustainable development. The Group
are improving people’s lives and neighboring communities through partnering with the stakeholders to
make it happen.
UNSDGs

SDG 4.4
Upskill individuals for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship
SDG 4.7
Promote education on sustainable development, sustainable lifestyles, and global
citizenship
SDG 11.3
Enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization
SDG 11.4
Protect cultural and natural heritage
Targets 300 million stakeholders’ quality of life to be enhanced 33
>340,000 volunteering hours 34
Progress by FY2021
140 million stakeholders’ quality of life enhanced
Over 235,000 volunteering hours
Areas of Focus Talent Management
Employee Communication and Engagement
Diversity and Inclusion
Community Investment and Engagement
Education for Sustainable Development

Source:
New World Development, “New World Sustainability Vision 2030,” https://sustainability.nwd.com.hk/, accessed 3 January 2022.

33. Cumulative number from baseline year FY2015 to FY2030 covering the Sustainability Reporting Scope.
34. Cumulative number from baseline year FY2015 to FY2030 covering the Sustainability Reporting Scope.

17
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 7: NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT’S MATERIALITY MATRIX

Source:
New World Development, “Sustainability Governance & Policies,” https://sustainability.nwd.com.hk/sustainability-governance-policies/, 3 January 2022.

18
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 8: NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT’S RATINGS AND AWARDS

- Highest five-star rating for consecutive years since 2019

Global Real Estate
- 1st in Public Disclosure Score among all Hong Kong diversified
Sustainability Benchmark
companies in 2021
(GRESB)
- 1st in Management Score among all Asia companies in 2021
- A constituent of MSCI HK-Listed Southbound Country ESG Leaders
MSCI Index
- As of 2021, NWD received an MSCI ESG Rating of BBB
- NWD ranked among the top 15% in the real estate industry to be
S&P Global
included in the Sustainability Yearbook 2021
- NWD is a constituent of the FTSE4Good Index Series in 2020
FTSE
and 2021
- Achieved a ‘C’ in CDP Climate Change 2021
CDP
- Achieved a ‘B’ in CDP Water Security 2021
2021 Reuters Events:
Responsible Business - SDG Pioneer Award – Highly Commended
Awards
World Green Organization - Sustainable Business Award 2020
- ESG Achievement Awards 2020
Honorary ESG Elite – Dr. Adrian Cheng Chi Kong, JP
ESG Benchmark Awards – Outstanding Performance in
Institute of ESG and
Environmental Responsibility
Benchmark
ESG Benchmark Awards – The ESG Leader – Diamond Award
Special Awards (Criteria set by Fund Managers) –
Outstanding ESG Company – Diamond Award
- BDO ESG Awards 2021
BDO
Best in ESG – Large Market Capitalization awards
- The Asset ESG Corporate Awards 2021
The Asset Environmental, Social and Governance – Jade Award
Best Initiative in Environmental Responsibility
- RICS Awards 2021 Hong Kong
Royal Institution of
Property Management Team of the Year – Victoria Dockside
Chartered Surveyors
Corporate Social Responsibility Project of the Year: NewWorld Mask

19
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 8: NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT’S RATINGS AND AWARDS

- Green Building Award 2021

- New World Development – Pioneer Award
(Green Building Leadership Category, Developers)
- Artisan Garden – Merit Award and Special Citation on UN Sustainable
Development Goals (New Buildings Category, Completed Projects -
Residential)
- Commercial Development at NKIL 6505, King Lam Street,
Cheung Sha Wan, Kowloon – Merit Award (New Buildings Category,
Projects Under Construction and/or Design - Commercial)
- K11 ATELIER Victoria Dockside and K11 MUSEA – Merit Award
Hong Kong Green Building
(Existing Buildings Category, Facilities Management)
Council
- Atrium House – Finalist (New Buildings Category, Completed Projects
– Residential)
- Façade Cleaning Robot, skyMan – Finalist (Building Products &
Technologies Category)
- MOUNT PAVILIA – Finalist (Existing Buildings Category,
Facilities Management)
- New World Property Management Company Limited –
Finalist (Green Building Leadership Category, Facilities Management)
- Timber House – Finalist (New Buildings Category,
Completed Projects - Residential)
- Hong Kong Sustainability Award 2020/21
- Most Respected Organization
- Hong Kong Sustainability Award
- Special Recognition for Outstanding Sustainability Initiative
The Hong Kong Manage-
(Environmental Dimension)
ment Association
- Special Recognition for Outstanding Sustainability Initiative
(Social Dimension)
- Special Recognition for Innovation
- Special Recognition for Best Response to COVID-19

Source:
New World Development, “Performance & Reporting,” https://sustainability.nwd.com.hk/performance-reporting/?section=accolades#accolades__wrapper,
accessed on 17 May 2022.

20
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 9: IMPACT KOMMONS’ PROBLEM STATEMENTS WITH TWO EXAMPLES

UNSDGs Problem Statement Required Solutions

1. Renewable Energy
We are in the business of building
- Ability to sort through
and developing physical spaces for our
high volume and high
customers to live their lives. Waste gets
variety of waste in retail,
generated at scale and we need to develop
residential, commercial, and
2. Waste Management an effective and efficient way in managing it.
construction environments
(Improve waste
- Ability to clean sorted
management systems Waste Management means the collection,
waste for further processing
across our retail, sorting, cleaning, and upcycling of waste.
- Identify which sorted waste
residential, commercial, Much of this process is manual and we are
materials can be upcycled
and construction lines of looking for solutions that can help automate
into other products and
business) or at least assist our human operators.
which cannot
- Portable enough to move
Furthermore, we are in search of
from one property location
opportunities to upcycle waste into other
to another
products.
New World Development has many
different lines of businesses including
property, retail education, sports, art, and
wellness. Due to our expansive reach, we
have the opportunity to lead our industry
into a genuinely sustainable future - - Able to break down waste
environmentally, socially, and economically. material (food waste, plastic,
construction materials, etc.)
3. Circular Economy
In our ecosystem, waste gets generated - Transform waste into a
(Explore opportunities to
and unfortunately a lot of it does not commercially viable product
upcycle used products
get recycled and end up in landfills. We - Quantifiable impact in
or waste into new
are looking for opportunities to upcycle amount of waste diverted
products)
a portion of this waste with the aim of from landfill and reduction in
creating a Circular Economy. Our Group’s carbon footprint
New World Sustainability Vision 2030
(SV2030) references the United Nations
Sustainable Development Goals (UN
SDGs) and this Circular Economy is in
service of the Green initiative to move us
towards a greener future.
4. Waste Water
Management
5. Virus Mitigation
6. Packaging
7. Carbon Emissions
Data
8 .Wellness

Source:
Impact Kommons, “Problem Statements,” https://www.impactkommons.com/casestudies, accessed 13 January 2022

21
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 10: IMPACT KOMMONS ADMISSION SCORECARD

Total
Total Score 100
Sustainability Impact Maturity 20
Have a Clear Sustainability Strategy 5
Alignment with SV2030 SDG Sub-Targets (SDG 3.4, 3.9, 4.4, 4.7, 11.3, 11.4, 11.6, 17.16) 5
Alignment with Case Study SDG Sub-targets 5
Demonstrate Quantifiable Impact Measurement Metrics and Targets 5
Community Engagement 10
Number of impact communities engaged (1-10+) 5
Number of customers' following in social media (0-500+) 5
Proven Technology 20
Clear Technology Application with linkage to Key Problem Statement 10
Demonstrate Detailed Analysis of the Pros and Cons of Adopting This Technology 5
Consideration of Online to Offline Approach 5
Distinctive Technology Intellectual Property 15
Showcase the Uniqueness of the Technology used within this Region or Industry 5
Demonstrate IP or Co-IP Readiness within New World Group's Ecosystem 5
IP Application Underway 5
Revenue Generation 10
Proficiency in Balancing Capital Investments and ROI 5
Ability to clearly demonstrate Revenue and Margin generated 5
Intention to Expand in Hong Kong and Mainland China Markets 15
Demonstrate Strong Potential Marketing Positioning, Segmentation and Share in Hong
5
Kong
Demonstrate Market Share in Mainland China 5
Demonstrate Further Scalability to Mainland China 5
Integration Potential 10
Team potential to leverage their solution for business integration 10

Source:
Information provided by the company.

22
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

EXHIBIT 11: K11 X V CYCLE PLASTIC RECYCLING INITIATIVE WORKFLOW

Tenants separate soft and

V Cycle’s cleaning contractor
hard plastics and use paper
collects labelled bin bags on
Tenants collect plastic waste tags to label bin bags, with
Wednesdays and store them
the eldlies’ support in sorting
in the basement
and data tracking

V Cycle provides simple

V Cycle cleans, shreds and
V Cycle collects bin bags on sorting jobs for the elderlies
pelletizes plastics
Thursday bi-weekly and people with disabilities in
its sorting centre

V Cycle uses processed

plastics to make K11 MUSEA
unmbrellas

Label tag Labeled bin bag K11 MUSEA umbrella

Source:
Adapted from Impact Kommons, “K11 x V Cycle: Plastic Recycling Initiative for K11 Tenants,” Presentation, October 2021.

23
 HKUST INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION 2022

HKUST
INTERNATIONAL
CASE COMPETITION
2022

24