published_or_final_version / Social Work / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

This thesis studies the formation of an indiscernable coloniality through the contextualization of mundane quotidian lives at the community level in Hong Kong. Unlike most research on post-colonial Hong Kong which analyzes the challenges and problems from a macro perspective focusing on governance and collaborations of the elite class, this thesis focuses on the culture of coloniality that is deeply ingrained in the operational logic of everyday life and embedded as an unnoticeable common sense and internalized value. Being an elected member of the Wan Chai District Council between 2004-2007, the author gained first-hand experience and insights on how coloniality operated. She argues that coloniality is a state of mind when the colonized people define themselves in terms of colonialism and take on the common sense of the colonizers as their own. In this thesis, the author shows how coloniality permeates through political and economic community building initiatives by the Eight Community Building Key Players, such as the District Administration Scheme and its Departmental District Managers, the Urban Redevelopment Consortium, Kaifong Associations, District based Territory-wide Organizations, Beijing Affiliates and Civil Society. A substantial part of the research focuses on how these CBP players have molded, enhanced, changed or modified the physical landscape, the way of life or the value system of the community. It shows that except for civil society, all CBPs have collaborated in one way or the other and formed a symbiotic disciplinary control network. By employing the tactics of divide and rule, biopolitics of control, and ‘feeding the baby with an empty spoon’, this control network manipulates the community to serve political and economic purposes. The thesis argues that under this network, Hongkongers unnoticeably developed a colonial form of subjectivity that takes pride in colonial ruling and a pro-growth operational logic. Lastly, after analyzing the best practices of civil society’s experiences in community building in Wanchai, this thesis argues that a bottom-up and empowering community building is one of the most crucial ways of building a possible model for decolonization, and this model must include the intellectualization of the society, democratic participation, the development of culture and public space, and rekindling of the chivalrous spirit. It also argues that where the subaltern-elites stand and how soft powers are used will make a big difference in decolonization. / published_or_final_version / Comparative Literature / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

In the arena of planning in Hong Kong, the doctrine of community planning is still an abstract idea and has not been formally adopted by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government. Be that as it may, the word “community planning” or “community participation” was always mentioned in strategic dimensions of planning in Hong Kong in recent years. On the other hand, the discussion among community planning around the global asked for a higher and higher participation level in community planning process, shifting from participation to empowerment. Thus, this dissertation attempts to fill this research gap, analyzing the degree of empowerment under the planning frameworks and institutions in Hong Kong and how effective is community planning to empower citizens in Hong Kong. The community engagement elements within the planning related institutional frameworks in Hong Kong were reviewed and analyzed, in order to figure out the extent of empowerment of the community engagement elements in these frame works. On the other hand, a local planning concern group, which adopts community planning based approach, was used as a contextual study of analyzing the effectiveness of community planning based practices to empower citizens in Hong Kong. It was found that the extent of empowerment of the community engagement elements in planning frameworks of Hong Kong is limited, and community planning based practices is effective in empowering citizens. Thus, if planning in Hong Kong is to empower, but not disempower citizens, community planning approaches should be adopted. A series of empowering community planning process was recommended in this final part of this study. / published_or_final_version / Urban Planning and Design / Master / Master of Science in Urban Planning

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work