The Asia-Pacific Regional International Astronomical Union Meeting (APRIM) will take place in Hong Kong from May 4 to 8. Hundreds of leading astrophysicists, space scientists, engineers, and policymakers from around the world will gather to discuss everything from black holes and exoplanets to satellites and space sustainability — an area where Hong Kong could well become a global hub. This is the first time Hong Kong has hosted APRIM, and it is a big deal. However, organizers have been struggling to secure the sponsorship and institutional backing this event’s caliber deserves. This is as perplexing as it is concerning.
When APRIM was held in Japan in 2023 (the meetings are triennial), it enjoyed highlevel political support. The last time an International Astronomical Union (IAU) meeting of a similar scale took place in China was its general assembly in 2012 in Beijing, which was opened by then-vice-president Xi Jinping, underscoring the importance the country attaches to it, a lesson the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region would do well to emulate. Indeed, five Nobel and Shaw prize laureates are plenary speakers for Hong Kong, an unprecedented achievement compared to any past APRIM.
So why is it proving so difficult to mobilize support for this mega event? Something is amiss. Hong Kong can easily fill stadiums for rugby, soccer, and concerts. We host world-class trade fairs, international conferences, business and fintech conferences, attracting ministers and prominent CEOs. The HKSAR government is on board, pitching Hong Kong as a global “events capital”. But there is a gap in this portfolio. That is as a host city for global mega-science events that speak to the future of technology, science, and space.
APRIM is the opportunity to stake our claim. The IAU is the preeminent body in astrophysics and space science. Its regional meetings are not just academic conferences; they are strategic gatherings where scientific priorities are set, collaborations forged, large-scale projects conceived, and the implications of astrophysics and space science for wider society — including technology, education, climate, and even finance — are debated. The exhibition halls can be crowded with scientific, technical, academic, institutional, educational, and commercial aerospace booths open to the public. These offer fantastic outreach opportunities for customers, ideas, and collaborations from the delegates themselves. Even here, interest is sluggish.
Hosting APRIM signals Hong Kong is more than just somewhere to trade stocks, buy luxury goods, watch world-class sport, and be blown away by the latest pop sensation. It strikes at the heart of a higher-brow vision. We can be a place where scientific conversations take place at the highest levels, where young people can see themselves reflected in an important, global scientific enterprise, and where we contribute intellectual as well as financial capital to the Asia-Pacific. This is consistent with the government’s drive to transform Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology hub, while deepening the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area’s integration and carving out a role in emerging areas such as the NewSpace economy and space sustainability.
So why is there a struggle to acquire sponsorship? First, astrophysics and space science remain poorly understood locally in economic and strategic terms. This is slowly changing, given Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s Policy Address and the recent 2026-27 Budget statement. Nevertheless, sponsors see brand value only in sports and concerts, and in immediate commercial returns. The link to astrophysics and space science is less obvious. Yet space underpins the modern economy through satellite navigation, communications, and Earth observation for finance, insurance, and environmental monitoring. These rest on the same foundations that APRIM will be showcasing, especially in the space sustainability parallel meeting, which is gaining traction.
For business and finance, space sustainability is a key theme that aligns with Hong Kong’s environmental, social and governance ambitions. Issues like orbital debris, collision risk, and resilient infrastructure are increasingly material to insurers, asset managers, and infrastructure investors. Hong Kong can be a hub not just for space financing but for legal, regulatory and data standards governing the use of the space environment for all
Second, there is a perception that science conferences are inwardfacing and have limited public or media relevance. Sponsors worry that their support will “vanish into seminar rooms”. That is a failure of imagination and communication, not an inherent event property and especially one based on astrophysics and space science that can grab public interest like few other sciences.
Third, we lack sufficient high-level political and institutional “champions” who can advocate and support. When more senior leaders put their weight behind a science event, as happened effectively in Beijing in 2012, it sends a powerful signal to the corporate sector and public that this is not just “for professors” but a matter of national and regional strategic importance.
Sponsors and the government may ask, “What’s in it for us and Hong Kong?” We must explain value in language that sponsors can relate to. For innovation and technology, APRIM will plant a scientific flag in Hong Kong, complementing investments in AI, biotech and fintech. It brings in people who shape the next generation of telescopes, satellites and data-driven instruments that feed the NewSpace economy. Thousands of local students can be inspired through public lectures, school visits, and open days linked to APRIM. Sponsors can brand scholarships, competitions, and outreach programs that live on long after the conference closes. For business and finance, space sustainability is a key theme that aligns with Hong Kong’s environmental, social and governance ambitions. Issues like orbital debris, collision risk, and resilient infrastructure are increasingly material to insurers, asset managers, and infrastructure investors. Hong Kong can be a hub not just for space financing but for legal, regulatory and data standards governing the use of the space environment for all. Finally, let us consider soft power and branding. Hosting APRIM puts Hong Kong on the global map of science, showing that we are serious about ideas, discovery, and long-term thinking.
So the window is narrow but not shut tight. I call upon Hong Kong’s leaders and benefactors. We did not become a world city by thinking small or short-term. We built our reputation on being agile, outwardlooking, and willing to back bold ideas. APRIM 2026 is one of those ideas, a chance to expand the scope for the city’s mega events.
To corporate leaders, foundations, and philanthropists — this is your moment. A modest sponsorship by the standards of major sports events or gala dinners will ensure Hong Kong delivers a truly worthy APRIM. To our policymakers, lend your voices and your presence. Make it clear that space science and, in particular, space sustainability are not peripheral but central to our future.
The author is the director of the Laboratory for Space Research at the University of Hong Kong and a commentator on China’s technological and scientific development.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.