Attawat’s PhD project explores how ethnic Chinese individuals in Thailand ascribe personal meaning to China’s rise and engage with China’s public diplomacy endeavors. It falls within the broad area of psychology in international relations, with a geographical focus on Southeast Asia.

His project employs both qualitative (namely, in-depth interviews) and quantitative methods (namely, survey experiments) to examine how intra-family narratives and cultural practices shape ethnic Chinese individuals’ attitudes towards China’s rise and its public diplomacy.

His work engages with the literature on social identity, ethnicity, and diaspora, and offers insights into the relationship between ethnicity, identity, and international affairs.

Attawat’s published book chapters are available online as follows:

1. “Thailand’s Brain Drain Challenge: Trends and Implications,” published by Pacific Forum (a think tank in Hawai’i) here
2. “Soft Power, Deterrence, and South Korea’s National Security,” published by the National Committee on American Foreign Policy (a think tank in New York) here

His undergraduate university is Chulalongkorn University, Thailand.

Bai Zhouling received a master’s degree in Public Administration from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and a bachelor’s degree in Public Administration from East China University of Science and Technology.

Her research fucuses on the field of public administration, with two main areas of emphasis. The first is performance management, examining aspects such as performance target-setting, performance information, information disclosure, and issue prioritization. The second area explores citizen–state interactions, with a focus on citizen opinion, coproduction, and government responsiveness.

Her work has led to several publications contributing to these fields, including:

• Bai, Z., Zhang, P., & Yi, H. (2025). Political Career Incentives and Multitasking Trade-off: Evidence from Setting Performance Targets in Chinese Cities. China Economic Review. Online.
• Zhang, P., & Bai, Z*. (2024). Leaving Messages as Coproduction: Impact of Government COVID-19 Non-pharmaceutical Interventions on Citizens’ Online Participation in China. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 11(1), 875.

Cecilia’s academic interests encompass international relations, civil conflicts, environmental hazards, and Southeast Asia, with a particular focus on environmental hazards and politics in Southeast Asia.

She received her bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Pavia and her master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Studies from Uppsala University.

Yin Lam, Alvina’s research examines the role of food and food technology— trade, aid, investment, and international cooperation—in influencing foreign policy decisions and shaping global diplomatic relationships.

She received her bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University, The School of Foreign Service, majoring in International Political Economy; and her master’s degree from Columbia University in Political Science.

Zeyuan’s research fields encompass public administration and public policy, with a focus on social equity.

He received his bachelor’s degree in Information Management and Information Systems from Northeastern University, and his master’s degree in Public Finance from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics.

Yue, Queenie’s primary research interest is utilizing political instruments to foster social impact investing in Hong Kong. Her current work focuses on exploring effective information disclosure frameworks to attract professional capital to social impact investing programs.

Ongoing projects employ multiple research methodologies, including but not limited to historical research, comparative case studies, interviews, and survey experiments. These projects aim to examine how governments shape public behavior toward social impact investing practices.

She holds a Master of Public Administration from Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, New York University, with a specialization in financial management and public finance.

Jianbing’s research field is International Relations, with academic interests that include Survey Experiments, Democracy, East Asian Studies, Propaganda and Authoritarian Media.

His research examines how states utilize propaganda to shape public opinion and international interactions, focusing particularly on the United States and China. Methodologically, he employs survey experiments to investigate public attitudes toward different foreign policies.

He holds a Bachelor of Political Science from University of California, San Diego and a Master of Social Science from University of Chicago.

Tingkwong, Steve’s research fields cover Comparative Politics and Public Policy. His research focuses on the effects of political-economic factors on public policy choices.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Politics and Philosophy from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Master’s degree in Political Economy of Europe from the same university.

Raphaël’s dissertation explores the dynamics of horizontal and prefigurative politics within the Yellow Vests movement in France. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, he investigates the paradoxes and tensions inherent in horizontal organizing, particularly those arising from social inequalities among participants.

By integrating structure–agency approaches with philosophical reflection, he develops an original analytical framework to critically analyze how power circulates in contemporary grassroots movements. Beyond offering insights into internal movement dynamics, this research provides a heuristic case study for understanding broader transformations in the French, and ,more generally, European socio-political landscape.

Jie’s research fields cover International Relations and Global & Local Trust. Her research particularly focuses on public trust within the Greater China region. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from Queen’s University and a Master’s degree from the University of Hong Kong.

Her PhD explores the joys and puzzles of public trust in the Greater China region—because understanding how people trust (or don’t) their government is never boring. While she currently focuses on local issues, her academic curiosity is going global. As the world advances with Internet, AI, and soon, robots in every living room, she is keen to explore how trust persists—or short-circuits—across borders in this wired, weird, and wonderfully complex future.

Xiaoling’s research focuses on International Relations, with  emphasis on International Political Economy and Historical Chinese Foreign Policy.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Diplomacy from Beijing Foreign Studies University and a Master’s degree in Development Studies from the University of Cambridge.

Xinzhu’s research filed is Political Theory and Ethics. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the School of Philosophy at Fudan University, Shanghai, China. From September 2023 to February 2024, she was an exchange student at Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, Austria.

She conducted a research project on Confucian just war theory and Confucian cosmopolitanism, supported by Fudan’s Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. Her current research interests focus on meritocracy, political legitimacy, and egalitarianism.

Jiasheng, Jason’s research fields encompass Public Administration and Policy Intelligence Management.

His research focuses on how policy information is managed within bureaucracies, specifically examining how intrinsic properties of information shape both bureaucratic behaviors and organizational forms.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Sun Yat-sen University and a Master’s degree in Communication from City University of Hong Kong.

He was also awarded the HKUPS Award in 2021.

With a research focus in Comparative Politics and Public Policy, Pengfei’s work centers on political participation, political trust, and state-building in China.

He employs quantitative methods to analyze observational data. Pengfei holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Nanjing University and a Master’s degree in International Relations from the Hopkins-Nanjing Center. He is currently pursuing a PhD with support from the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme, with his academic work primarily centered on civic engagement in authoritarian contexts.

Zhang Zhenyu’s research adopts an interdisciplinary approach, encompassing political economy, public policy, geopolitics, and urban development. His work integrates theoretical analysis with empirical and policy-oriented research, focusing on state fiscal capacity, financial institutions, the development of Hong Kong SAR, and Sino-US relations.

His policy insights are regularly featured in leading media outlets such as Ming Pao and HK01.

Zucheng’s research fields are Public Administration and Digital Government. His work focuses on how interactions between bureaucrats and citizens are shaped by representative bureaucracy, including perceptions, behaviors, and their impacts on the public sector. He also examines how the use of digital government and information technology tools influences public sector performance and individual behavior.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration from Central China Normal University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the same institution.

His published articles include:

• Wang Ge, Zhang Z. “Research on the Formation Mechanism of Online Public Opinion Under the ‘Clout Chasing’.” Information Journal, 2023, 42(08): 116-122+128.
• Y Chu, Y Wang, Z Zhang, S Dai. “Decoupling of Economic Growth and Industrial Water Use in Hubei Province: From an Ecological–Economic Interaction Perspective.” Sustainability, 2022, 14(20): 13338.
• Y Yao, Z Zhang, Z Zhang, F Meng. “Are Cities Ready for Climate Change? Exploring the Spatial Discrepancies Between Urban Vulnerability and Adaptation Readiness.” Frontiers in Climate, 2024, 6: 1293651.

He is currently working on projects related to representative bureaucracy.

Chi’s research interests encompass International Relations, China-U.S. Relations, Middle Class studies, International Development, and African/South Asian Studies.

His work primarily investigates the influence of China’s middle class on international relations in transnational contexts.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Politics from Peking University, with a minor in Chinese Language and Literature, and a Master’s degree in International Studies from Johns Hopkins University, with a minor in China Studies.

Chi has contributed to various scholarly and policy publications. His book chapter titled “International Development Assistance and Cooperation in a Time of Change” 《国际发展援助与合作：超越历史困局》 published by Social Sciences Academic Press in 2023.

His commentaries and reports span a wide range of topics, including:

• ‘Listeners under the bed’: Obsessing over secrets in Chinese elite politics. ThinkChina, Lianhe Zaobao, 2025.
• Hong Kong uniquely placed to help fill global public goods gap left by US. South China Morning Post, 2025.
• Trump’s new Gilded Age a reminder of America’s painful past. South China Morning Post, 2025.
• US-China competition in Latin America. ThinkChina, Lianhe Zaobao, 2025.
• Prepare for both eventualities of the second Trump shock. Takungpao, 2024.
• Can Hong Kong survive? Insights from ‘Kishore whirlwind’ and the ‘typhoon metaphor’. ThinkChina, Lianhe Zaobao, 2024.
• How China’s middle class is creating a ‘green gold’ rush in Africa. South China Morning Post, 2024.
• How Olympic spirit can drive China-Japan-South Korea cooperation. South China Morning Post, 2024.
• World cannot afford for Northeast Asia to be a nuclear powder keg. South China Morning Post, 2024.
• People-to-people exchanges are the constant driving force of China-U.S. relations. People’s Daily, 2024.
• International development assistance and cooperation: Beyond the historical dilemma. China Development Research Foundation, 2022.
• Enhancing agricultural export partnerships between Africa and China. International Trade Centre, United Nations, 2022.
• China’s plans to strengthen anti-monopoly law enforcement for the internet economy. US-China Business Council, 2020.

In addition to his commentaries and papers, Chi has authored working papers such as:

• China, South Korea, and Japan’s trilateral cooperation on regional issues: A path forward for sustainable peace and prosperity. Paper presented at the 6th NEAR Korea-China-Japan SEOUL Process, Seoul, Republic of Korea, July 2024.
• Global economic recovery: China’s leading role in shared middle-class growth. Paper presented at the China Development Forum 2024, Beijing, China, March 2024.

Chi is a Senior Researcher at the Centre on Contemporary China and the World (CCCW), HKU, where he manages programs, including Climate-Ocean-Health Study Interdisciplinary Observer Network and the International Think Tank Research and Evaluation Symposium. Previously, he served as a Deputy Program Manager and Assistant Fellow at the Development Research Center of the State Council in China, I this role, he authored/co-authored eight policy papers and managed programs focused on International Development Aid and Cooperation, as well as ESG Risk Management Framework for the Belt and Road Initiative. He has also served as a national consultant for the International Trade Centre, United Nations.

Haozhe’s research field is International Relations. His academic interests include Great Power Politics, Foreign Policy Making, the Global South, and Sino-American Relations. His research initially focuses on China’s relations with the Global South, examining aspects such as the development of political influence through economic ties, public opinion, discourse analysis, reassurance strategies, and the Power Transition Theory.

He received his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and his Master’s degree in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). Haozhe was awarded the Dean’s Scholarship and the Starr Excellence in China Studies Fellowship by Johns Hopkins University.

He has served as a teaching assistant at Johns Hopkins University for two years. Prior to joining HKU PPA, Haozhe worked for the US-China Business Council, contributing to its Programs Team and Business Advisory Services.

Marco is an MPhil student in International Relations at HKU. His broad research interests include security studies, with a particular focus on the dynamics of conflict and cooperation from both inter-state and domestic decision-making perspectives.

He holds double first-class honours degrees in Bachelor of Social Sciences (Government & Law) and Bachelor of Laws from HKU. An avid debater, Marco was awarded the Hong Kong Bar Association Cup for Best Team in the HKU cohort-wide competition.

Her research focuses on non-state actors, particularly NGOs in global governance, at the intersection of public and nonprofit management, civil society, and international relations. She is especially interested in how NGOs engage with government agencies, other institutional actors, and global civil society within the context of China’s “going out” initiative.

Methodologically, she primarily employs observational data and quantitative analysis, supplemented by qualitative insights from fieldwork. Her current research project examines NGOs that serve women and girls in China and their involvement at the transnational level.

She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Hong Kong in 2024.

Mingki’s research filed is Political Theory, and his research focuses on political epistemology.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Ruiyu, Hason’s research fields encompass Public Administration, Organization Studies and Computational social science.

His research focuses on how competing institutional logics structure organization–government collaboration, and, alongside these logics, how digital technologies further reshape practices of environmental governance, co-production, and the polarization of public attitudes.

He holds a Bachlor’s degree in Social Policy from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Ruiyu published an article titled “From Cadres to Managers: The Double-hundred Action Programme and China’s State-owned Enterprise Reform” (co-authored with Chengpang Lee) in The China Quarterly, 2024.