Social Capital Institute
Knowledge Creation
Social Capital Institute (SCI) has been dedicated to consolidating, developing and passing on the experience and knowledge of building social capital in Hong Kong.
Research Project of Promoting “Time Bank” Strategy
The Community Investment and Inclusion Fund (CIIF) encourages organisations to apply “Time Bank” * strategy to implementing funded projects, as a tool for developing social capital in the community.
The CIIF has been funding the three-year research project “Applying Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) in the development of community social capital through Time Bank strategy” implemented by the Department of Social Work and Social Administration, The University of Hong Kong since September 2023. Adopting the CBPR approach, the project will identify critical success factors in applying “Time Bank” strategy in building social capital, enhance practitioners' capabilities in utilising the “Time Bank” strategy; as well as establish a cross‐sectoral collaborative platform in fostering and supporting the development of Time Bank strategy in social capital building projects. Check the project summary for more details.
This research project is expected to develop a community-level social capital measurement scale and formulate a comprehensive “Time Bank” implementation guideline. In addition, the project has set up a thematic website (https://timebank.socialwork.hku.hk/en) to continuously promote the “Time Bank” strategy.
Research Project of Building Social Capital via Digital Platforms
The CIIF has been funding the three-year research project “Digital social capital: Its formation and deployment of an indigenous framework for Hong Kong communities project ” implemented by the Department of Applied Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University since December 2023. It aims at facilitating and consolidating the knowledge and understanding of building social capital via digital platforms in Hong Kong, enhancing practitioners’ capacities in building and enacting social capital via digital platforms, as well as forming a social and academic infrastructure for building digital social capital in Hong Kong.
Collaborating with almost twenty CIIF-funded projects, the research team conducted studies and analyses on how to leveraging technology and digital media with a view to effectively building digital social capital. The research team also organised educational seminars and conferences to consolidate and transfer social capital-related knowledge to those serving the local community.
For more information of the funded research project, please visit (https://hkpracticeresearch.com/).
The Second Meeting of “Ageing-in-place – The Programme for Building a Dementia-friendly Community” Platform
CIIF convened the second meeting of the “Ageing-in-place – The Programme for Building a Dementia-friendly Community” Platform on 26 March 2026. Participating funded project teams exchanged views on the difficulties and challenges encountered in the implementation of “ageing in place” initiatives or programmes primarily targeting elderly persons, and shared practical solutions and coping strategies. Click here for the Meeting details.
The CIIF Secretariat has consolidated the discussions and insights from attendees, compiling the following key points for reference by all funded project teams as well as the public who are interested in social capital development projects.