The Center for the Study of Globalization and Cultures (CSGC), set up in 1999 under the joint directorship of Professor Ackbar Abbas and Professor Benjamin Lee, is an interdisciplinary center based in the Department of Comparative Literature. The focus of its work is on issues of culture and globalization with special reference to Asia, China and Hong Kong. Major research themes include: the cultures of capitalism; global flows of culture, media and technology; cities and globalization; new communities, publics, and identities; and postcolonialism and neo-liberalism. It is now under the joint directorship of Professor Daniel Elam and Professor Alvin K. Wong. Its activities are structured around a series of lectures, workshops and seminars with distinguished international scholars on short- or medium term visits working in collaboration with our own faculty members.
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Professor Ackbar Abbas 1942–2026
Professor Ackbar Abbas (b. 1942, Hong Kong) died peacefully in Beijing on July 13, 2026 after a brief period of illness. He taught at HKU from 1967-2006 and contributed greatly to the establishment of the Department of Comparative Literature in 1989. During his tenure at HKU, he co-founded the Center for the Study of Globalization and Cultures and served as Department Chair. Professor Abbas is best known for his 1997 book Hong Kong: Culture and the Politics of Disappearance, a landmark work that brings together film studies, postcolonial theory, and urbanism to transform understandings of Hong Kong and make the city a crucial site for rethinking postcoloniality, globalization, and urban modernity. Professor Abbas is survived by his dear wife Sola, his four children and three grandchildren. He will be remembered as a loving husband, proud (grand)father, devoted colleague, and an inspiration to countless students and readers of his work over many distinguished years at HKU and UC Irvine. A champion of “poor theory”, connoisseur of the fake, master of the paradoxical turn — one of a kind. He will be deeply missed.
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upcoming EVENT
Call for Papers: Queer Theory in the Age of Global Asias: An International Conference
Conference dates: December 11-12, 2026 | University of Hong Kong
Keynote speaker: Denise Tang, Associate Professor and Head, Department of Cultural Studies (Lingnan University)
Click here for details
Deadline: submit an abstract of 200 words and a 2-page CV by July 31, 2026 at csgc@hku.hk
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PAST EVENT
CONFERENCE: VIDEO/ART/TV
May 27 (Wed) and May 28 (Thu)
Time: 10:00 am to 3:30 pm
Room 3.04, 3/F, Run Run Shaw Tower, The University of Hong Kong
May 29 (Fri)
Time: 10:30 am to 11:45 am
M+ Museum
For programme details, click here.
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