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Mr Yau spoke at events hosted by the China Environment Forum of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and the Hong Kong-US Business Council.
The Toronto ETO organised several visits to Canada by senior Hong Kong SAR Government officials in 2009. The Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, visited Vancouver in May where he delivered a speech to over 400 business people at the Canada-Hong Kong National Business Forum, entitled 'Challenges and Strategies: Economic Opportunities and the Hong Kong-Canada Partnership'.
The Secretary for the Environment, Mr Edward Yau, visited Toronto and Ottawa in April for talks on environmental protection with Canadian government officials. and business leaders. He also spoke about the 'Green Opportunities' in Hong Kong and the mainland of China in speeches in Toronto and Ottawa.
The Secretary for Justice, Mr Wong Yan Lung, visited Ottawa and Toronto in October. He met the Canadian Minister of Justice and Attorney General Mr Robert Douglas Nicholson, and Chief Justice Ms Beverley McLachlin. He also spoke at a luncheon hosted by the Canadian Club of Toronto on Hong Kong's legal system.
The Basic Law and the 'one country, two systems' principle under which Hong Kong is run were the topics discussed by Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Stephen Lam, and Convener of the Working Group on Overseas Community of the Basic Law Promotion Steering Committee, Ms Maria Tam, during their visits to Vancouver.
Toronto's Asian Heritage Month had a 'mouth-watering' start in May when the Toronto ETO, the Toronto office of the Hong Kong Tourism Board, and the Asian Institute of the University of Toronto jointly presented the 'Asian Foodprints' conference and gala to celebrate the Hong Kong Food and Wine Year.
International scholars, chefs, culinary experts, critics and filmmakers spoke at the conference, which included a reception for guests called 'Happy Hour Lan Kwai Fong'. The 'Asian Foodprints' gala featured the latest trends in Hong Kong-style cooking, which was given a touch of creativity by a team of chefs originally from Hong Kong.
A century's worth of Hong Kong film-making was honoured at the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal. The celebration, jointly organised with the Toronto ETO, included a display of vintage posters and trailers of Hong Kong films. The celebration's highlight was the Canadian premiere of the film, 'The Warlords', which won the Best Picture prize at the 2008 Hong Kong Film Awards and at the Golden Horse Awards.
The 69-member Hong Kong Children's Symphony Orchestra, serving as Hong Kong's young ambassadors, held two captivating performances in Ottawa in August during the unveiling of the Hong Kong veterans' memorial wall to honour the Canadian soldiers who helped defend Hong Kong in the Second World War. Supported by the Toronto ETO, the group also staged the 'Let There be Peace on Earth' benefit concert in Toronto for the veterans.