The Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA) is one of the fastest developing bay areas in the world. Ensuring the GBA’s sustainable development requires a healthy and resilient environment as determined by the sustainability of the interlinked spheres that compose the regional earth system (RES), including the lithosphere (land), the hydrosphere (oceans and rivers), the atmosphere, and the biosphere (living things). This presentation introduces an unprecedented holistic effort under an Areas of Excellence (AoE) project (https://earthhk.hkust.edu.hk/), funded by Hong Kong Research Grant Council, for investigating the interactions among natural forcings, human activities, and climate change. By integrating interdisciplinary perspectives, advanced methodologies, and a world-class research team, this project aims to provide comprehensive knowledge and science-based mitigation strategies via the human-RES integrated digital twin to safeguard the environment and development of the GBA and present a case study for similar bay areas worldwide.

earth system study,interdisciplinary,multi-spheric system,digital twin