The Hong Kong Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (Incorporating the Centre of Asian Studies) was established in 2001 at the University of Hong Kong. It has a mission to promote innovative, multi-disciplinary work in the humanities and social sciences by supporting diverse platforms for a critical community of scholars to share experiences across the globe. It organizes field-oriented and team-based research programs by means of lecture series, advanced summer workshops, research clusters, conferences, and academic publications. Its outreach programs and commissioned projects connect with policy and business professionals.

The Institute has nurtured a generation of young scholars in China and Hong Kong who are eager to cross disciplinary and institutional boundaries. It has leveraged key academic partners such as Sun Yat-sen University, Beijing Normal University, East China Normal University, Fudan University, Tsinghua University and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.