Zhang Hong’ou, the director of the Guangzhou Institute of Geography, is a professor, registered urban planner and special allowance expert of the State Council. He is also executive deputy president of the Geographical Society of Guangdong, member of the Geographical Society of China (GSC), deputy director of the economic geography committee of the GSC, honorary research fellow of the Policy Research Office of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, deputy head of the National Circumstances and Development Research Group—a think tank of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, deputy dean of the Institute of Strategy Research for Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau Greater Bay Area, and editor-in-chief of Tropical Geography.

His research interest is focused on regional development strategy and urban planning, and southeast Asian geography.

Over the past five years, he has led and participated in more than 70 national and provincial scientific research projects at various levels, completed a series of studies on provincial master planning and consulting, and proposed some development concepts and strategies directly reflected in relevant documents issued by the Guangdong provincial government and the State Council, making outstanding contributions and profound impacts on promoting the socioeconomic development of Guangdong Province, the rational layout of land and space development, and the construction of ecological security. He has published 106 papers in core journals and 3 monographs with 7 software copyrights granted. His achievements have won the first prize of National Excellent Urban and Rural Planning and Design Award of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the second prize of Guangdong Science and Technology Award, the first prize of Guangdong Excellent Urban and Rural Planning Award, and the second prize of Excellent Achievement Award for Guangdong Philosophy and Social Sciences.