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HKUST 2015-2016 Annual Report
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Growing external links strengthened global awareness of HKUST and
opened further opportunities for students and faculty
INTERNATIONAL AND
MAINLAND STRATEGY
MAINLAND INTERACTION
The University boosted academic cooperation and its
role as an innovation pace-setter in Mainland China,
along with research and other activities with the
Mainland business sector.
Campus Connections
HKUST co-hosted the 14th National Challenge Cup
together with Guangdong University of Technology. The
event is China’s foremost innovation and technology
competition for university students. It was the first time in
the Cup’s 25-year history that a non-Mainland university
had been invited to co-host the “Olympiad of University
Students”. In a new move for the contest, HKUST
organized the inaugural National Challenge Theme-
based Competition, focused on “Smart Green Cities”.
More than 800 teams took part, including students
from Macau, Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, Mainland
China and Hong Kong, with 40 teams short-listed for
the finals in Hong Kong in July 2015. At the National
Challenge Cup grand finals in Guangzhou in November,
over 700 projects from more than 300 universities won
a place in the final. HKUST students participated
as contestants, performers and volunteers, with a
School of Engineering team winning a Grand Prize.
A 14th National Challenge Cup Youth Innovation and
Entrepreneurship Summit was also held at HKUST in
November, drawing around 200 participants from
Hong Kong and Mainland China.
More than 500 faculty and students participated in
cultural exchanges, community services and academic
programs through a collaborative scheme administered
by the Ministry of Education. The University hosted
nearly 50 high-level delegations from Mainland China
in 2015-16, including over 600 delegates from industry,
government and academia. Among those visiting were
Minister Wan Gang and Vice Minister Hou Jianguo from
the Ministry of Science and Technology; Madam Qiu
Hong, Deputy Director General of the Liaison Office of
the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR; Prof
Qiu Yong, President of Tsinghua University; Prof Zhang
Jie, President of Shanghai Jiaotong University; Prof
Jin Donghan, President of Shanghai University; Prof Li
Xiaohong, President of Wuhan University; Prof Tan Tieniu,
Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Enterprise and Innovation
Over the year, the University’s Mainland platforms
in Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Foshan, served
different but complementary roles on innovation
under the guiding hand of the HKUST Fok Ying Tung
Research Institute in Nansha. The HKUST Fok Ying
Tung Research Institute assisted knowledge transfer.
Shenzhen Research Institute fostered the University’s
technology advancement and collaborations with
Mainland research institutions and enterprises. The
HKUST LED-FPD Technology R&D Center at Foshan,
originally focused on light-emitting diode research
and development, moved on to III-V device packaging
technology development.
Links with Industry
In addition, the University continued to extend its
interaction with major Mainland enterprises through
the development of research collaborations, job
placements, student internships, and executive
training
opportunities.
In
2015,
research
collaboration agreements were signed with the
Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC),
Digital China and WeChat. HKUST is also working
with Alibaba, BGI, Fosun, Huawei, Lenovo, Tencent,
and Vanke, among others.
In October 2015, China Vanke Founder and
Chairman Mr Wang Shi spoke on “Choosing Your
Own Path” as part of the HKUST 25th Anniversary
Distinguished Speakers Series. In June 2016, Mr Liu
Chuanzhi, Chairman of the Board of Legend Holdings
Corporation and Founder of Lenovo Group Limited,
gave a talk entitled “Are Universities the Cradle for
Entrepreneurs” at the HKUST-Times Higher Education
Asia Universities Summit.
Dr Eden Y Woon, Vice-President for Institutional
Advancement, enhanced links with leading Mainland
business leaders at the invitation-only China
Entrepreneurs Forum in August 2015.
A GLOBAL HKUST
Internationalization remains a key driver of HKUST’s
strategic development, with the University continuing
to foster constructive relationships globally
and identify innovative academic and research
collaborations aligned with our areas of strategic focus.
Thought Leadership
President Chan participated in the World Economic
Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, for the
fourth time. He was also invited to attend the Global
University Leaders Forum, an elite platform involving
over 25 leaders of the world’s top research universities.
The Forum examined the roles of universities and
industry in response to the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
HKUST joined the World Economic Forum Annual
Meeting of the New Champions or “Summer Davos”
in Dalian and Tianjin in September 2015 and June
2016 respectively. In Dalian, the University held its
fourth IdeasLab on “Revealing the Power of Advanced
Materials”. At the session, faculty shared their
insights on innovative devices, sense lights, touch
and biological traits. In Tianjin, HKUST co-curated
the “Transformation Map”, a dynamic system of
contextual intelligence, illustrating the challenges
faced by the Chinese government in designing the
country’s social insurance system.
Proactive Outreach
President Chan and faculty members traveled to the
UK, Canada and US over the year to visit leading
institutions and meet government officials and industry
leaders. Media interviews and alumni gatherings
during these trips increased HKUST’s visibility and
reinforced ties.
In October 2015, President Chan went on a tour to
Georgetown University, Cornell University, University of
Waterloo, Ryerson University and University of Toronto,
to build wider international partnerships. During this
visit, the President was invited to speak at the National
Science Foundation on science and technology
developments in Mainland China and Hong Kong. At a
