HKUST Annual Report 2019-2020

Following a year of unprecedented events and challenges in Hong Kong, it is an opportune time to take stock of our community that we all care so deeply for, and look into the future, from the perspective of our shared beliefs and values. PRESIDENT’S REPORT Since mid-2019, societal development within Hong Kong has caused deep divisions across the entire city. Following multiple episodes and vandalism on campus, we introduced measures to enhance campus security to protect the well- being of individual members as well as to maintain the proper operation of facilities and laboratories. Now, with the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping across the world, affecting many millions of lives, health authorities, policy-makers, scientists and innovators around the world have been racing to curtail the spread of the virus. Members of HKUST have stepped up and made noteworthy contributions to help find solutions. In this Annual Report, we dedicate space to highlight the University’s efforts in this area. Dedication, Support and Appreciation: Indeed, many colleagues have been working literally around the clock in the past year to coordinate and support campus-wide challenges in health, safety, education, research, physical and mental well-being, career opportunities, operations, services, in-person assistance in Hong Kong and Mainland, and much more. They deserve appreciation and gratitude from us all. Faced with all these issues and needs, there has been additional demand on resources, both human and financial. Supported by generous donations received recently, and further matched by a government grant last year, HKUST has been able to weather the financial challenges so far. Even though some of our facilities have had to close for certain periods, we have continued to fully maintain them so that the campus will be in good shape when the situation permits all members to return. In order to offer direct assistance to students facing personal difficulties, a COVID-19 Student Hardship Relief Fund has been set up with donations made by faculty, staff, students, alumni, and supporters, here and overseas. Thanks to this support and these caring efforts, dozens of students have been offered financial assistance. I take this opportunity to thank members of the HKUST community for coming together to help each other. Academic and Beyond: Meanwhile, our activities in academic endeavors, including teaching, learning, research, and knowledge transfer, have continued, though some have to be adjusted in major ways. For example, international exchanges between faculty and between students have been severely affected, and can only be resumed when the worldwide pandemic has stabilized. We are continuing to adapt and optimize teaching arrangements, based on the valuable input from our colleagues and students, through technological support and multiple innovative arrangements. Many research projects, ongoing and new, are being proactively supported and facilitated, with our faculty earning support in multiple major government-sponsored programs, including InnoHK and the Theme-Based Research Scheme. A growing number of private enterprises are also seeking and supporting close collaboration with HKUST in multiple areas, motivated by mutual interest in advancing frontiers of science and technology, which will help propel Hong Kong and the region to innovate and to transform its societal and economic landscape. Strategic Positioning: In addition to these ongoing activities, major development is taking shape as we draft the new Strategic Plan for HKUST’s future. Leading universities promote cross-disciplinary research directions in part because of their implications on addressing major societal challenges. As both scope and integration of our research and educational endeavors evolve, we naturally expect a broadened range of activities that include not only the blue sky, curiosity-driven efforts that have formed the core of our program, but also more mission-encouraged research spurred by the grand challenges facing humanity. Nurturing both curiosity-driven and mission-encouraged pursuits is critical for the future of the University and the development of academia as a whole. HKUST is well-positioned to fulfill our institutional ambition by leading efforts to both: (1) pursue curiosity-driven investigations on topics in any discipline, whose ultimate impact may not be initially apparent (e.g., discovery of black holes, the double helix, fractals and strange attractors, the invention of the transistor), and (2) mount mission- encouraged, multi-faceted responses in systematic ways to identified challenges of great magnitude (e.g., space exploration, human/machine coexistence, public health, and global warming), whose success requires expertise from various disciplines. However, these two conceptual frameworks lead naturally to different degree programs and underlying academic structures. Our Guangzhou campus, HKUST(GZ), due to be operational in 2022, creates an exceptional opportunity for such efforts to be systematically developed, with new physical space, financial support, and more faculty and students engaged in a number of cross-disciplinary thrusts. The “Unified HKUST, Complementary Campuses” framework that we advocate places emphasis on our expansion in both physical and conceptual domains. It is our expectation that academic breakthroughs will arise while collaboration and integration will be promoted between campuses, including facilities and services, policies and mechanisms, and professional standards. We envision a Unified System that supports complementary academic structures and non-overlapping degree programs and promotes a healthy mix of curiosity-driven and mission-encouraged academic and related activities. Most importantly, the individual campuses in Clear Water Bay and Guangzhou will enable faculty and students to find the best atmosphere in which to follow their passions and fully develop their interests. Our Living Lab: The year also brought the conclusion of the HKUST 2020 Sustainability Challenge, a self-initiated eco-masterplan. This has led to notable campus-wide waste reduction, energy-saving initiatives, and sustainable approaches. Further efforts through the “Sustainable Smart Campus as a Living Lab” and its dedicated University funding have elevated and encouraged many students, faculty, staff and alumni to join together to turn ideas into action and implement them on our beautiful campus. Ideas and efforts will be expanded to cover both campuses in Clear Water Bay and Guangzhou under the “Unified HKUST, Complementary Campuses” vision. Self-Expectation: The entire world has been challenged by increasingly intense debates and disagreement on matters of critical importance to the future. Even though information can travel at thespeedof lightwithoutbarriers, countriesand regions are struggling with growing disparities in lifestyle, belief, culture, socio-economic development and political inclination. While the environment around us is evolving, our commitment to support an open, understanding, and intellectually stimulating campus remains unwavering. We must identify and uphold shared principles and values, by exercising individual and institutional integrity, by respecting diverse views and opinions, by promoting our international standards, and by forging a positive spirit. We are determined to contribute our utmost efforts to the future of Hong Kong and beyond. President PROF. WEI SHYY JP HKUST ANNUAL REPORT 2019-2020 7 President's Report 6