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On 17 July, a ferry from Hong Kong brought over 22 international students to Zhuhai to take part in the Hong Kong Baptist University Summer Programme which was arranged and organised by UIC’s Academy of Continuing Education (ACE).

There were 10 students from the USA, 3 from the UK, 2 from Germany, 2 from Switzerland and 5 from mainland China, all came with different backgrounds from a diverse range of majors. Accompanying them on this trip were 3 staff members from HKBU.

According to ACE, the purpose for this trip was to introduce the students to mainland China, by experiencing traditional arts and sports while learning about the history, religion as well as the economic development. Most importantly, many people have never visited China but rely on the media and the Internet as their source of knowing the country, so this trip is to give them a real feel of China. In order to help the students develop fresh perspectives on the Chinese economy and business environments, ACE and HKBU are encouraging the students to have an open mind and think critically when drawing conclusions, as seeing is believing.

The group stayed at BNU’s hotel for the next three days. Directly after unpacking, they were taken for an orientation followed by lunch.

Students were given a tour of UIC's Campus

The afternoon started with a discussion on doing business in China. Dr Darren Weng, Assistant Professor with DBM, led the discussion and explained the importance of cultural differences that may occur when conducting business in China. He wanted the students to be familiar with the recent development of the Chinese economy, to have a basic understanding of China’s economic reforms, and identify key issues that confront China and its businesses within the reform.

The 90 minute talk offered a broad picture about the fundamental reasons of China's rapid rise as an economic powerhouse in the world and why China's economic growth is called a "miracle". Drawing on multiple data sources, critical problems and issues that will determine China's sustainable growth are examined and discussed, ranging from industrial policies, demography, environment and urbanization.

The students raised a number of questions from all angles, such as whether the government is taking measures to deter the shifting of manufacturing bases from southern China to southeastern Asia countries as well as asking what are the largest import and export items of China. One student inquired about the average family income of a typical Chinese family and how much consumption items they can actually afford. Afterwards, one of the students spoke with Dr. Weng and said that he was intending to go to Shanghai after the summer camp to talk with a few local companies about a joint business plan to extend his family-run business, which sells advanced industrial tools in US to China and that the talk has grown his confidence that China would be an attractive place for manufacturing these tools.

To further strengthen their knowledge learned from Dr Weng, the students then went to Singyes Solar Technologies Holdings Ltd. for a tour. The company has been very successfully riding on the Chinese economic boom for the past two decades as it has made a transition from being a sub-contractor for installing glass walls outside buildings to being innovators in the solar energy business. The group were shown around the factory and then given a presentation about what Singyes does and hopes to achieve.

22 international students took part in this Summer Programme that had been arranged by UIC's ACE department

Bryant Wang, a Sales Manger from SingYes who gave the tour, said “I am glad to meet the UIC visitors group. It was a cheerful experience to talk with those international students because they showed great interest in the green building industry. We hope this short visit could help them with their extra curriculum activities and create a chance for them to start focusing on this industry.”  He went on to say that “Singyes is aiming to be a leading green building provider and we welcome different groups/institutes like UIC to visit us”.

The day was concluded with a paper-cutting class where students could have a taste of the aesthetics of Chinese culture.

After the first day, Christine Kan, the Programme Officer for the International Office at Hong Kong Baptist University said “The Students were impressed by the warm hospitality of the UIC staff and students, and were excited to explore more of the Chinese culture and the neighborhood in the next two days of the study tour.”

Saturday began with an introduction to Chinese Culture by Dr HP Guo and a traditional Shadow Puppet Drama Show. The ancient internal Chinese martial art known as Tai Chi was also taught to the students so they could get a better understanding of this practice that was designed as a means of defense as well as offering good health benefits.

Students were taught how to use the Shadow Puppets

Learning the art of Tai Chi

"Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend"

There was a visit to the Museum of Dr Sun Yat-sen to learn about the history of Dr Sun, who is referred to as the "the founding father of modern China" after he led the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty.

Later on the students were taken to Jiuzhou City for dinner and then given some free time for a night tour at the mall.

On Sunday, the students got the chance to know more about Buddhism by visiting the Putuo Monastery. To let the students learn about architecture, humanities, folk exhibition, the history of overseas-Chinese's early businesses, painting and cultural relics, a trip was organised to Meixi Royal Stone Archways.

This 3-day trip was crammed full of energetic activities as well as providing strong knowledge.

Reporter: Samuel Burgess (MPRO)
Photographer: Samuel Burgess & Lotus Yuan (MPRO)
(Special thanks to Mark McCallum)

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