Q & A

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Q10. Is being Vice-Chancellor enjoyable?

A. Yes, it certainly is! It is also challenging, exciting, and deeply rewarding. I cannot tell you how many interesting and talented people I have met, and how proud I am to count them as colleagues, friends and members of the HKU family.

The Vice-Chancellorship is also a huge responsibility, and I am constantly aware of what a privilege it is to be serving this University now, how fortunate I am to have the support of a dedicated and enthusiastic team, and how thankful I am to have the trust of so many in the HKU community working together with me on our different activities. There are many projects that have been initiated and that are now in the implementation stage, and the next few years will require an even greater degree of dedication, collaboration and action from all our stakeholders. But I am by nature an optimist, so I really see it as creating a series of opportunities for this generation of the HKU family to unite and build the foundations for a university that is truly unique, world-class, and that we can all be proud of – now and for generations to come.

The University of Hong Kong has a long and proud history of success, intimately linked to the very success of Hong Kong itself. When I reflect on the future of HKU, I immediately and naturally think of the future of Hong Kong and its evolving relationship with China and the world. Hong Kong holds a unique position in China because of its history of diversity and multiculturalism. It also, as a Special Administrative Region of China, has a special relationship and responsibility to the nation. It is where China meets the world, and the world meets China on a day-to-day basis. The “international experience” of Hong Kong provides China with a remarkable resource, and Hong Kong can proffer that experience both to a China that is finding its new place on the global stage, and to a world that is recognising the rising influence of China in global affairs.

In my New Silk Road analogy, Hong Kong is regarded as the ‘smartlink’ to China and education is the vehicle to travel throughout our global village. HKU, as Hong Kong’s leading tertiary institution has traditionally provided many of the territory’s leaders. Throughout its history it has been influential locally, and as Hong Kong’s role in China evolves, it can and should become influential nationally and regionally. In other words, HKU’s future should be seen in the light of a global university with special ties and responsibilities to the territory, and a reputation and influence, which extend nationally and beyond.

To attain the above vision is a clear challenge for us all, but one that I am confident the HKU community can together achieve.