UN75 Dialogue
“Prospecting Education with Technology and Human Resources in HK and the Greater Bay Area”
The second Hong Kong’s UN 75th Dialogue jointly hosted by UNESCO Hong Kong Association (UHKA) and Hong Kong Institute of Education for Sustainable Development (HiESD) on the theme of “Prospecting Education with Technology and Human Resources in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area” was held at 3:00 p.m on the 30th of May, 2020. The keynote speaker cum moderator was Prof. John LEE,JP, the UNESCO Chair in Regional Education Development and Lifelong Learning, and the Chair Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, with theme moderator — Prof. Karen Q. CHEUNG, the Acting President of UHKA and the Director of HiESD. Invited guest speakers were Mr. Eddie NG, GBS, JP the former Secretary for Education, the Honorary President of GHMGBA Economic and Trade Institute, Dr. Lee George LAM, BBS , the Chairman of Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, and Prof. Enoch YOUNG,BBS, the Vice President (Higher Education) of UHKA.
Moderators and Guest Speakers at the Online Discussion
Education here has brought people progressively out from poverty, and on the way to technology-based and academically advanced situations. People are benefited in areas of job prospects, personal skills, wider scope of vision, deeper intrinsic values and the like. Capacity building both cultivates a person and a society.
Prof. Karen Q. CHEUNG opened the Dialogue by expressing that while education is the fundamental of the development of innovative technology, the quality of education essentially determines the quality of our human resources, and our human resources then determines what our future is going to be like.
Prof. John LEE addressed the Dialogue on a topic named Future Education with a Focus on Teacher Quality and Student Development, in which he pointed out given the technological change as well as complexity of economic development, future talents require 21st century skills together with positive values and virtues. Teachers are role models who are both Life Educators and Life Learners for students’ cultivation of life skills and positive values. Future education in Mainland China should place more emphasis on teacher quality and student development taking into account global trends and the vision of Chinese education 2035.
Mr. Eddie NG stressed the New Normal in Education that we could find constant renewal of the education policies, focus on academic intellectual and character building (the building of Intelligence Quotient, Emotion Quotient and Social Quotient), establishment of independent thinking, responsible and contributing citizen, and innovative and service mind. To combat challenges, synergy was the key. It required knowledge and buy-in, multigenerational collaboration, multicultural and global mindset. A winning formula was strengthening the talent friendly free flow environment.
Dr. LAM as an entrepreneur pinpointed Hong Kong has become a super-hub of innovations and technologies, where sectors like finance, medical, insurance, education were associated with technology. Application of such innovated ideas and technologies in the Greater Bay Area would further brighten it.
Prof. Enoch YOUNG put forward his topic on How Hong Kong higher education can contribute to the human resources upgrading in the Greater Bay Area. Prof. YOUNG asserted that adequate provision and constant upgrading of human resources were the key to the sustainable development of the GBA into a vibrant and prosperous region with high-tech and modern service industries. Education stakeholders, including universities, enterprises, research institutes and education authorities should collaborate to develop a Qualification Framework suitable for the whole GBA and to greatly expand high level professional education provision, catering for the special needs of the GBA.
Professor John LEE summed up the Dialogue to say that close collaboration among us, and among different nations to turn difficulties into opportunities. Education was the key to a better world. It helped eliminate poverty but promote equality and a better environmental awareness, leading to a healthy life style and happy life. Society had to provide the means to improve constantly the quality of education and to cultivate a lifelong culture. Through quality education, we fostered human capital development synergy and geographical inter-cultural collaboration. Through active business involvement in support of UN goals achievement, we established new innovative technologies to make a better world. The complementary ability between the GBA and Hong Kong in knowledge transfer and commercialization of deliverables was enormous.
In response to the UN 75 dialogue, the distinguished guests also agreed that UN is a very powerful and important leader in welfare planning and charting the way forward for humanity and education development. In future we need to work together and engage young people to realize the goals and to enact in real actions.
Prof Karen CHEUNG (first left), Prof John LEE (first right) takes group photo with Dialogue Guests Mr. Eddie NG (middle), Prof Enoch NG (second left), and Dr Lee George LAM (second right)
Event Highlights
Full recording
The viewers of the online dialogue were from the United States, Canada, Italy, South Korea, Thailand, Australia, Mainland China and Hong Kong.
The third “Dialogue” will be held at 3 pm on May 31, with the theme ” Sustainable governance with trust and support “. Welcome to visit https://www.un.org/zh/in75/events
Speakers and Resources
- Prof. Karen Q. Cheung
- Prof. John Lee
- Professor Enoch Chien Ming Young
- Mr. Eddie Ng, GBS, JP
- Dr. Lee George LAM, BBS
Prof. Karen Q. Cheung
Director of Hong Kong Institute of Education for Sustainable Development
Acting President of UNESCO Hong Kong Association
Prof. Cheung is a Bachelor of Business Administration, a Master of International Business, a Ph.D candidate of Industrial Economics. She is a Certified Risk Planner, Senior Member of Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Senior Fellow of World Institute of Sustainable Development Planners.
Since 1991, Prof. Cheung has been engaged in asset management, risk management and industrial operation and development. She actively participated in development zones and new urban areas. She completed the international investment, overseas financing, industrial restructuring, mergers & acquisitions and listing, park consulting and management for National Economic-Technological Development Areas. Being the director of China Representative Office for Certified General Accountants Association of Canada ( CGA- Canada), Prof Cheung has been providing international accounting professional trainings for 20 colleges in China including Tsinghua University, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, University of International Business and Economics, Nankai University, Jinan University and more. Prof. Cheung was the research and development consultant for the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, financial development consultant for Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai and consultant for the government of Luliang City, Shanxi Province.
Prof. Cheung has been committed to the research and development for education for sustainable development since 2002 and she is actively in planning and promoting education for sustainable development. From 2007 to 2009, she has been collaborating with The Policy Research Institute of Hong Kong Polytechnic University to establish the China- Hong Kong collaboration center to carry out public policy researches, regional planning and exchange training projects. She is Director, Hong Kong Institute of Education for Sustainable Development; Expert Advisor & Chair of the Expert Committee, UNESCO Asia-Pacific Institute of ESD; Executive Director (Hong Kong), National Working Committee for UNESCO Project on ESD; Acting President & Secretary-general, UNESCO Hong Kong Association; President, World Institute of Sustainable Development Planner and Director, GHM Greater Bay Area Education Forum, Researcher and Expert Advisor of Big Data Centre in Regional Education Governance of Guangdong-Macao-Hongkong Greater Bay Area Higher Education Institute.
Prof. John Lee
Professor John Chi-kin Lee, JP is Vice President (Academic) and Provost, Chair Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, Director of Centre for Religious and Spirituality Education, Co-Director (Research) of the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching and Co-Director of the Centre for Education in Environmental Sustainability at The Education University of Hong Kong. He is also UNESCO Chair in Regional Education Development and Lifelong Learning.
His research interests focus on curriculum and instruction, geographical and environmental education, and school improvement. He is active in leading and securing education research and development projects and has a solid track record in securing external grants. He is a prolific writer and has served as the Regional Editor, Executive Editor and Editor-in-Chief as well as editorial board members or advisory editors of many local, regional and international journals., e.g., International Journal of Educational Research, Curriculum & Instruction Quarterly and Journal of Environmental Education Research.
Professor Lee has actively participated in education and social service in Hong Kong, Mainland China and overseas. He has been conferred the title of Changjiang Chair Professor by the Ministry of Education, the People's Republic of China. He has also held many visiting/guest/adjunct professorships at universities overseas and in Mainland China.
Professor Enoch Chien Ming Young
Positions held
- Director Emeritus of HKU SPACE
- President of Hong Kong Academy of Management
- Vice-President of UNESCO Hong Kong Association
- Former Vice-President & Acting President, City University of Hong Kong
- Former World Bank Education Consultant
Academic and Professional Qualifications
- 2004 FCGI (Fellow of the City and Guilds of London Institute, UK)
- 2002 FInstAM (Fellow of Institute of Administrative Management, UK)
- 2001 FCIM (Fellow of Chartered Institute of Marketing, UK)
- 1976 FRAS (Fellow of Royal Astronomical Society, UK)
- 1966 PhD, University of Bristol, UK
- 1962 BSc Special, 1st Class Hons (in Physics), The University of Hong Kong
Honorary Professorships, Doctorates, and Fellowships
- 2015 Honorary Fellowship, (HKU SPACE)
- 2009 Honorary University Fellowship, The University of Hong Kong
- 2006 HonFILex (Honorary Fellow of Institute of Legal Executives, UK)
- 2006 Honorary Doctor, Armstrong University, US
- 2005 HonDLitt (Honorary Doctor of Letters, Ulster University, UK)
- 2005 HonDUniv (Honorary Doctor of letters, Edinburgh Napier University, UK)
- 2005 Honorary Visiting Professor, University of Leicester, U.K
- 2004 HonDUniv (Honorary Doctor of the University, Middlesex University, UK)
- 2001 Honorary Professor, Edinburgh Napier University, U.K
- 1997 Honorary Professor of Physics, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- 1996 Honorary Professor, University of Science and Technology of China
Other Awards
- 2012 Hons KSJ (Honorary Knight of St. John)
- 2009 Distinguished Alumni Award, Science Faculty, The University of Hong Kong
- 2007 BBS (Bronze Bauhinia Star) by HKSAR Government
- 2006 World Outstanding Chinese Award
Mr. Eddie Ng, GBS, JP
Former Secretary for Education (2012-2017) and Honorary President of GHMGBA Economic and Trade Institute
Dr. Lee George LAM, BBS
Chairman of Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited
News Publications & After-event Reports
Host Background information
The Hong Kong UNESCO Association (UHKA) is committed to supporting, promoting and realizing the core mission of UNESCO, creating conditions for dialogue among different civilizations, cultures and nations on the basis of respecting common values, and achieving A global vision for sustainable development. UHKA is a registered charity in Hong Kong. Through education, science and culture, it strives to promote sustainable development and promote international exchanges.
The Hong Kong Institute of Sustainable Development Education (HiESD) is an interdisciplinary research-based innovative application college featuring interdisciplinary research and project application and training with the main purpose of promoting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the implementing agency of the United Nations Global Action Plan for Sustainable Development Education (GAP), expert partners and service providers of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) (registration number: 12958), the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) and the Sustainable Development Goals Collaborative Partner (Registration Number: 26908). The Institute provides basic education, higher education, and continuing education through forums, special training, professional courses, professional certification, special projects, exchange visits, and research camp learning. This continuous development of a lifelong learning system assists companies and organizations to implement and achieve sustainable development goals at all stages.
Comments are closed