The forum, which centered around developing social responsibility among adolescents, and was hosted by The Mirror of Hong Kong and organized by FNU’s College of Faculty Education and College of Education, was held both online and offline on Qishan Campus of FNU on December 16. Leung Chunying, vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Cai Ruolian, director of Hong Kong Education Bureau, Xu Xinying, executive director of The Mirror of Hong Kong, Chen Shihai, chairman of Fujian Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese, Wang Jiang, second-level inspector of the Publicity Department of Fujian Provincial Party Committee, Weng Linnan, second-level inspector of Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of Fujian Provincial People's Government, Zheng Zhensheng, director of Fujian Liaison Office of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and Zhang Weili, second-level researcher of the Foreign Affairs Office of Fujian Department of Education, attended the opening ceremony, presided over by Chen Qinghua, vice president of FNU.
In his speech, FNU President Wang Changping said that over the years FNU has made full use of its geographical locations and achieved good results in such areas as personnel training, research collaboration and exchanges between teachers and students in cooperating with a number of renowned universities in Hong Kong and Macao. The forum plays a significant role in improving the cooperative cultivation mechanism among schools, families and society in Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao, promoting their integration into the overall national development and writing a new chapter in the integrated development of education. FNU will give full play to its comprehensive advantages to actively guide young students to become disseminators of patriotism, promoters of humanistic cooperation and practitioners of social responsibility, and continue to advance the integration of education in Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao to a higher level, Wang said.
Leung Chunying said in a video speech that the activity for selecting “Ambassadors for Promoting Social Responsibility Among the Adolescents”, jointly hosted by The Mirror and Fujian province, breaks through regional boundaries for the first time so that people from all walks of life join hands to practice social responsibilities, which shows what it means to share and duly fulfill responsibilities in social governance, and is also the background for young people in Hong Kong and Fujian to achieve common growth and common development. With the mission in the new era of building China into a modern socialist country with Chinese characteristics in all respects, Fujian and Hong Kong should actively deepen cooperation, focus on the key tasks of modernization, give full play to each other's strengths and advance cooperation in all fields, Leung said.
In her video speech, Cai Ruolian thanked the forum for providing a professional exchange platform for schools in Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao to discuss issues related to promoting traditional culture and fulfilling social responsibility, contributing to their exchanges and cooperation. She said that carrying forward and promoting fine traditional Chinese culture is an important way to kindle students' patriotism and cultivate national identity, and that Hong Kong Education Bureau has also been strengthening the capacity of students to develop their national identity with a combination of different approaches.
Wang Jiang said that the integration of education in Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao enjoys great potential for future development. By jointly conducting cultural exchange and social responsibility activities well for young people, Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao will foster a sense of responsibility among young people and their ability to share Chinese culture with other young people around the world and tell Chinese stories in an effective way, who will promote Chinese culture to go global, and use the humanistic spirit characteristic of Chinese culture to address the common problems facing mankind in the pursuit of sustainable development, contribute Chinese wisdom and ideas, and promote a community with a shared future for mankind, Wang said.
In an online speech, Xu Xinying said that she hoped to give full play to the media to build a diversified platform for activities to pool the forces of schools, families and society to create opportunities for young people to understand and practice their social responsibilities so that they can realize their own values through activities such as caring for others and protecting the environment and develop outlook on life and world of being a man of virtue who will seek to establish others while establishing himself and treating other people as you would like to be treated yourself.
The forum is a key project of the activity for selecting the second “Ambassadors for Promoting Social Responsibility Among the Adolescents in Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao”. After the opening ceremony, centering on “Promoting traditional culture, fostering virtue through education, and jointly fulfilling social responsibilities”, principals and presidents of Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao made keynote speeches, including Zhang Renliang, president of Hong Kong Education University, Li Candong, president of Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zheng Baodong, vice-president of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Shi Danli, assistant vice-president of Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Liu Zhipeng, president of Hong Kong Federation of Educators and assistant vice-president of Hong Kong Lingnan University, Chen Qinghua, vice-president of FNU, Wang Jianhua, vice-president of Huaqiao University, Chen Zhi, president of Chu Hai College of Higher Education of Hong Kong, Xu Guoli, deputy secretary of the Party committee and vice president of Fuzhou University of International Studies and Trade, Wu Huanjie, vice president of Hong Kong Federation of Educators and principal of Hong Kong Pui Kiu Middle School, Ou Yangling, secretary and principal of Xiamen Shuangshi Middle School, and Xu Qu Yihua, principal of Fukien Secondary School Affiliated School. Nearly 100 principals and presidents from Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao participated in the forum online and offline to exchange their theoretical research and valuable experience in carrying forward fine traditional Chinese culture and fulfilling social responsibilities. Through the discussions, the participants have effectively enhanced their understanding of each other and formed a lot of long-term consensuses on the growth of young people and the integrated development of education in Fujian, Hong Kong and Macao.
(Translated by Chen Xinhao/Reviewed by Xie Xiujuan)