The Review 2003

28 W hen a society invests in higher education, it rightly expects advancements to be made in knowledge and the grooming of new leaders. But there is an added value in that return. In the course of conducting research, teaching and learning, our staff and students inevitably develop links with the outside world. They often employ their expertise to help individuals improve their quality of life, and industries and organisations to improve their effectiveness. Community service is an intrinsic part of our work as a university. We serve the community on many different levels. On a formal level, we have established centres to conduct research and service various sectors, both in Hong Kong and in the regional and global communi t ies. These centres help to focus on a specific field or area of concern, somet imes bringing together different disciplines. More importantly, they are a focal point for discussion and interaction with government, industry and community groups. For example, in 2003 the Facul ty of Law became home to the Wor ld Trade Organisation-designated Training Centre for the Asia-Pacific Region. Officials from up to 50 Asian countries will benefit from the training on WTO rules provided at the centre. Hong Kong, and our University, beat Singapore into second suicide in Hong Kong. These recent initiatives demonstrate the great variety of community issues that we address formally in our many centres, which also concentrate on such subjects as ageing, suicide prevention, the use of information technology in businesses and organisations, and environmental protection. Apart from these formal channels, several faculties place students in the community as part of their degree or certificate programme. For instance Faculty of Education students are placed in local schools and Facul ty of place to host this endeavour. The Uni versi ty’s Cent re of Buddhist Studies continues to further develop Buddhist concepts in education, psychology, social work and heal th care. The Cent re for Ear thquake Engineer ing Research is investigating the threat that earthquakes pose to Hong Kong. And the Centre for Criminology is nearing completion of a comprehensive study of murder in Hong Kong, Macau and the Mainland, with a view to helping to improve criminal investigation. It also launched a two- year study on the phenomenon of murder- Engineering students are placed in industry. Students and staff f rom the Facul t ies of Medicine and Dentistry treat patients on a daily basis. These placements and activities draw the teaching and learning process into the communi ty in a valuable symbiot ic relationship. Never was this more evident than dur ing the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). Our response to SARS was built on a long tradition of supporting the community. Even though the disease cast a shadow over every area of the University’s activities, all members The Review 2003 INVESTING IN THE COMMUNITY