The Review 2017

invested in it and regard it as an important part of Hong Kong society. If the University can be left to get on with the job of being a university – to be the very thing people admire – there will be tremendous opportunities ahead. If the diversions can be resisted, I am most confident HKU will achieve even greater things. There is one indelible feeling I have about HKU, which is a sense of optimism. The University has tremendous strengths, starting with its people. The vision and reform initiatives we have introduced over the past three and a half years will enable them to bring this potential to fruition. This makes me very sorry to be leaving sooner than originally planned. HKU has so much to offer and I will keep a keen interest in watching it progress. I hope and intend to continue to have connections with this wonderful university. Thank you to everyone that loves the University and has made contributions during my tenure: it has been a privilege to serve HKU. Our interdisciplinary ambitions in education are exemplified in the innovative Common Core, which is being strengthened with the introduction in the past two years of transdisciplinary minors and clusters and international collaborations. Dual degree options both at HKU and with non-local partners (including UCL in undergraduate Law; Arts and Social Sciences degrees with Sciences Po; joint Masters with University of Southern California) broaden student exposure, as do new articulated programme arrangements between our Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences and physiotherapy and veterinary programmes at the University of Sydney and University of Edinburgh. In research, our Strategic Research Themes initiative evolved into the Seed Funding for Strategic Interdisciplinary Research Scheme in 2016–17, which will groom large-scale research projects that are eligible for major funding opportunities. An innovation mindset is also being cultivated on campus, with technology being a major driver. Online learning is opening new horizons and our Technology-Enabled Learning Initiative has been testing its potential, both through Massive Open Online Courses and in courses on campus. In research, new agreements with external partners, such as Cyberport and Hong Kong Science and Technology Park, are providing funding and opportunities for translating our innovations into impact. HKU’s DreamCatchers initiative, which supports the University’s entrepreneurial community, has also opened a new working space for start-ups, the i Dendron. Streamlining Management and Governance The supporting backbone of these achievements is the University itself. We are determined to improve the quality and efficiency of our operations in order to make HKU that much more competitive. HKU sports scholars met with President Peter Mathieson in August, before heading to Taipei’s Summer Universiade 2017 to compete in athletics, swimming, fencing and volleyball. Presiding at the signing ceremony in October for an Memorandum of Understanding between HKU and the Dunhuang Research Academy in northwestern China for academic collaborations in preservation research and promotion of Dunhuang heritage. President Peter Mathieson attended the opening of the Equal Opportunity Festival 2017, which HKU hosted from October 27 to November 11. Professor Peter Mathieson President and Vice-Chancellor December 2017 MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT AND VICE-CHANCELLOR In 2017 the Smarter@HKU initiative was launched to optimise our professional services and make the most efficient use of resources, with resultant savings to be allocated to academic activities. All areas of work are being targeted, with the proviso that there will be no compulsory staff redundancies. The effectiveness of our governance was also addressed through the Report of the Review Panel on University Governance , which was submitted to the Council in 2017. It contains a great deal of common sense and we are already implementing many of the recommendations. Finally, we have continued to modernise our staff management. Family-friendly practices have been introduced, such as breastfeeding facilities on campus and new measures for recognising part-time work; gender equity is being promoted, for example through balanced gender representation on decision- making committees; and we have more objective assessments of performance. These measures have all been implemented recently and I believe they will make the University a better place to work for years to come. Challenges are Opportunities I have long reiterated that challenges can and should be seen as opportunities. The University has operated in a most challenging environment during my tenure, where the politicisation of higher education in Hong Kong has threatened to throw us off the scent of opportunity. This is deeply lamentable because the sector has so much to be proud of – we have more top-ranked universities per head of population than any other city on the planet. HKU has been a particular target of this politicisation, and therein lies our opportunity. The overwhelming impression during my tenure is that the people of Hong Kong care very much about this University. They feel 04 | 05