UMass Amherst and Basel join WUN

WUN welcomed two new members as the year just begins, raising its membership to 18 universities in 10 countries. They are the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) and the University of Basel (Basel). The new partnerships will bring significant strengths and resources to the network. While UMass has strengths in the areas of public health and climate change, Basel is traditionally strong in life sciences and physical science.

CUHK has been a member of WUN since 2011, being its only member university in Hong Kong.  The University has existing links and/or partnerships with all member universities. With UMass and Basel joining, CUHK is excited about the opportunities ahead and looks forward to developing further collaboration with them through the Network. At present, CUHK has research collaboration with UMass in medicine and physics, and with Basel in medicine. Besides, CUHK and UMass have exchanged students since 2003.

UMass and Basel will participate in the WUN Conference and AGM hosted by CUHK during 28-30 April 2015.

Results of the WUN Research Development Fund 2014

Results of the WUN Research Development Fund (RDF) 2014 were announced in December 2014. Of the three submissions made by CUHK, one was selected with a total award valued at £23,593. The WUN RDF provides seed funding to kick-start research collaborations among WUN members. Details of the awarded project are listed below:

CUHK PI	Project Title	Global Challenge	WUN Partners
Prof. Yuying Tong, Department of Sociology	Labor Market Outcomes Among Highly-Skilled Immigrants and Return Migrants: The Role of Place of Education	Understanding Cultures/Global Higher Education and Research	Pennsylvania State University, The University of Auckland, The University of Sydney, and University of Alberta

On her award, Prof. Tong said, 'I am delighted to receive the award. My project aims to examine how foreign education is related to the earnings of immigrants and return migrants. The fund helps to expand my project to include perspectives from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the US. Our team will work collaboratively to understand the similarities and differences in immigrant earnings and job mismatches across contexts.'

Furthermore, 12 CUHK researchers are involved in 10 projects led by other WUN members (across the Public Heath, Responding to Climate Change, and Understanding Cultures Global Challenges). They include:

CUHK Researcher(s)	Project Title	WUN Lead
Prof. David Chen, Department of Geography and Resource Management	Himalayan Climate Change: Debris Covered Glacier Response, Water Availability, Biodiversity and Ecosystem Response	University of Alberta
Prof. Steve Yim, Department of Geography and Resource Management; Prof. Kin-fai Ho, JC School of Public Health and Primary Care (SPHPC)	Health Promoting Responses to Climate Change	The University of Auckland
Prof. Roger Chung and Prof. Sian Griffiths, SPHPC	Understanding the Impact of Migration on Health; Synthesising the Evidence, Improving Methods and Reviewing Current Policies	University of Bristol
Prof. Michelle Gu, Department of Curriculum and Instruction	Multilingualism and Mobility in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres	The University of Sheffield
Prof. Kuei-Hsien Liao, School of Architecture	Climate Change: Understanding Systemic Shocks in Integrated Infrastructures	The University of Sheffield
Prof. Edward Ng, School of Architecture	Transcultural Understanding of Designing with Climate Change: A Joint Design Research Studio Approach	The University of Sheffield
Prof. Yuying Tong, Department of Sociology	Negotiating Transition to a 'Grown Up World': the Journey to Sexual and Reproductive Health for Unaccompanied Adolescent Asylum Seekers	University of Southampton
Prof. Mimi Zou, Faculty of Law	Addressing Multiple Forms of Migrant Precarity – Beyond 'Management' of Migration to an Integrated Rights-Based Approach	The University of Sydney
Prof. Jean Woo, Institute of Ageing	Global Initiative Promoting Meaningful Engagement of Persons Ageing in Supported Living Environments	The University of Sydney
Prof. Hon Ming Lam, School of Life Science	Legumes as the Hub of Diversification and Adaptation to Climate Change in Mediterranean Agriculture	The University of Western Australia

WUN Public Health Conference

CUHK will host the WUN Public Health Global Challenge Conference on Healthy Ageing – Researching a Lifecourse Approach, as part of the wider event WUN Conference and AGM, on 27 April 2015. The Conference will focus on how lifecourse research can contribute to promoting healthy ageing.

The Conference will feature two plenaries on 'Developmental Factors Influencing Healthy Ageing' and 'Promoting Healthy Ageing in Adults', and a keynote address (via video) by Dr. John Beard, Director of the Department of Ageing and Life Course at the World Health Organisation. Other speakers include Prof. Mark Hanson, University of Southampton; Prof. Yan Guo, Peking University; Dr. Rebecca Hardy, University College London;  Prof. Leon Flicker, the University of Western Australia; Prof. Timothy Kwok, CUHK; and Dr. Enrique Vega Garcia, Pan American Health Organisation.

Opened to scholars from both WUN and non-WUN members, the Conference will provide a platform to explore new collaborative research opportunities and sources of funding. It will also be an excellent opportunity for ageing researchers and relevant stakeholders to share experiences of mutual interest and to strengthen global and regional networks.

To register for the Conference, please click here (registration closes on 15 April 2015). For enquiries, please contact Ms. Yvonne Heung, Office of Academic Links.

Visits from WUN member universities

CUHK received the following visitors from WUN member universities between 2 December 2014 and 26 February 2015:

Date	WUN Member	Delegate(s)
3 Dec 2014	University of York, UK	Mr. Matt Smelt-Webb, Head of York Courses, Centre for Global Programmes
26 Jan 2015	University of Leeds, UK	Prof. Roger Halson, International Director, Faculty of Education, Social Sciences and Law
23 Feb 2015	University of Rochester, US	A 3-member delegation led by Dr. Peter Lennie, Provost and Robert L. and Mary L. Sproull Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Sciences and Engineering

For more information on WUN and collaboration opportunities with WUN member universities, please click here or contact the CUHK WUN Coordinator:

Ms. Shally Fan, Director of Academic Links, Office of Academic Links
Tel: +852 3943 7586, Email: shallyfan@cuhk.edu.hk