Prof. Yao Jianhua, Professor of the School of Journalism at Fudan University, visited The Chinese University of Hong Kong for two months under the Visiting Scholar Scheme in Modern China Studies. ICS was honoured to invite Prof. Yao to deliver a public lecture titled “‘Being Strangers in a Strange Land’: Digital Nomads’ Mediated Communication and Emotional Connection in Localized Communities” on 3 December 2024 at the Activities Room of Art Museum East Wing. The lecture was conducted in Putonghua and attracted over 40 participants.

In the lecture, Prof. Yao introduced the audience to a recently emerging social group known as digital nomads, including the definition and formation cause. Focusing on the Digital Nomad Anji (DNA) in Zhejiang, China’s first creative park specifically serving digital nomads, he examined the media interactions within this community and the characteristics of the emotional connections formed. His findings revealed the work and emotional challenges encountered by today’s Chinese youth.