OAL The Chinese University of Hong Kong eNewsletter

CUHK and the Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) joined hands in hosting the Inaugural WUN Global China Conference on 'Family Transition, Ageing, and Social Security in China' during 5-6 December 2013. Some 60 scholars and students from nine countries/regions exchanged ideas and discussed key issues on ageing and employment; intergenerational mobility; inequality in health and social security among the elderly; and migration and familial support.

CUHK hosts Inaugural WUN Global China Conference as part of its 50th anniversary celebrations

CUHK was honoured to have a number of prominent experts as keynote speakers at the conference. They included: Dr. Fang Cai, Director of the Institute of Population and Labour Economics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; Prof. Jane Falkingham, Director of the ESRC Centre for Population Change at the University of Southampton; Prof. Xiaomei Pei, Executive Director of the Gerontology Research Centre at Tsinghua University; and Prof. Junsen Zhang, Wei Lun Professor of Economics and Chairman of the Department of Economics at CUHK.

The conference marked the official launch of the Global China Group of WUN, a network-wide initiative that aims to channel research efforts on contemporary China within the Network with a focus on the two-way understanding of and engagement with China. The Group has a main theme 'Understanding China in Social and Economic Development' with sub-themes on food security, climate change, public health, higher education, and cultural change and economic development. The Group builds upon the work of its predecessor, the WUN Contemporary China Centre.

Results of the WUN Research Development Fund 2013

Results of the WUN Research Development Fund (RDF) 2013 is out. This year, two of the three proposals submitted by CUHK were selected to receive a total award valued at £25,000. The WUN RDF provides seed funding to kick-start research collaborations among WUN members.

The two selected projects led by faculty members from CUHK are under the Global Challenges of 'Responding to Climate Change' and 'GHEAR'. Together, they involved eight WUN member universities in the collaborations. The following table provides details of the selected projects:

CUHK Principal Investigator	Project Title	Global Challenge	WUN Partners
Prof. Julien CHAISSE, Faculty of Law	Managing the Globalisation of Water Services in a World Affected by Climate Change: Regulatory and Economic Challenges	Climate Change	Maastricht University, University of Leeds, University of Sydney
Prof. LI Jun, Dept. of Educational Administration & Policy	World-class Universities, Publication and Research Assessment: Rethinking the Mission of Higher Education in the Global Age	GHEAR	Pennsylvania State University, University of Auckland, University of Bristol, University of Sydney, University of Western Australia, Zhejiang University

Furthermore, six CUHK researchers are involved in five projects led by other WUN member universities. They include:

CUHK Researcher(s)	Project Title	Global Challenge	Leading Institution
Prof. XU Yuan, Dept. of Geography and Resource Management	Developing Compatible Energy and Climate Strategies	Climate Change	University of Bergen
Prof. WU Fengshi, Dept. of Government and Public Administration	Responding and Adapting to Climate Change: Recognising and Managing Uncertainty in the Physical, Social, and Public Spheres	Climate Change	University of Bristol
Prof. Cecilia CHUN, Dept. of Curriculum and Instruction	The Worldwide Challenge of English in Education	GHEAR	University of Sheffield
Prof. Albert LEE and Prof. Phoenix MO, Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care	Assessing Health Literacy Development in Adolescents	Public Health	University of Auckland
Prof. Sidney CHEUNG, Dept. of Anthropology	Indigenous Research Network	Understanding Cultures	University of Sydney

With the addition of these projects, CUHK is now involved in over 30 research collaborations in partnerships with all WUN member universities.

Visits from WUN member universities

CUHK received the following visitors from WUN member universities between 30 September and 12 December 2013:

Date	WUN Member	Delegate(s)
15 Oct 2013	University of Southampton, UK	Dr. Thomas Irvine, Senior Lecturer and Director of International Programmes, Department of Music; Director, Southampton Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies
15 and 19 Nov 2013	University of Leeds, UK	Dr. James Stark, Research Fellow, School of Philosophy, Religion and the History of Science
6 and 9 Dec 2013	University of York, UK	Dr. Jane Grenville, Acting Vice-Chancellor Mr. Matt Smelt-Webb, International Relations Manager, Short Courses and Summer Schools, Centre for Global Programmes
11 Dec 2013	University of Rochester, US	A 4-member delegation led by Dr. Joel Seligman, President

For more information on CUHK's engagements in WUN, please refer to the CUHK@WUN website 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