Dear readers,

It is heartbreaking to see the entire generation of our adolescents may be exterminated in the unprecedented political turmoil of this city.  Their personal safety, mental health, family relationship, career prospect and holistic growth are almost on the brink of collapse.  In fact, the situation of our home is increasingly chaotic and appears to be out of control.  Many of us are looking for answers but in this time of deep polarisation, no one knows how the crisis can be resolved and when the social unrest will end.  The days of Hong Kong taking pride in being one of the safest cities in the world are gone.  Violent clashes among people of different views have become the new normal.

The Outstanding Performance Awards for Students of I·CARE Programme was set up under the sponsorship of Professor Joseph Sung, Co-Chairman of the Steering Committee for Promoting Personal Development through Social and Civic Engagement in 2018.  The award scheme aims to commend CUHK full-time undergraduates and postgraduates who have been actively engaged in the social and civic services under the I·CARE Programme with excellent performance.  The awardees will serve as exemplary models to inspire other students to unleash their potential in bringing positive impact to the society, and to promote the mission of the I·CARE Programme.

The screening schedule of the I·CARE Theatre 2019, which is organised by this Centre, will be slightly changed due to the recent traffic conditions in Hong Kong.  Originally fixed on the 9^th of this month, the screening of The Lives of Others will be postponed to late-November.  Details will be announced in due course.

The Cross-generational Integration Programme rolled out by this Centre aims at facilitating interaction between senior citizens and young people, so as to promote mutual understanding and respect across different generations.  In March next year, the programme will re-organise the event "Playing a University Student for a Day".  A group of secondary school students and elderly people will be invited to attend mock lecture, facilities visit and graduation ceremony, etc. at CUHK to get a taste of university life.  Besides, the programme will arrange an experiential camp in April of next year for CUHK students to pair up with elderly people in various thematic activities in order to promote cross-generation integration.

The I·CARE Social Service Projects Scheme encourages students to organise and implement self-initiated social services.  To equip students with competence in rendering social services, this Centre conducts training activities for applicants for the subsidies of each round.  Details of the upcoming two activities are as follows:

The first round of Blood Donation Campaign in this academic year has been scheduled to commence soon.  Our Centre will continue supporting such meaningful cause by staging the I·CARE Blood Donation Day this month.  Members of CUHK are encouraged to join this event, themed "Combining Help-giving with Self-Relaxation", for giving blood to save others' lives.  At the same time, you may avail yourself of the melodious music and relaxing cartoons played on the spot to cheer up during the recent unrest.  Details of the event are as follows:

Hong Kong has a pivotal role in international context.  Not only does this city occupy an important position in the history of modern China, it is also inextricably linked with countries around the world.  Nevertheless, how much do you know about the stories of this "Pearl of the East"?

I·CARE Salon is an iconic programme under the University Lecture on Civility which promotes reflective thinking on different topics.  Through organising a series of seminars, participants will be able to exchange insights on significant academic, cultural and social issues.

This Centre will launch a brand-new programme titled Mother Nature Rocks aiming to encourage students to explore the city's countryside and to experience the Mother Nature afresh.

The I·CARE Achievers Programme is divided into two parts - "Core Group Nurture" and "Value Exploration Series".  While the former has started student recruitment and is processing selection of 30 participants for this academic year, the latter is open to all CUHK members aiming to enhance their self-awareness and good qualities through a series of activities on character building.  These are done to promote positive development of the community and the world.

The "Fitness x Mentorship" Scheme associates "exercising" with "volunteering" to foster a serving heart of students and strengthen their understanding of the community.

The 2^nd session of A Walk in Community with I·CARE in this academic year will take place at The Hong Kong Society for the Blind* in Shek Kip Mei next month.  Participants will tour around the multi-services complex of the organisation, followed by blind experience games and sighted guide training.  They are expected to gain a better understanding of the visually-impaired people.

Under the Social Enterprise Startup Scheme of this Centre, the CUSE Fund Award Presentation Ceremony 2018-19 cum a briefing on the scheme for 2019-20 was held on the 3^rd of this month.

Organised by the Charles K. Kao Foundation for Alzheimer's Disease, the "Remembering Charles" exhibition had its opening ceremony held on 16 September at The Rotunda, Exchange Square.  As one of the supporting units of the exhibition, this Centre not only sent a representative to attend this joyous occasion, but had also recruited 34 students, staff, and alumni of the University to help out with the preparation of and offer on-site support to the exhibition on a voluntary basis.  As for the exhibition staged at CUHK, this Centre is responsible for the coordination.

The Yunus Social Business Seminar 2019, titled "Collaborative Cities for Social Inclusion - Urban Ecosystems, Citizens' Opportunities and Politics of the Everyday", was held on the 26^th of last month.  Professor Ezio Manzini, Founder of the Design for Social Innovation & Sustainability Network was invited to be the speaker of this seminar.  Professor Manzini is a world's leading expert on sustainable design with over two decades of relevant experience.

The "S.I. Leadership Award" Presentation Ceremony 2018-19 cum a briefing on the social innovation activities for 2019-20 was held by the Yunus Social Business Centre@CUHK, which is an affiliate of this Centre, on 2 October 2019.

Since its establishment in October 2016, this Centre is committed to offering a diversified learning experience to students to promote their whole-person development.  In addition to planning and implementing the I·CARE Programme, this Centre renders support to other services which aim to facilitate students' all-round development.

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