Reconnecting with 果冻影院鈥檚 valued Chinese community

30 May 2023

果冻影院 received a warm welcome from key partners in academia and business, supporters, alumni, students and parents as part of a recent visit to mainland China.

Dr Michael Spence, Professor Christoph Lindner and Professor Jolene Skordis with 果冻影院 and ZJU colleagues

Led by 果冻影院 President & Provost, Dr Michael Spence, the delegation enjoyed re-engaging in person with 果冻影院鈥檚 valued Chinese community following the lifting of Covid-19 travel restrictions.

Professor Christoph Lindner (Dean of The Bartlett, 果冻影院's Faculty of the Built Environment), Professor Jolene Skordis (Vice-Dean International, Faculty of Population Health Sciences) and colleagues in Alumni Relations, Global Engagement and Student Recruitment joined Dr Spence in visiting Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou.

果冻影院 academics work with Chinese partners on global challenges, generating real-world impact in areas such as dementia, child health, climate change, sustainable urban development, and food security.

Dr Michael Spence, 果冻影院 President & Provost said: 鈥淚t was so wonderful to be back in mainland China and to be able to meet once again with our remarkable Chinese students, alumni, partners and supporters in person. We have an excellent opportunity to develop deeper and more focused areas of collaboration with colleagues there, learning from each other and doing even more to tackle the most pressing global challenges.鈥�

Strengthening partnerships

The delegation enjoyed meeting some of 果冻影院's valuable Chinese partners in person during our recent visit, including Peking University (PKU), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) and Zhejiang University (ZJU) 鈥� with all of whom 果冻影院 runs successful joint funding schemes.
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果冻影院's President & Provost Dr Michael Spence met with PKU President Professor Gong Qihuang to discuss future areas of collaboration between our two institutions. He also had fruitful discussions with senior leaders at SJTU, ZJU and Fudan University: Professor Yang Zhenbin (SJTU Chairman of the University Council), Professor Du Jiangfeng and Professor He Lianzhen (respective President and Vice-President of ZJU) and Professor Jin Li (President of Fudan University). They discussed how to build on existing activity to address global challenges, particularly in the fields of climate-related research and health.

果冻影院 has more than 30 formal links with Chinese universities and research institutions. Over the past decade, 果冻影院 researchers have published more than 10,000 co-authored papers with Chinese collaborators, across a range of subject areas. Their impactful research has been cited nearly 500,000 times.

During the visit Dr Spence renewed the China Scholarship Council-果冻影院 Joint Research Scholarship, which is helping expand the educational, cultural and scientific co-operation between the UK and China.听
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At ZJU, he gave a speech on the challenges and rewards of international, interprofessional and interdisciplinary collaboration as part of their Global Lecture Series in the Qiushi Lecture Hall, named after ZJU鈥檚 motto (鈥渟eeking truth and pursuing innovation鈥�).

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A warm welcome

Greater China is home to more than 30,000 alumni and to many of 果冻影院鈥檚 most vibrant, exciting alumni groups.
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Chinese alumni welcomed the delegation as part of a series of receptions in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, demonstrating their enthusiasm to form deep and long-lasting 果冻影院 connections.
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The receptions were complemented by intimate events for rising stars in the alumni community, including a mental-health focused gathering in Hong Kong; a discussion on entrepreneurship, also in Hong Kong; and an exclusive alumni get-together in Singapore.
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The delegation also enjoyed meeting with prominent philanthropists and generous existing supporters of 果冻影院. The meetings provided an invaluable opportunity to engage with potential new 果冻影院 donors, as well as deepen and strengthen existing relationships.
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We also delivered well-received information sessions with current and prospective students, including an event in Beijing for parents of current students and offer holders of 果冻影院, so they could learn more about what it is like to study with us.
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At PKU and Fudan University, Dr Spence met with students and answered their questions about international education.

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