On 1 December 2025, City University of Hong Kong (Dongguan) hosted a series of academic events centred on innovative talent development and sustainable growth. Amony these, the 2025 International Symposium on Cultivating Innovative Global Talents explored ways to effectively bridge secondary school education, higher education and industry practice. Also held on the same day were two international symposia—the Yellow Sea, East China Sea, South China Sea Ecosystem Symposium 2025 and the RISC-V x OpenHarmony Innovation Forum—underscoring the university’s commitment to addressing pressing social challenges.

Bridging Education and Industry to Nurture Global Innovators

More than 200 participants, including secondary school principals, education experts, scholars and industry representatives from across the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong joined the symposium, to explore pathways for building an integrated talent development ecosystem. 

Professor Lu Chun, Executive President of CityUHK (Dongguan), in his welcome speech, stressed that education should guide each student to find their own path, not follow a uniform one. He noted that City University of Hong Kong ranks among the top 100 universities in four major global rankings—the second in Hong Kong to achieve this distinction—and has been recognised by Times Higher Education as the world’s most international university for two consecutive years. Since its establishment, CityUHK (Dongguan) has embedded internationalisation into its DNA, allowing students to access world-class education in Songshan Lake.

The symposium featured keynote presentations by distinguished experts. Professor Chen Yuehong, Former Member of the National College Entrance Examination Reform Expert Committee of Ministry of Education, Former Chair of the Department of Chinese Language and Literature at Peking University and Former Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Southern University of Science and Technology, delivered a speech on New Technology and New Humanities: Interdisciplinary Education Triggers Imagination. Professor Li Zexiang, Pioneer of China’s New Engineering Education and Founder of the XbotPark Robotics Base, spoke on Begin with the End in Mind: Cultivating a New Generation of Tech Entrepreneurs. 

Professor Li Juan Julie, Vice President of CityUHK (Dongguan) (Academic), presented on Consistency in Academic Excellence: Drawing the Blueprint Together, while Professor Chiu Chi Yue, Vice President of CityUHK (Dongguan) (Administration) outlined the university’s international exchange initiatives.

CityUHK (Dongguan)’s internationalised strategy is reflected in the university’s student profile. In its second year, the university welcomed its first undergraduates from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and overseas, further enriching the campus culture.

Chaired by Professor Li Juan Julie, a roundtable forum brought together secondary school principals, university scholars and corporate representatives to share insights on fostering innovative talent from multiple perspectives.

Multidisciplinary Vision: Driven by Technology and Ecology

Two international symposia held concurrently demonstrated the university’s cross-disciplinary strengths. 

The Yellow Sea, East China Sea, South China Sea Ecosystem Symposium 2025, organised by the State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Health and CityUHK’s School of Energy and Environment, examined ecological issues in East Asian seas to advance regional marine sustainability.

Meanwhile, the RISC-V x OpenHarmony Innovation Forum, co-hosted by CityUHK (Dongguan) and the RIOS Laboratory, gathered experts from industry, academia, and open-source communities to explore synergies within dual open-source ecosystems and new models for global talent development.

This series of events reflects CityUHK (Dongguan)’s commitment to advancing global talent development, technological innovation, and sustainable progress. Through fostering academic exchange and cross-sector collaboration, the university is building a forward-looking ecosystem that nurtures talent and addresses contemporary global challenges.