Newsletter No. 413

12 No. 413, 4.3.2013 Photos of Prof. Jimmy Yu in this issue are by Keith Hiro 身為聯合書院院長，你有什麼計劃？ 我希望可在聯合校園為書院教職員和學生建立一個 輕鬆愉快的環境，給他們在繁忙工作和學習中消消 壓力。今時今日的大學生活，步伐緊張，例行工作和 日常事務中充滿各種壓力、矛盾、難題。對視書院如 家的成員，書院應是一塊淨土，讓我們有喘息的空 間，可以重拾活力。在這裏我們可自由徜佯，這不單 是指身體上，更包括知性和人際關係的層面。聯合 書院創院五十六年，有賴歷屆院長在基建和設施方 面奠下穩固基礎，很有條件達成這個目標。 刻下哪些工作較為迫切？ 我們正檢視書院事務的工作量和流程，並認為須要 微調，這主要是減少委員會和會議的數目，精簡商 議程序，提高效率。書院同事均對書院熱心投入，校 友和友好亦不吝指導和協助，提高議事效率既可保 持他們心思澄明，亦可確保他們付出的時間和努力 用得其所，這肯定會提升院務的整體運作。 作為創校書院之一，聯合如何與新書院合作？ 協作有不同層面：學術上、社交上，甚至是文化上， 亦不囿於與新書院，也會和其他創校書院。協作乃 建基於地位平等的夥伴關係與共同參與，因此不會 因資深或資淺而有異。參與合作各方各就其角色和 責任為共同的目標努力。以近期一項活動為例，我 們與崇基學院和伍宜孫書院合辦閩粵茶文化之旅， 讓學生從藝術與科學角度體驗和欣賞茶文化。此 外，在運動場上，在論壇或其他場合，都是本書院成 員與其他書院成員切磋交流的地方。 中大的自然環境可有助你的研究？ 剛剛相反，中大的蔚藍天空和清新空氣，正與我專 長的範疇對立，因我是研究污染處理的。我做了好 些光催化的研究，即以光淨化空氣和水。校園的空 氣較本港很多地方清新和潔淨，故此我得在其他地 方進行實驗，驗證我的假設。不過我的研究當然也 可走到室內。在過去數年，我發明了可改善室內和 車廂內空氣質素的儀器，這也是技術轉移的一種。 你在現實生活中如何奉行環保主義？ 實踐環保需要持之以恒，在生活中潛移默化，成為 毋需他人提醒的行為。可以的話，我會步行，只在 有絕對需要時才駕車，例如要陪同訪客參觀校園而 時間有限。書院推行很多有系統的保護校園環境工 作，舉例說，我們很謹慎處理廢料，包括建築廢料 和廚餘。 你有何公職？ 與專業相關的，我是好些委員會和小組的成員，包 括研究資助局轄下的自然科學小組和創新科技基 金；在服務方面，我是地球之友和環保促進會的顧 問，也參與水資源及供水水質事務諮詢委員會，此 外，我也參與多個慈善團體和福建社群的活動。 餘暇時有何興趣？ 凡是拿着球拍打球我都很感興趣，因此特別喜歡網 球、乒乓球、羽毛球和壁球。我常與高錕教授夫婦 打網球，他們球技了得，球品又好。跟很多中大人一 樣，我亦喜歡遠足。在我大埔家後方有一道行山徑， 我和太太向所有人推薦這鬆弛身心的健康活動。 What goals have you set for yourself as Head of United College? I want to create a relaxed and happy atmosphere for both students and staff on the United College campus, to sooth them and alleviate the pressures from their studies and work. Nowadays, the daily routines and normal undertakings of life in a university are fraught with demands, commitments and deadlines, often tense and conflicting. For those of us who take the College as our home it should be a haven for us where we can get some breathing space to reinvigorate ourselves. It should also be a place where we can roam freer, not just physically but also intellectually and socially. United College, with its 56 years’ history and a solid foundation and all the infrastructure and facilities laid down by my predecessors over the years, is very well placed to achieve that. What are the tasks that require your immediate attention now? We are reviewing the workload and workflow in conducting college affairs and found it necessary to revamp them a little, chiefly to reduce the number of committees and meetings and to streamline the deliberation procedures for greater efficiency. All my colleagues and staff are very dedicated, and some alumni and friends are very generous with their advice and help. Greater efficiency will ensure that their time and efforts are put to the best use while keeping their minds fresh. It will decidedly enhance the operation of the College as a whole. How would an established College like United work with the new Colleges? Collaborations exist on many levels—academic, social, even cultural—and not only with new Colleges but also with other founding Colleges. Collaborations are based on equal partnership and participation, so there’s really no difference between veterans and newcomers. Every party has a role to play and a contribution to make to the common venture. To give a recent example, we are organizing with Chung Chi College and Wu Yee Sun College a trip to the tea regions in Fukien to let our colleagues and students experience and appreciate the arts and sciences of tea. The sport grounds and other forums or occasions are also meeting places where members of our College mingle with those from the other Colleges. Do you find the natural settings of CUHK convenient to your own research? Ironically, the natural settings of CUHK, with its blue sky and clean air, are anathema to my research, as I am into pollution management. I have done some work in photocatalysis, or the purification of air and water with light. The air over our campus is fresher and cleaner than that in many parts of the territory. So I have to go elsewhere to conduct my experiments and test my hypotheses. But I can always bring my research indoor. That’s what I did. In the last couple of years, I have invented devices that improve the quality of air indoor and inside a vehicle. I call this my own brand of technology transfer. Do you practise environmentalism in daily life? How? Environmentalism needs to be practised consistently and subliminally, in our everyday life, so that one doesn’t need to be reminded of doing it. Whenever I can, I walk. I only drive on a strictly need-to basis, for example, when I have to show visitors around campus under a time constraint. Our College is doing many things systematically to preserve our precious campus. For example, we are very conscious of the treatment of wastes including construction and food wastes. What public service(s) do you perform? On the professional side, I sit in a number of committees and panels such as the Physical Science Panel of the Research Grants Council and the Innovation & Technology Fund. On the service side, I am an advisor to Friends of the Earth and Green Council, and served on the Advisory Committee on Water Resources and Quality of Water Supplies. I also take part in the activities of a number of charitable organizations and the Fukien community. What interests or hobbies do you pursue in your spare time? I derive great pleasure from chasing a ball with a racket. So, tennis, table tennis, badminton and squash are my favourite games. I play tennis a lot, often with Professor Charles Kao and Mrs. Kao. They are strong but good opponents. Like many members of the CUHK community, I also take a liking to hiking. There is a trail behind my home in Tai Po. Joan and I would like to invite everybody to enjoy this healthy and relaxing activity. Prof. Jimmy Yu Head of United College 余濟美教授 聯合書院院長