APRU: Inspiring future leaders to tackle real-world global challenges

CUHK students join APRU Student Global Climate Change Simulation to horn their leadership and cross-cultural communciation skills.

Climate change is the defining issue for the world today. Three CUHK professors and 11 students took part in the Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) Student Global Climate Change Simulation 2022 in June.

Running for the second year, the programme is a mock United Nations Climate Change Conference. A total of 170 students from 17 universities were assigned to teams that represent delegations to negotiate on pledges around reducing global temperature rises to 1.5 °C. Over three sessions in two days, teams were guided by experienced facilitators to discuss the human and environmental effects of climate change, as well as the economic impact that countries or regions consider in determining their position and global commitments. Prof. Amos Tai from the Earth System Science Programme, and Prof. Jerome Hui and Prof. Laura Falkenberg from the School of Life Sciences served as facilitators among other academics.

CUHK students found that they have become more knowledgeable on climate change after the programme. Victor Wong, an undergraduate student from the Faculty of Medicine said, ‘I had a golden opportunity to learn and discuss a myriad of climate issues with my teammates, from clean technology to cap-and-trade, a system which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.’

Students were also enlightened by the considerations involved in decision-making by different nations and came to see the importance of global collaboration. ‘There were so many factors to consider during the negotiations. I learnt that even though it is hard to stop global warming, there are still things that we can do. I am committed to address climate change with my research work in the future,’ said Wenqing Wu, a PhD student from the Department of Economics.

‘Climate change is a tough battle, but I was encouraged that as long as we work together and keep up our efforts, there is still hope,’ Victor said.

APRU also strives to cultivate a new generation of leaders in global health. Themed ‘Pandemic Preparedness for Vulnerable Populations in Fiji’, the APRU Global Health Case Competition 2022 challenges students to build and strengthen the capacity of the health systems in Fiji to better respond to future public health threats, focusing on vulnerable populations. A CUHK team, Bula!, comprising four students from the Faculty of Medicine was among the top three from a total of 48 teams across 22 universities. The team provided innovative solutions focusing on the formulation of integrated surveillance systems in Fiji from individual level to national level. Watch the team’s video entry.

Team Bula! is one of the top three in the APRU Global Health Case Competition.