HKUST Times Higher Education Asia Universities Summit

THE HONG KONG UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Times Higher Education Asia Universities Summit

Introduction

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he Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) staged the inaugural Asia Universities Summit with Times Higher Education on 20 and 21 June, 2016. The Summit was described as “one of the most prestigious gatherings of university leaders in the world’’, and saw some 30 presidents of top universities from 15 countries and cities around the globe provide expert opinions focusing on how universities nurture creativity and innovation.

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HKUST hosts high-profile inaugural Asia Higher Education Universities Summit

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ointly presented by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and Times Higher Education, the Asia Universities Summit, which takes place on 20 and 21 June, will be the first time the influential event to be held in Asia.

HKUST president, Professor Tony F Chan says coinciding with HKUST’s 25th Anniversary year, the University is pleased to partner with Times Higher Education to host the Asia Universities Summit, which will provide a prime opportunity to share best global practices including the different ways to nurture talent and instill creative spirit.

During two days of presentations, some 30 university presidents from 15 countries and cities from around the globe will provide expert insights on a number of key issues including

various challenges facing higher education and research. In addition to presidents of the top universities, other luminaries who will be speaking at the summit include Nicholas W Yang, Secretary for Innovation and Technology of the Hong Kong SAR Government; Wei Yang, President of the National Natural Science Foundation of China; France A Córdova, Director of National Science Foundation of the United States; and Chuanzhi Liu, Chairman of the Board of Legend Holdings Corporation and Founder of Lenovo Group Limited.

Drawing attention to the fact that it is rare to have so many university presidents speaking at one event, Chan says the summit will provide a prime opportunity for participants to meet in an international East meets West environment, where HKUST is located at the centre of one of the most dynamic regions in Asia.

Widely recognised as a pioneering research university and respected for its interdisciplinary studies, the president says over the past 25 years, from day one HKUST has had a clear mission and vision to create an environment and breeding ground where knowledge and innovation can thrive. HKUST graduates ranked 14th in the world in 2015 in a global survey on employability of graduates involving 4,500 recruiters and executives from 20 countries. In 2016, HKUST is ranked number 3 in the world’s top 150 Universities Under 50 by Times Higher Education.

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Chan says it is important to appreciate that it takes more than rankings for a university to gain recognition among its peers and the wider community. ‘Although we are a young university, our emphasis on internationalisation and integration of students from different backgrounds through exchange programmes extends across more the 200 leading universities around the world,’ says Chan. Annually, more than 50 per cent of HKUST students spend at least a semester overseas at a partner university.

In pursuit of academic excellence and international outlook, HKUST has a multi-nationality faculty, diverse student mix, strong ties to global institutions in addition to wide-ranging connections with mainland China.

and prepare students to become great global citizens and leaders of society who can make a contribution anywhere in the world.

research across all disciplines and specialist areas is another good example of the University’s achievements.

At the same time Chan believes Hong Kong has a number of intrinsic advantages that include being a gateway to mainland China and a melting pot of different cultures. ‘Hong Kong, with its unique qualities including rule of law, low tax system, free flow of information, a skilled bilingual workforce and its world-class infrastructure, is the best breeding ground for knowledge, and Hong Kong will continue to play a significant role in advancing the region’s science and technology development,’’ says Chan.

With creativity and innovation constantly being cited as the cornerstones of generating economic and social value, Chan says the challenge for HKUST is to provide a framework where students and faculty can explore their creativity and innovative potential. ‘Creativity cannot be taught and innovation cannot be legislated,’ notes Chan who says without overlooking Hong Kong’s many competencies in financial and professional services - as a community, Hong Kong could benefit from a change in its cultural mindset where people are more willing to try new things. Meanwhile, Chan says HKUST would continue offering a balanced environment where creativity and innovation are encouraged without losing sight of the University’s mission to create basic knowledge

Describing Hong Kong as the ‘perfect location’ to stage the summit and HKUST as being ‘incredibly dynamic and ambitious’, Phil Baty, Times Higher Education World University Rankings editor says during 20 years of experience working in global higher education, the Asia Universities Summit ranks as the most prestigious gathering of university leaders in the world.

During the summit, university presidents, top business leaders, and government officials responsible for education, science and technology, examine how 21st century universities can provide the type of education that nurtures creative and innovative talent. ‘The way Asian universities can nurture creativity and innovation is among the most important topics at the moment,’ Baty says. It is worth noting the Asia Universities Summit is taking place at a time when focus is being placed on the repositioning of higher education influences from the West to the East. Baty views the repositioning as a positive development for the higher education environment and the business and social landscapes where the leading Asian universities are located. ‘This is an exciting time in the world of higher education because we are seeing mobility and circulation of talent, including faculty and students, which has led to an increase in international research collaborations and knowledge sharing,’ notes Baty.

‘With an outstanding concentration of talent and a wonderful tradition of mixing western education with the excitement and potential that Asian education is able to offer, Hong Kong is the perfect location for our first ever Asian summit, which is truly a global gathering,’ notes Baty. He adds that HKUST is the ideal host for the summit because it represents the epitome of excellence that Times Higher Education looks to celebrate and share through its global summits. ‘HKUST presents a case study to the world,’ says Baty.

‘HKUST’s achievements over the last 25 years have been outstanding and act as an example of how, with the right vision, the right leadership and the right will, excellence can be delivered in a very short space of time,’ Baty says. HKUST’s international reputation for solid academic

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Collaborate to innovate

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ncreased collaboration between universities in Asia with their counterparts in other parts of the world would be invaluable for sharing knowledge and skills, and drawing on different perspectives to solve shared problems, according to the president of the world's number one ranked higher education institute.

Speaking at the Asia Universities Summit, jointly presented by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and Times Higher Education, Prof Thomas F Rosenbaum, President of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) highlighted a number of reasons why collaboration between universities produces strategic advantages. “There is a strong line of reasoning for multilateral collaboration to innovate and tap into skills and resources to solve problems that affect all of mankind,” noted Rosenbaum who added that given the rapid advances in research and investment into higher education in Asia, especially in places such as Hong Kong, the motivation for collaboration becomes even stronger.

Highlighting the benefits of collaboration, Rosenbaum gave the example of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) project, which on 14 September 2015 detected gravitational waves that passed through earth, predicted by Albert Einstein in 1916 as a consequence of his general theory of relativity, that gravitational waves are ripples in the fabric of space and time produced by violent events such as the collision of two black holes. “Here was an event that took place 1.3 billion years ago, that

required, ingenuity, patience and lots of cooperation,” Rosenbaum explained to the audience the LIGO project was funded by the National Science Foundation of the United States, conceived, built, and operated by Caltech and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), but also involved thousands of scientists and higher education institutions from around the world. “It was a crazy idea, first spoken about at Caltech more than forty years ago that measuring gravitational-waves could be possible, and

Describing his vision for the 21st century, the theme of his presentation, Rosenbaum said he believed collaborative research across borders and disciplines brought about important scientific breakthroughs and innovations, as well as addressing social issues and driving economic development and productivity.

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because of the commitment to tackling a big challenge, it has been achieved,” said Rosenbaum.

Rosenbaum also suggested that with determination and commitment, there is no reason why the Caltech-type education model could not be replicated in Hong Kong and elsewhere in Asia. “The financing is perhaps the easiest, while the challenge is to ensure students have an intense research learning experience in a culture that inspires them to want to investigate the most challenging, fundamental problems in science and technology and become creative members of society,” said Rosenbaum.

He explained to the audience he was including HKUST president Prof Tony F Chan, who received his Bachelor of Science and Master’s degrees in Engineering from Caltech and fellow summit speaker Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Mr Nicholas W Yang, who received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Applied Mathematics from Caltech when he said that one of the things that Caltech does best is preparing people to go out to take on positions of leadership and ask the big and important questions.

Holding the number one spot in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for the past five years, Caltech is home to approximately 300 professorial faculties, about

600 research scholars and about 2,000 students.

“Because of our size, we can take advantage of the interactions between people who are unrestricted by science and engineering disciplinary boundaries,” explained Rosenbaum.

With a mission to expand human knowledge and benefit society through research integrated with education, Rosenbaum stressed the goal is to find the right balance to focus resources and energy on problems that are considered the most important. He said this meant that Caltech was obliged to be interdisciplinary in its mode of operation. “There is a lot of cross-fertilisation and people do a lot of talking with each other about the areas they are working on,” Rosenbaum said.

When it comes to hiring faculty, Rosenbaum said the Institution did its selecting carefully and then provided its people with everything they needed to succeed.

During Caltech’s 125-year history, there has been 57 recipients of the US National Medal of Science and 32 Nobel Laureates among its faculty and alumni including Theodore Von Kármán who developed the principles that made jet flight possible, Linus Pauling who determined the nature of the chemical bond, and Charles Richter who created a logarithmic scale for the magnitude of earthquakes. Richard Feynman, considered one of the most original thinkers of the 20th century, also spent the better part of his preeminent career at Caltech.

Earlier this year, Caltech biochemical engineer Frances H Arnold became the first female to be awarded the 2016 Millennium Technology Prize in recognition of her discoveries that launched the field of ‘directed evolution’, which mimics natural evolution to create new and better proteins in the laboratory.

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China and the US take lead roles in new age of scientific research

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cientific research supported by government funding is necessary to open new possibilities for innovation, push the limits of human understanding by probing the mysteries of the earth and beyond and provide a clear and direct beneficial impact on daily lives and economies.

Where and how government funded support for scientific research is being spent were among the topics presented to the audience by France A Córdova, director at the US National Science Foundation (NFS) and professor Wei Yang, president of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NFSC), at the Asia Universities Summit, which was jointly presented

by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and Times Higher Education.

Appointed by US president Barack Obama as director of the NFS in 2014, Córdova told the summit audience that basic science is an investment in the long-term future and that some of the most revolutionary scientific discoveries have come from scientists asking fundamental questions. “Curiosity driven ideas with no immediate application have led to the development of the internet, solar panels, life-saving drugs and materials for rechargeable batteries,” said Córdova who quoted Albert Einstein who famously said: “If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called

research, would it?” She also added another Einstein quote – “You never fail until you stop trying.”

With an annual budget of US$7.5 billion, Córdova outlined since the NFS was established in 1950, it is the only federal agency in the United States that is dedicated to the support of fundamental research and education in all scientific and engineering disciplines. The NFS provides support to produce fundamental discoveries that further the progress of research and lead to products and services that boost the economy and improve general health and well-being.

“Each year, the NSF supports more than 300,000 scientists, engineers, educators and students at universities, laboratories and field sites all over the United States and throughout the world, including US students that are currently studying at HKUST,” revealed Córdova. “From Alaska to Alabama to Africa to Antarctica, you could say the NSF’s support goes to the ends of the earth to learn more about the planet and its inhabitants.”

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Córdova also explained to the audience how the NFS-initiated Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Programme stimulates technological innovation in the private sector by strengthening the role of small business concerns. The SBIR Programme focuses on increasing the commercial application of federally supported research results, and fostering and encouraging participation by socially and economically disadvantaged and women-owned small businesses. “We call it “faster discovery to delivery”,” said Córdova who also explained how the NFS Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers (I/UCRC) Programme develops long-term partnerships among industry, academe, and government.

to the NSFC had been expanded more than 300-fold since the scientific foundation was established in 1986. Yang said an indication of the scientific research progress that China had made over the last two decades can be measured by the number of international research papers published annually, which had increased from about 40,000 articles 20 years ago to more than 300,000 last year. For example, China’s share of high-impact works (the top 0.1 per cent of papers in Scopus rated by citations) has grown, from less than 1 per cent in 1997 to about 20 per cent.

China now accounts for more than 19 per cent of the world’s research community (up from just over 10 per cent in 2008) – compared with 16.7 per cent for the US.

Looking towards the future, Córdova said the NFS had identified “10 bold ideas” that would push and shape human-technology frontiers. “The research ideas are intended to stimulate cross-disciplinary activities and take on important societal challenges,” said Córdova. Topics and themes the NFS will provide funding for include understanding the rules of life, for example, predicting phenotypes from genotypes, the next quantum revolution (physics), navigating the new Arctic (including a fixed and mobile observing network) and windows on the universe through multi-messenger astrophysics.

“We have come a long way since Deng Xiaoping personally backed the setting up of the NSFC,” said Yang who has supported and worked for collaborations with universities in the United States, Germany, the Netherlands, Singapore and elsewhere. “About 70 per cent of our funding is allocated to universities for research, including the C9 League, a group of China’s elite research universities, with the remainder allocated to hospitals and various institutions to support their research,” said Yang.

Operating with a government budget of RMB 24.8 billion, or roughly US$4 billion, professor Yang told the summit audience funding allocated

memorandums of understanding with 85 foreign counterparts or science funding agencies from 40 countries and regions. “Chinese scientists work with the US and European scientists in many areas of basic science for the well-being of all humankind,” said Yang.

Despite a slowdown in China’s economic growth, Yang told the audience that China’s research activities had grown dramatically and the government had made it clear it will continue to support scientific research. In its 2006 “Mediumto Long-term Plan for the Development of Science and Technology” (MLP), the Chinese government declared its intention to transform China into “an innovative society” by 2020 and a world leader in science and technology by 2050.

Yang said examples of the breadth and depth China’s commitment to research included the 500-metre aperture spherical telescope (FAST) the world’s largest single aperture radio telescope, located in China's southwest; the deep underground Earth-physics laboratory near Jinping,

Sichuan; and the subterranean experiment, at Daya Bay in the south of China, where scientists are studying neutrinos – some of the oddest particles in the cosmos. “We have a way to go, but these projects are part of the China transition from an economic powerhouse to a technological powerhouse and then to a scientific and cultural powerhouse,” noted Yang.

He added a number of major R&D projects had been selected to promote high-tech industry development and traditional industry upgrading; resolve bottlenecks on economic development and improve public health. “The foundation’s mission is to be a ‘FRIEND’ of scientists: fair in reviews; rewarding in fostering research; international in global participation; efficient in management; numerous in grants; and diversified in disciplinary coverage,” said Yang.

Highlighting China’s global vision, Yang said the NSFC had continued to open wider to the outside world. By the end of 2015, the NSFC has signed cooperation agreements or

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HKUST

THE LIVE REPORT

Asia Universities Summit - ConferenceDay 1 Find out more details on our live report

9:00 AM - 9:10 AM

Welcome remarks : Tony F. Chan, president, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

9:10 AM - 9:30 AM

Opening remarks: Nicholas W. Yang, secretary for Innovation and Technology, Hong Kong SAR Government

9:30 AM - 10:00 AM

KEYNOTE 1: Vision for a 21st century university Thomas F. Rosenbaum, president, California Institute of Technology

10:00 AM - 10:30 AM

KEYNOTE 2: How the National Science Foundation focuses on both research and entrepreneurship France A. Córdova, director, National Science Foundation

11:00 AM - 12:30 PM

PRESIDENTS’ SESSION 1: Universities and creativity and innovation Chair Chorh Chuan Tan, president, National University of Singapore Speakers • Wolfgang A. Herrmann president, Technical University of Munich • Sung-Mo Kang president, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology • Peretz Lavie president, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology

• Anton Muscatelli principal and vice-chancellor, University of Glasgow • Mark S. Wrighton chancellor, Washington University in St. Louis

1:00 PM - 2:30 PM

LUNCHEON KEYNOTE: Universities and the innovation ecosystem Ana Mari Cauce, president, University of Washington

3:00 PM - 3:30 PM

KEYNOTE 3: Research, industrial engagement, entrepreneurship – finding the right balance Dame Nancy Rothwell, president and vice-chancellor, The University of Manchester

3:30 PM - 5:00 PM

PRESIDENTS’ SESSION 2: Culture and creativity and innovation Chair Peter Mathieson president and vice-chancellor, The University of Hong Kong Speakers • Hong Hocheng president, National Tsing Hua University • Karel Ch. A. M. Luyben rector magnificus, Delft University of Technology

5:30 PM - 7:00 PM

Reception - Conference Lodge Join Phil Baty for an exclusive preview

Find out more details on our live report

• Sir Jim McDonald principal and vice-chancellor, University of Strathclyde • Alfredo E. Pascual president, University of the Philippines

HKUST

THE LIVE REPORT

Asia Universities Summit - ConferenceDay 2 Find out more details on our live report

9:00 AM - 9:10 AM

KEYNOTE 4: Global by design – what drives excellence?

Jean-Lou Chameau, president, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology

9:30 AM - 10:00 AM

KEYNOTE 5: Preparing the new generation: the role of the university Gene Block, chancellor, University of California, Los Angeles

10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

PRESIDENTS’ SESSION 3: Young universities Do young universities have an advantage in nurturing innovation?

Chair Tony F. Chan, president, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Speakers • Datin Dr Anita B Z Abdul Aziz • Feridun Hamdullahpur vice-chancellor, Universiti Brunei Darussalam president and vice-chancellor, University of Waterloo • Shiyi Chen • Doh-Yeon Kim president, Southern University of Science and Technology president, Pohang University of Science and Technology • Stuart Croft vice-chancellor and president, The University of Warwick

12:30 PM - 2:00 PM

LUNCHEON KEYNOTE: Can university education produce entrepreneurs?

Chuanzhi Liu, chairman of the Board of Legend Holdings Corporation and Founder of Lenovo Group Limited

2:30 PM - 3:30 PM

Rankings masterclass

3:30 PM - 4:00 PM

KEYNOTE 6: The role of China’s scientific research in its technological drive Wei Yang, president, National Natural Science Foundation of China

4:00 PM - 5:30 PM

PRESIDENTS’ SESSION 4: China universities and creativity and innovation Chair Joseph J.Y. Sung, vice-chancellor and president, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Speakers • Jie Zhang • Denis Simon president, Shanghai Jiao Tong University executive vice-chancellor, Duke Kunshan University • Wei Zhao • Zhaohui Wu rector, University of Macau president, Zhejiang University

5:30 PM - 5:45 PM

Closing remarks Phil Baty, editor, THE World University Rankings

Find out more details on our live report