YHK 11 1 Future Skills

a quarterly journal from the hongkong federation of youth groups

March 2019

Volume 11 Number 1

Youth HONG KONG

Future Skills

OVERVIEW 4 What are future skills?

INTERVIEW 6 Seeking tomorrow’s skills

Prof Bob Adamson

Education University of Hong Kong 9 Staying curious and communicating

Margaret Fong

Hong Kong Trade Development Council INSIGHT 12 Teaching 21st century learners

Jo Traunter

University of Hull 13 Literacy for future finance 15 Future jobs

Editorial team 16 Cars, planes and quantum computers

Jonathan Allcock 18 AI opportunities for a new era

John Yeung YOUTH SPEAK

Future technology: Mainland impressions 20 Supercomputer advancement

Ron Siu Cheuk-wai 21 Robots and automation

Gladys Wong Hei-yu 22 Change and progress

Eilliam Li Yee-lam 23 Next-generation talent

Stephanie Ng Cheuk-lam 24 Surveillance and big data

Michael Fung 25 Job opportunities: 3D GBA

Chinny Lee PROGRAMMES & COMPETITIONS 26 HSBC Future Skills Development Project 28 Creative Coding Competition 29 HK Student Science Competition 30 Innovation & Technology Scholarship 31 Project Setup PERSPECTIVES 32 Multiliteracy #10yearchallenge

Amy Law 34 Building for the future

Jason Cheung 36 Next generation workplace

AIESEC HKFYG 39 Hydroponics at HKFYG 40 a Cappella Festival 2019 42 Dragon Foundation Golf Tournament 44 HKFYG Leadership Institute: Grand Opening 46 Youth IDEAS reports 50 Future Skills Events Calendar Spring 2019 51 Volunteer matching portal: easyvolunteer YOUTH HONG KONG published quarterly

by The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups EDITORIAL BOARD Andy Ho (Chair) Elaine Morgan (Editor) Ada Chau (Assistant Editor) Amy Fung Angela Ngai Gary Tang Lakshmi Jacotă William Chung Hon Adviser Veronica Pearson CIRCULATION (unaudited) 11,000-12,000 in Hong Kong, throughout the region and overseas

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Contents March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Volume 11 Number 1

4-5 OVERVIEW

6-11 INTERVIEW

12-19 INSIGHT

20-25 YOUTH SPEAK

26-31 PROGRAMMES & COMPETITIONS

32-37 PERSPECTIVES

38-51 HKFYG

VIEWS EXPRESSED are the authors’ and interviewees’ may come from official sources and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial board or publisher

Youth Hong Kong is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in articles.

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Ada Chau 3755 7108

ARTWORK, DESIGN, LAYOUT & PRINTING

REPRODUCTION OF CONTENTS without written permission from the publisher is prohibited

DG3

OVERVIEW & INTERVIEWS Elaine Morgan, Lakshmi Jacotă & Ada Chau

ISSN 2519-1098 (Online)

The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups was founded in 1960 and is the city’s largest youth service organization. More than 25,000 activities are organized by over 70 units annually with attendance of nearly 6 million.

TRANSLATION Ada Chau & Angela Ngai

CORRESPONDENCE to The Editor, Youth Hong Kong, 21/F, The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups Building, 21 Pak Fuk Road, North Point, Hong Kong

PHOTOGRAPHS By editorial team, acknowledged as captioned, stock images or in public domain TRADEMARKS All brand names and product names are registered trademarks.

ISSN 2071-3193 (Print) WEB youthhongkong.hkfyg.org.hk

TEL 3755 7084, 3755 7108 FAX 3755 7155 EMAIL youthhongkong@hkfyg.org.hk

Services for Youth Counselling, Creativity Education & Youth Exchange, Education, Employment, Leadership Training, Leisure, Cultural and Sports, M21 Multimedia, Parenting, Research and Publications, Volunteering, Youth at Risk and Camps, Youth SPOTs WEB hkfyg.org.hk m21.hk Online donations giving.hkfyg.org.hk

Editorial March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

This issue of Youth Hong Kong looks at the transformations taking place in the spaces where we live and work today. It asks questions about the skills needed to thrive in the future and how young people might keep up with the rapid pace of change.

While many contributors identify technology and science as key areas in which “hard” skills can best be acquired, the main interviews focus on generic and “soft” skills such as communication, collaboration, versatility and analytical, critical thinking. Nevertheless, financial literacy and knowledge of developments in artificial intelligence and machine learning, automation and robotics, will be vital for many successful careers.

What is apparent throughout the articles, interviews and insights is that change is inevitable. Please share your experience and reactions to a world where "future" skills are almost here, a world where we will need to adapt and adjust constantly.

Use the QR code below to send your feedback.

Andy Ho Wing-cheong Executive Director, HKFYG March 2019 3

Overview March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

What are “future skills”?

The pace of change is accelerating, especially in the world of work, and we all share the responsibility for keeping up to date. Young people considering careers and youth already at work will be most aware of this, but the government, education and business sectors can think creatively about how to support them. Opportunities for progress are growing, but without reform in education and training systems, as well as change in mindsets among employers about reskilling, those opportunities could be lost.

Drivers of change The noticeable changes in trends for skills put analytical thinking, originality and initiative at or near the top of employers’ wants-lists everywhere, from China to Australia, from France to India and from Brazil to Singapore.1 The top emerging job role in all these countries except India is software or app development and analysis. The need not only for manual skills but for software installation and support is declining.2 Hard skills that today’s youth will need in future are forecast to change dramatically with the evolution of automation and artificial intelligence (AI). The frontier between the tasks performed today by people and those performed by machines is shifting and will change again as new technology is adopted by employers. These changes could lead to better jobs, less routine work and improved quality of life but if managed poorly, they could also cause widening skills gaps and greater inequality.

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● Skills needed in future can only be guessed but many will depend on innovations in science and technology. ● Both employees and employers will need skills that complement AI and automation. ● Educational and training gaps in these skills may continue to grow and lifelong learning will be essential. ● Generic skills will be focal points, especially adaptability, inquisitiveness, communication and analytical thinking but above all, readiness for change.

Top skills today • Analytical thinking and innovation • Complex problem-solving • Critical thinking and analysis • Active learning and learning strategies • Creativity, originality and initiative • Attention to detail, trustworthiness • Emotional intelligence • Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation • Leadership and social influence • Coordination and time management

Impact on work Given the wave of hard-to-predict disruptive technologies, the impact could be both good and bad. According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) Future of Jobs Report,3 half of all employers expect automation to reduce their

full-time workforce by 2022. However, more than a quarter of the companies also expect automation to lead to the creation of new work roles. The WEF’s latest research reveals that an average of 71% of work tasks are currently being performed by humans. The balance of tasks is done by machines but forecasts show that by 2025 machines will overtake humans in the number of tasks performed.

Predictions in a McKinsey report4 use a different perspective. They estimate that 60% of all occupations, from machine operators to psychiatrists, involve 30% of activities that could be automated. Tasks that require fundamentally human attributes, such as communicating and interacting, coordinating, developing, managing and advising, are also beginning to be automated and the expansion of machines’ share of work involving reasoning and decision-making is growing.

systems will need to evolve for a changed workplace.

While the nature of work may change and new jobs unimaginable today will emerge, many of today’s generic skills will continue to be important. (See tables).

Nevertheless, the government, education and business sectors have an important role to play in guaranteeing access to both work experience and lifelong learning. The drive to acquire new knowledge and top up skills means having both the mindset and the resources to learn continuously at every stage of life. All Hong Kong’s stakeholders can do their part to enable this, matching skills with the pace of future change and ensuring that those now in danger of being left behind are not forgotten.7

Trending skills for tomorrow

Reskilling imperative

• Analytical thinking and innovation • Active learning and learning strategies

There will be a sharp increase in the need for skills in various forms of technology, such as those used by data analysts and scientists, AI, quantum computing, software and applications developers, ecommerce and social media specialists. Across all industry sectors, big data analysis is the most widely adopted technology whereas robotics is appearing more slowly even though China tops the charts in supply and installation of robots.5 What needs to be done to match employers’ requirements?

Some employers will offer retraining but many will outsource to address skills gaps. Re- and upskilling efforts are likely to focus on employees in key roles rather than those most affected by technological disruption. Research published by the Social Mobility Commission in the UK in January 2019 shows that highly educated workers are three times more likely to engage in retraining as workers without qualifications. There are similar figures for other developed economies. In other words, those most in need of reskilling and upskilling are least likely to retrain.6

• Creativity, originality and initiative • Technology design and programming • Critical thinking and analysis • Complex problem-solving • Leadership and social influence • Emotional intelligence • Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation • Systems analysis and evaluation Read more 1.

2.

3.

4.

WEF Future of Jobs. www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs_2018.pdf itbusinessedge.com/slideshows/show.aspx?c=87846&slide=6 WEF Future of Jobs. op cit McKinsey Global Institute. A future that works. mckinsey.com/featured-insights/digital-disruption/ harnessing-automation-for-a-future-that-works 5. multimedia.scmp.com/news/china/article/2164290/china-2025-robotics/index.html 6. ft.com/content/99a63236-23ad-11e9-b329-c7e6ceb5ffdf 7. weforum.org/agenda/2018/09/ai-and-robots-could-create-as-many-jobs-as-they-displace/

Careers and pathways

ll

沒有人能準確指出未來技能（Future Skills）包含甚麼，但 相信大部分技能都跟先進科技和技術創新有關。

This is where policymakers and educators can step in, helping those who are displaced from jobs to retrain and acquire new skills. As young people make education and career choices, they need to know the factors that will drive change, automation in particular. This will help them identify the skills that could be most useful. Education

ll

僱主及僱員都需要掌握自動化與人工智能（AI）應用所帶 來的影響。

ll

相關技能的學習與培訓將會持續不斷，實踐終身學習的精 神至為重要。

ll

共通能力是關鍵所在，特別是適應力、好奇心、溝通技巧 與慎思明辨的能力等；當中最重要的是靈活應變力。

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Interview March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Seeking tomorrow’s skills an interview with Prof Bob Adamson

at the Education University

“We know where the future challenges lie,” says Prof Adamson. “The skills students need are not new. People have always used them. But the strategies we need to teach them have to evolve and the first hurdle lies in mindsets about the curriculum and assessment.”

At present, generic skills such as problem-solving, collaboration, communication, creativity and critical thinking are not taught explicitly. “They are not given serious attention. Our emphasis is on testing because education is seen as a competition, where countries, schools and students all have to be ranked.”

Education should take people from where they are to where they can be, in Prof Adamson’s view. “Creativity, for example, doesn’t have to be artistic. I believe many people can find non-conventional solutions to problems if they are allowed to work with their own resources and imagination.”

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However, it is important to remember, “The skills involved are not only skills for work. They are also skills for life.”

Education could become more open and flexible.

“Structured learning will still be part of it but classrooms need to be interactive, allowing students’ opportunities to experiment and to take responsibility for developing their own skills.” This applies not only to top students but to all.

“The current ethos of education systems suffers from historical inertia,” Prof Adamson continues. “It works against what we are trying to achieve.” To change this, innovation in the nature of schooling and a shift in mindsets is needed. “I think we have gone down a blind alley. We tend to see kindergarten as early preparation for university when we should think more about how school can mirror society. We have taken away a lot of the pleasure in being young and replaced it with a very strong emphasis on pre-work preparation.”

● Skills for the future include problem-solving, collaboration, communication, creativity and critical thinking, says Prof Bob Adamson. ● We should focus on the process of learning and skills for life, not only skills for work. ● The education system focuses on exams and works against these our goals instead of emphasizing quality of teaching.

Hong Kong is well endowed with resources and Prof Adamson agrees that investment in technology can support effective teaching of life and job skills. Where will new technology such as AI fit into the future classroom? “I see AI creating new jobs within a whole new industry, but teaching and learning are very human activities and however clever robots are, I don’t see them replicating the rapidly changing, tangled human emotions involved in that process.”

Warning about the commercialization of education with the growth of IT, he tells us that he tries to get student teachers to think critically about how technology can improve the quality of learning, not just the ability to pass exams. “The only thing that should matter to a teacher is the quality of learning.”

Learning outside the classroom should be part of this, he says. “We treat classrooms as hermetically sealed capsules and have restricted ourselves to a very narrow view. The world outside is a classroom too.

We live in both urban and rural environments in Hong Kong and don’t make enough use of either.”

Past attempts to bring in task-based, student-centred learning with a target-oriented curriculum were too revolutionary. Prof Adamson says they involved risktaking and many schools could not “let go.” But times have moved on, and schools increasingly recognize that changes in learning styles need to be paralleled by changes in the education system. Nonetheless, schools in Hong Kong are constrained by market forces and competitiveness. “As long as we have high-stakes testing we will have high-stakes test preparation and that is not conducive to risk-taking.”

“The strong alliance between the government and business tends to dominate curriculum design.” What should we aim for? Prof Adamson suggests, “… more holistic, situational based learning that involves interaction, where there is interplay between received wisdom and an individual’s own intuition and new ideas.”

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Interview March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Education should be a social good rather than an economic commodity judged by an appraisal system that is not robust, valid or reliable.

The way in which language skills are taught provides a good example. “Hong Kong is too demanding, for English in particular,” according to Prof Adamson. The goal should be functional multilingualism and competence for the purpose of communication and work. This means adaptability and tolerance of imperfection he says, giving the example of a classroom in the ethnic Korean region of northern China where the trilingual teacher judiciously uses Korean in class to teach Chinese and both Korean and Chinese to teach English. Why? Simply put, because it works better.

Unfortunately, Prof Adamson thinks the emphasis on economic efficiency and competitiveness in education systems both in Hong Kong and around the world is hindering such progress at present. “Hong Kong does a lot of things extremely well. We have good funding, teachers and principals. Education is highly valued and there is strong commitment among parents, but issues in the social and economic system don’t facilitate maximizing people’s potential.”

Where does this takes us along pathways to skills for the future? “It leads towards the realization that education should be a social good rather than an economic commodity judged by an appraisal system that is not robust, valid or reliable,” he says. Instead, Prof Adamson advises, we should be placing the emphasis on the process of learning, where future skills are acquired not just because they are needed for exams or jobs, but because they are essential for life.

Bob Adamson is Chair Professor of Curriculum Reform and Director of the Centre for Lifelong Learning Research at the Education University of Hong Kong. He has been involved in education in China for over 35 years and is UNESCO Chairholder in Technical and Vocational Education and Training as well as a consultant to the People’s Education Press, Ministry of Education.

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未來技能包括解難、協作與溝通等多元能力，還有創意和批判思考。

ll

我們應將焦點放在學習生活技能的過程，以非只聚焦於工作技能。

ll

現在的教育系統只集中顧及考試及工作需求，而非著眼於教學的質素。

Staying curious and communicating an interview with Ms Margaret Fong at the HKTDC ● Being forward-looking involves curiosity, dexterity for staying nimble and versatility to adapt to change. ● IT, communication skills and an international outlook are also needed advises Margaret Fong, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. ● Success also means leaving your comfort zone and exploring our globalized world.

What skills do young people need for work in future?

What skills should young people make their priority?

There are three keywords to remember: curiosity, dexterity and versatility.

Data harvesting, knowing where and how to look, is a start but you also need to be able to analyze and interpret data.

For that you need experience.

First, staying curious about what’s happening, not just in Hong Kong but everywhere around the world, is very important. Even if you are not at the cutting edge, you need a certain kind of mindset. You always need to be curious and interested in the next big thing.

Second, young people will need to be dexterous. That means being nimble and agile, finding it easy to learn and accept new things. That kind of mental agility is vital for mastering new skills.

Third, versatility is vital in order manage the speed of change. Everything is so connected and globalized, and to be prepared for different opportunities you should not be limited to a single field of excellence.

You need good listening as well as speaking skills.

Margaret Fong has been the Executive Director of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) since October 2014.

Her team’s mission is to create and facilitate opportunities in global trade for Hong Kongbased companies. She is a University of Hong Kong English Literature graduate and before joining the HKTDC she was the Commissioner for Tourism of the HKSAR Government.

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Interview March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Another very important element is communication. Nothing you can do with digital technology can replace personal, real-time, face-to-face contact. You need good listening as well as speaking skills and there is even a new job of Chief Listening Officer, invented exactly for that purpose!

How can young professionals keep up to date?

Information comes from so many sources.

We have to know how to manage it, not just for personal or social use but also for business, and there is another new job that didn’t exist ten years ago: the social media manager.

We feel bombarded by information and need to remember how important it is to be able to demonstrate to stakeholders that we are hearing what they say. This means being able to relate on a human level, not only through digital messages.

How about communication on a global level?

Luckily, most young people in Hong Kong know Cantonese, Mandarin and English. This is a good starting point but you need to go further and translation software is not there yet. Language skill means much more than knowing the vocabulary and grammar and there is no substitute for practice. You might choose Spanish, Japanese or Korean depending on where you want to work or you might choose an ASEAN language according to the region where you want to specialize.

Young entrepreneurs need to think big and think global.

How can companies help create a culture whereby young people understand internationalism?

Major corporations run trainee programmes to enhance such a culture. Smaller businesses may not have adequate resources so we arrange briefings, sharing sessions and seminars for young people. We also link young entrepreneurs through networks such as the HK Startup Society and the Young Executive Programme run for young members of the Federation of Hong Kong Business Associations Worldwide. These allow us to match overseas and local entrepreneurs so that they learn from each other.

Are there keys to the future if we look at the past?

A key factor in young people’s success in future will be having an international outlook. In primary school we were once taught that such a small place as Hong Kong had to be outward-looking. Over time, as Hong Kong has prospered our young people have begun to look outward less and less, like many of their peers in mature economies. They see foreign companies and investments coming here and tend to lack the urgency, the hunger that drove earlier generations. We need to encourage them to break out of their comfort zone.

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Do you think there should be more vocational apprenticeship pathways at our mainstream universities, as there are in parts of Europe?

We are constantly talking to the university vice chancellors because ultimately we want people to emerge from tertiary institutions with the skills employers seek. The Polytechnic University already works closely with different industry sectors and I do see a move towards entrepreneurial skills.

One Hong Kong university makes a course in entrepreneurship mandatory for all undergraduates. We also

HKTDC Youth Programme see that enrollment at the VTC is now very competitive with more and more parents starting to recognize the value of vocational training.

Where can youth seek career advice?

At the HKTDC’s Education & Career Expo we try to include a full range of professional, vocational and emerging professions as well as some traditional sectors such as construction. We want young people to know that even traditional fields now embrace new technology and we have simulators that they can try out at the expos.

Will the gig economy expand in Hong Kong?

This phenomenon is growing and we also help startups recruit talented people. We look at this together with mentorship, manufacturing link-ups and media exposure.

More and more people want to be part of something new and exciting, though some parents may still consider joining a big corporation a safer bet than a startup.

The emphasis is on internationality and the goal is to stimulate interest in business and entrepreneurship. Events like those below are planned to ensure that youth are both futureready and well-equipped. ● Trade Ambassador Programme nurtures leadership and entrepreneurial skills in local tertiary students tap.hktdc.com/Trade-Ambassador-Programme.html ● Start-up Express offers mentoring and international marketing and networking opportunities hktdc.com/start-up-express ● HK Startup Society provides local startups with online and offline networking opportunities and information hkstartupsociety.hktdc.com/en/node/1

Should those with entrepreneurial spirit focus first on the local market?

● Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Spring Edition) showcases leading-edge technology with startupthemed events and zone. 13-16 April 2019 event.hktdc.com/fair/hkelectronicsfairse-en/HKTDCHong-Kong-Electronics-Fair-Spring-Edition/

Young entrepreneurs need to think big and think global because the whole point of trade today is its global nature and a key to Hong Kong’s continued success is being a well-connected international city.

● Entrepreneur Day offers opportunities and support for new entrepreneurs and startups in Hong Kong.

16-17 May 2019 m.hktdc.com/fair/eday-en/HKTDC-Entrepreneur-Day.html

What is the most important message you would like to send to readers?

Going forward, we need to prepare young people to represent Hong Kong in this globalized world. You can’t turn back the wheel and if you are in business you can’t just think about a market of seven million in Hong Kong. You need to think on a much bigger scale. Hong Kong is successful precisely because we are international. We have to stay that way.

ll

要培養前瞻視野與能力，包括富好奇心、靈活多變及多才多 藝，以應付改變。

ll

電腦科技、溝通技巧、國際視野亦同樣重要。

ll

成功亦包括離開安舒區，並勇於在全球一體化中開拓新領域。

● SmartBiz Expo provides enterprises, especially SMEs and startups, with marketing opportunities and ways to explore business transformation. 4-6 December 2019 m.hktdc.com/fair/smartbizexpo-en/HKTDC-SmartBizExpo.html# ● Education & Careers Expo provides enterprises, especially SMEs and startups, with marketing opportunities and ways to explore business transformation. 6-9 February 2020 m.hktdc.com/fair/hkeducationexpo-en/HKTDCEducation-and-Careers-Expo.html

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Insight March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

st

Teaching 21 century learners

by Jo Traunter

● Young children are supported by kindergarten teachers at a crucial stage. ● By becoming independent learners with transferable skills when they are students, they can introduce fresh ideas into the classroom. ● Such teachers encourage creativity and problemsolving, people skills and flexibility.

One of the world’s most important professions is that of an educator. Good early childhood teachers nurture citizens for a brave new future world so student teachers on our programme are encouraged to become autonomous learners. They acquire and strengthen allimportant transferable skills which will establish them as creative, critical, analytical graduates. This also transforms their understanding of how children learn and grow and how they as teachers can support them.

The programme uses an online platform which appeals to digital natives. It gives access to all learning resources used in the modules, offering a means of contributing to discussions and communicating with fellow students and tutors as well as a channel for submitting and retrieving their work. Hong Kong enjoys many different cultures and with that diversity comes different ways of being and knowing, so students are acknowledged as global citizens and introduced to international approaches to early childhood education and care, encouraging them to embrace new ideas and the latest research.

Assessments are designed to encourage creativity and problem-solving and include a cooperatively produced film. The module doesn’t assess ability to repeat and regurgitate information but rather the ability to work as part of a team, to express ideas and demonstrate

understanding in innovative ways. This requires skill in negotiation and communication as well as flexibility.

These soft skills, although difficult to define and measure, are as important as hard skills for successful teachers, especially those destined to become school principals or managers. However, effective interaction with parents and other teachers as well as children requires a skill set that our education system does not always prioritize.

When our students seek employment these qualities will set them apart as effective leaders who are confident to delegate and offer constructive criticism to team members.

At the centre of this cutting-edge approach are Hong Kong children and families. This new breed of kindergarten teacher will be a catalyst for innovative ways of working with them. They will spark enthusiasm and creativity, bringing fresh ideas that make learning clearer, brighter and more enjoyable while the learners grow into a generation of adults who will immediately recall their teachers’ names because of their long-lasting, far-reaching impact. ll

幼兒教育是孩童學習的重要階段，教師的啟蒙十分關鍵。

ll

當幼兒能具備獨立學習的能力，教師便可在課堂引進新的意 念和知識。

ll

教師從而可鼓勵學生發揮創意、培養解難能力、發展人際關 係，以及建立適應力。

Dr Joanne Traunter is Head of Childhood, Education and Youth Studies at the University of Hull which runs partnerships in Hong Kong. They include the B.Ed. (Hons) Education and Early Years which enables students to move from a higher diploma to full graduate honours in 12 months while preparing them as confident, competent and reflective kindergarten teachers. Her research specialism focuses on the professional identity and training of early childhood professionals.

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Literacy for future finance ● The skills needed to handle personal financial matters are changing as they become increasingly digital and mobile. ● Successful careers in the finance sector are also evolving as transformations in the industry are passed on. ● In such an environment, financial literacy is not only essential but also a moving target.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD has defined financial literacy as “a combination of awareness, knowledge, skill, attitude and behaviour necessary to make sound financial decisions and ultimately achieve individual financial wellbeing.” In answer to perceived needs, the Hong Kong Council of Social Services released a report in 20151 which called for a coordinated platform that could enhance cross-sectoral collaboration in this area.

The outcome was the establishment of the Investor and Financial Educational Council,2 formerly the Investor Education Centre (IEC), which has been tasked by the government to take the lead. It is supported by the Education Bureau in its work to increase awareness of the benefits of financial education and has advisory groups for school children, tertiary students, working adults and retired people. In parallel, NGOs such as HKFYG are offering financial literacy programmes to suit all age groups. (See pages 28-29.)

Meanwhile, continuing technological innovation is transforming financial services and both cryptocurrencies and blockchain are causing tensions.3 Although some aspects of fintech like these have not yet gained full public acceptance, mobile and cashless transactions are already very much part of today’s financial system.

Mainland China is a world leader in this respect.4

The director of financial services for one of Africa’s first mobile money-transfer services, Sitoyo Lopokoiyit, asks if banking could even be led by a robot CEO since key technologies, smartphones, machine learning, AI, big data, robotics and chatbots, already exist.5 Julien Courbe, another expert in financial services, goes further. He asks, “Can you envision branches and operation centres staffed by sophisticated robots instead of human tellers? Or picture everyone from high net worth investors to high school teachers taking financial advice from artificially intelligent apps – and then investing across asset classes, currencies and geographies on a real-time basis? We can.

This is not fantasy; it is where things are headed.”6 Going on to elaborate his vision of future finance, Courbe invites us to use imagination. “Let’s say you are a bank executive. Imagine that you are competing against a truly global, multi-service, low-cost, digital bank: customers accessing their accounts through their mobile phones, paying with a tap on their wearables, sweeping savings to an exchange-traded fund portfolio designed by an AI (artificial intelligence) engine based on their savings goals and risk appetite profile and offering no-fee, cross-border payments ... in the next few years, it is a very real possibility.”

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Insight March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Imagine…bank branches staffed by sophisticated robots … everyone from high-net-worth investors to high school teachers taking financial advice from artificially intelligent apps. This is not fantasy; it is where things are headed 9

Cloud-based computing with software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications is already used by many financial institutions and is poised to become the new normal. Future consumers of banking services will look outside what we call banks today as technologies such as digital wallets increase efficiency. However, there will also be exponential growth in access to data about consumers and threats to cybersecurity will grow with concerns about data privacy.

While some basic skills in technology are already necessary for personal banking, along with knowledge of financial planning, insurance, risk, debt, saving and investment, to work in the world of finance now requires a much greater breadth of knowledge than in the past. Furthermore, while employers expect candidates to be well-versed and experienced in financial software, they are also looking for skills beyond finance and economics degrees. In a survey of chief financial officers in the US, over half spoke about the need for soft skills such as collaboration and lateral thinking and “diversity of thought.”7 According to Philippe Schneider, co-author of The Future of Skills: Employment in 2030,8 a report produced

by Nesta, an international foundation based in the UK that promotes innovation, those with skills in science,

philosophy, sociology and anthropology could have the greatest impact on demand for finance professionals by 2030. Schneider goes further, claiming that these other “non-finance” subjects would be a distinct asset in an environment that is increasingly globalized and complex.

“Unlike more technical skills, they are less likely to become obsolete and can adapt to new opportunities. For example, philosophy gives students a rigorous grounding in critical thinking and the ability to deal with ambiguity; sociology and anthropology, meanwhile, can provide students a macro perspective as well as deepen cultural awareness.”

To cope with such challenges, employers will seek candidates outside the industry, at think-tanks, technology firms and other non-traditional sources. Re-branded hiring strategies will emphasize opportunities for work with innovative technology and offer flexible workforce alternatives. Changing demographics are reshaping attitudes and this has important implications for financial institutions as they look to attract and retain a new generation of young, talented people, a generation that has grown up in an era of rapid change within which both consumers and workers in finance recognize the need for adaptability and re-skilling to keep pace.

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由於數碼化及流動設備不斷更新，管理個人財務的能力及技巧亦呈現多變。

ll

金融財務業界賴以成功的因素，亦會持斷出現變化；因此必須與時並進。

ll

財務技能對個人而言，不僅屬必須掌握之列，其要求也是瞬間變化和需要更新的。

Read more 1. hkcss.org.hk/pra/research_report/HongKong_Financial_Education_Landscape_Research_Final_Report.pdf 2. ifec.org.hk/en/fls/about-fls/about-fls.html 3. medium.com/cc-connecting-crypto-with-banking/future-of-finance-the-synthesis-of-traditional-banking-and-crypto-36aeefd42fa6 4. scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/2110118/going-cash-free-why-china-light-years-ahead 5. gfmag.com/magazine/june-2018/bank-future 6. pwc.com/gx/en/financial-services/assets/pdf/technology2020-and-beyond.pdf 7. fm-magazine.com/issues/2018/apr/skills-you-will-need-in-the-future.html 8. media.nesta.org.uk/documents/the_future_of_skills_employment_in_2030_0.pdf 9. pwc.com/gx/en/financial-services/assets/pdf/technology2020-and-beyond.pdf

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● Automation and AI are making exponential advances and some jobs are already obsolete. ● Work now done by well-trained professionals may also change or disappear. ● Some professions are less at risk because they involve greater complexity or human interaction.

New technology always renders some forms of labour obsolete. Will automation, artificial intelligence (AI) and robots not only prove cheaper than human employees but also do many of the new jobs of the future? Experts disagree but some commentators believe that as many as 50% of today’s jobs will be taken over by AI and automation within the next 15 years. The need for some skills, such as technological as well as social and emotional, will rise. The demand for other skills, including physical and manual, will fall. These changes will require workers everywhere to change or strengthen their existing skill sets.

What are the weaknesses of AI and robots? Yesterday’s robots were the equivalent of blue-collar workers whereas new ones are and will increasingly become “whitecollar robots.” However, to date, progress in artificial general intelligence (AGI) − the intelligence required by a machine to successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can − is lacking. When researchers were asked to guess by which year there will be at least a 50% chance of AGI being built, two went on the record with answers. Ray Kurzweil, a futurist and director of engineering at Google, suggested the year 2029. Rodney Brooks, roboticist and co-founder of iRobot, went for 2200. The average? 2099 … 80 years from now.

Job risk continuum These are some examples of jobs from the high to the low risk ends of the spectrum of risk for automation.

High risk end of spectrum • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Bank teller Basic translator Cashier Cook Clerk Manicurist/pedicurist Paralegal Waiter/waitress Accountant/auditor Butcher Factory worker Retail assistant Crane operator Financial and sports journalist Insurance adjuster Personal tax adviser Radiologist Construction worker Proof-reader Security guard Plasterer

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Firefighter Flight attendant Detective Athlete Firefighter Air traffic controller Hairdresser Animal trainer Fitness trainer Childcare worker Graphic designer Writer/editor Floral designer Veterinarian Social worker Photographer Physiotherapist Nurse Clergy Makeup artist Teacher

Low risk end of spectrum

Read more •

mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/skill-shift-automation-and-the-future-of-the-workforce

•

pwc.co.uk/economic-services/assets/international-impact-of-automation-feb-2018.pdf

•

oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf

•

Richard Baldwin, R. The Globotics Upheaval: Globalization, robotics, and the future of work. Oxford University Press, 2019.

•

Bostrom, N. Superintelligence: Paths, dangers, strategies. Oxford University Press, 2014

•

Kai-fu Lee. AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley and the new world order. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018.

•

Tegmark, M. Life 3.0. Knopf, 2017

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Insight March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Cars, planes and quantum computers

by Jonathan Allcock

● Quantum computers are fundamentally different from those we use today. ● They might be used for improvements in pharmaceutical drugs, chemical reactions and solar cells, encryption, AI and machine learning. ● A fully functional quantum computer would be the most complex device ever created and it may be many years before its full potential is realized.

From smartphones and tablets to self-driving cars and automatic speech recognition, the rise of “classical computers” – the normal computers of our everyday experience – has been a great success story of the 20th century. You could be forgiven for thinking that any problem could be solved if we dedicated enough processing power to it. But there are limitations to the tasks that can be performed by even the most powerful classical computers. If we want to tackle some very hard problems, we need to consider a different model of computation and that is where quantum computers come into play.

Quantum computers are devices which make use of the rules of quantum mechanics to perform computation in a fundamentally different way from classical computers.

Quantum mechanics is the theory which governs the behaviour of basic particles of nature, like atoms and electrons. In a classical computer, information is encoded in bits as zeros and ones. In a quantum computer, information is stored in qubits (quantum bits) which can exist as zeros, ones, or as a “superposition” of both zero and one at the same time. By carefully preparing, manipulating and measuring the qubits it is possible to perform any given computation. While significant progress has been made in developing this technology, quantum computers are still in their infancy, and it may be years or decades before their full potential is realized.

There are three important points to note. First, there appear to be some useful tasks which quantum computers can easily perform in seconds, minutes or hours. All the classical computers in the world would take millions of years (or longer) to complete such tasks. For instance, quantum 16

computers can efficiently find the prime numbers which, when multiplied together, produce a given large composite1 number. This task is important as it is the basis of much of modern data encryption. By contrast, there is no known efficient classical method to do this, in spite of many years of research.

Second, quantum computers are not a magic bullet that can solve all hard problems quickly. Indeed, there are many practical computational tasks such as finding the most efficient transportation route between multiple cities that are not believed to be efficiently solvable by quantum computers.

Third, anything that can be performed on a classical computer can also be performed on a quantum computer.

This may not necessarily be a good idea though. An airplane can, in principle, do anything that a car can do, but for short distances it may be much more convenient to drive than to take a plane. We therefore expect quantum computers to supplement, not replace, classical computers.

Continuing this analogy, a quantum computer is like a vehicle which can take us to any destination that classical computation can take us to but it can take us to other destinations as well. We could not get to those classically.

Identifying new and interesting destinations – corresponding to computational problems of practical interest – is the focus of intense research.

Although much work remains to be done, there are promising signs that quantum computers may help us produce more effective pharmaceutical drugs, more efficient

chemical reactions, better solar cells and a whole host of other chemical and material design-related improvements.

There is also active research in understanding how quantum computers can be applied to AI and machine learning, and how they can be used to produce better solutions to problems in optimizing factory processes and transportation.

Perhaps surprisingly, there are many different ways in which one can build a quantum computer. Currently, the most popular method – the one being pursued by Google, IBM and a number of other groups – is to cool electrical circuits down to extremely low temperatures (colder than outer space) where they exhibit quantum behaviour. Such “superconducting qubits” are then controlled and measured by sending microwave pulses into the circuit. But other groups around the world are using different technologies to try to build their quantum computers, including systems of trapped ions, semiconductors, photons and exotic quantum states of matter called topological systems.

Experimentalists face a difficult challenge balancing multiple design requirements and it remains to be seen which of the current technologies will ultimately prove the most successful. Perhaps new technologies will emerge in the future to form the basis of quantum computer design.

The difficulty in building these devices cannot be overstated. A fully functional quantum computer would be the most complex device ever created by mankind.

Scientists and engineers have been working hard on this problem for 20 years already and in spite of the two decades of continued improvements and breakthroughs, there is still a long way to go.

A large-scale, general purpose quantum computer might require a million qubits or more. Such a device is still many years away, perhaps 10-20 years at the earliest. The current state-of-the-art system is built by Google, which is currently testing a 72 qubit processor. This may not sound like a lot but it should be enough to demonstrate something known as quantum supremacy within the next year or two.

Quantum supremacy is the goal of finding any task – no matter if it is useful or not – that can be carried out by a real quantum computer, and that no classical supercomputer on earth can perform in a reasonable amount of time. Continuing with our analogy of cars, planes and destinations, quantum supremacy is the goal of landing in a new destination, unreachable by classical means

of transport, even if that destination may not particularly be worth visiting. But it will be an important milestone to achieve nonetheless.

The following five to ten years will be a period where we have access to quantum processors consisting of perhaps several hundred qubits and where the quality of the quantum operations on these qubits may still be far from ideal. Nonetheless there may already be some useful applications of such devices, and researchers are hard at work identifying uses. If they succeed, the age of quantum computing will finally have arrived.

Skills for quantum computing Experts recommend a background in physics, maths and computer science for careers in quantum computing including skills and knowledge of: ● Basic quantum mechanics ● Linear algebra ● Basic abstract algebra and group theory ● Basic probability and stochastic processes ● Fourier transforms ● Basic algorithms and analysis of algorithms

Future industry adopters ● Banking & financial services ● Healthcare & DNA mapping ● Media and technology ● Supply chain industry ● Cyber security and encryption

Job roles

● Quantum computer architects ● Quantum algorithm researchers ● Quantum software developers ll

量子電腦跟傳統電腦，基本上是兩種完全不同的概念。

ll

專家正研究如何將量子電腦應用在各行各業上，例如醫藥、 化工、太陽能，以至人工智能及機器學習等。

ll

全面應用的量子電腦是極其複雜的，相信要更長時間才能全 面發揮其潛力。

Note Where a composite number is a number which is the product of two or more prime numbers.

Jonathan Allcock is a physicist who was born and brought up in Hong Kong. He is currently working on quantum algorithms for Tencent in Hong Kong and Shenzhen.

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Insight March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

AI opportunities for a new era John Yeung

In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has become a hot topic again. People in all walks of life and academia have been engaged in discussions and research projects. Due to the nature of my work, I have had the opportunity to contact a large number of companies and understand their business needs. Now I would like to share information with readers about current trends and career development while hoping to help them prepare for future opportunities.

In the past, there have been three surges in the growth of AI. The first and second took place largely in academic research projects and various forms of experimentation.

However, in the past decade, as technology has matured, the speed of computing has grown dramatically and public cloud computing platforms have emerged, so the third surge took place in the development of AI.

18

AI technologies already meet many customers’ demands in various industries and with the matching development of business models, more companies are willing to devote resources to the application of AI. Some innovative projects have emerged and some new business models have been successful. These have increased people’s confidence and inspired further developments in the field.

Meanwhile, cloud computing platforms have launched a number of off-the-shelf AI services, such as image and video analysis as well as sound and text recognition, analysis and interpretation. These technologies enable enterprises to implement new ideas at a relatively low cost and risk.

● To apply AI technologies, companies need human resources to define their business problem clearly and accumulate useful data. ● Next they need people talented in cross-disciplinary skills including communication. ● Demand for human capital in AI is destined to grow and career prospects are excellent.

Nevertheless, companies need to meet four conditions for the successful application of AI-related technologies.

First they need to identify the problem they want to solve.

Defining the problem clearly and then developing a solution are the most critical elements in the adoption of AI. The second condition is the accumulation of useful data. This is needed for the purpose of analysis but its value rests on the allocation of human resources and adequate time to coordinate and carry out such analysis.

The third condition is talented people with cross-disciplinary skills. Charlie Munger, vicechairman of Berkshire Hathaway, a conglomerate managed by Warren Buffett, pointed out that the cultivation of such skills, including industryrelated knowledge, programming and mathematics, opens up horizons and increases opportunities.

The fourth condition relates to tools and services.

Access to public cloud computing platforms provides many tools and services which are ready for use. These tools reduce both development time and the resources required for building fundamental services. More time and resources can be spent on more valuable tasks like building machine learning models.

In my recent customer engagements, I have found that another essential condition must also be met if real business needs and problems are to be solved by AI. It is daily communication with clients. If all these conditions can be met, automation and AI can be designed not only to replace repetitive, human-based work but also to solve complex problems and help with decision-making.

The demand for human capital in the field of AI and the number of enterprises that employ it can only grow.

The industry outlook confirms that those who are talented, have cross-disciplinary skills and are interested in developing a career in the field of AI have a fine future to look forward to with excellent career prospects.

John Yeung is a member of the Hong Kong Computer Society Enterprise Architecture Specialist Group ll

在職場上應用人工智能技術，需要先倚賴優秀人才找出問題 所在，並分析有用數據。

ll

機構需要跨學科的人才，包括掌握溝通技巧與能力。

ll

善用人工智能的人才需求持續提升，其工作前景亦無可限量。

Skills for work with AI Fundamental requirements for entry-level positions in the field of AI are a tertiary qualification in mathematics including algebra, calculus, logic and algorithms, probability, and statistics and basic computer technology. Other skills and knowledge you need to become an AI specialist include: • Bayesian networking (including neural nets) • Computer science (gain coding experience with popular programming languages)

Job roles • Algorithm specialists.

• Big-data engineers/architects • Business intelligence developers • Data scientists • Machine learning researchers/engineers • Research scientists Read more

• Cognitive science theory

• springboard.com/blog/5-careers-in-artificial-intelligence/

• Engineering

• simplilearn.com/how-to-build-career-inai-and-machine-learning-article

• Physics • Robotics

• computersciencedegreehub.com/faq/ skills-job-artificial-intelligence/ 19

Youth speak March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Future technology: Greater Bay Area impressions Supercomputer advances When I watched “The Matrix” as a child I never expected to see a high-tech machine like the one I imagined in the movie, but on a recent HKFYG trip to mainland China there it was it in front of me: Tianhe-2, the supercomputer at Guangzhou University.

It was the most memorable moment of the trip.

more than 40 years ago, since 1983, when China’s first “Yinhe 1” supercomputer was developed by the National University of Defense Technology, China has become the country with the world's largest number of supercomputers. Three of them have at some stage been the world's fastest and Tianhe-2 is one of them.

Real supercomputers do not use their power to construct simulated worlds and manipulate human consciousness as they did in “The Matrix.” Instead, the research team at the National Supercomputer Center in Guangzhou use their giant machine to study the evolution of cosmic particles, simulate seismic disturbance, design drugs, conduct atmospheric modelling and predict climate change.

In future, supercomputers, in addition to greatly improving the efficiency of data transmission, will also analyze big data in real time to make mobile personal assistants like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant answer complex questions perfectly and instantly translate languages. The downside is that computing power will take jobs from lowskilled labour and accountants within a decade from now.

The enthusiastic tour guide told us that although the US developed the first Cray supercomputer

Ron Siu Cheuk-wai is a 4th year student at Hong Kong Baptist University doing a degree in cultural studies.

High-performance computing Tianhe-2 makes 33.9 quadrillion (petaflops) of calculations per second. It was superseded by China’s Sunway, at the National Supercomputing Center in Wuxi, followed by the AI Bridging Cloud in Japan. Last year, Summit was unveiled at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, in Tennessee. It fills a room the size of two tennis courts, needs 4,000 gallons of water a minute for its cooling system and can do 200 quadrillion calculations per second. It is said to be the first supercomputer designed to run AI applications such as machine learning and neural networks.

Next? Maybe 1,000 petaflops plus – an exascale supercomputer, working a trillion times faster than your personal laptop. Exascale computing projects are being implemented in China, the US, Japan and Europe, aiming to deliver in three to five years.

Read more

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by Ron Siu

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nextbigfuture.com/2018/10/most-powerful-supercomputerin-texas-by-2019-with-new-cooling-technology.html

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technologyreview.com/s/611077/the-worlds-most-powerful-supercomputer-is-tailor-made-for-the-ai-era/

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cacm.acm.org/magazines/2018/11/232217-will-supercomputers-be-super-data-and-super-ai-machines/fulltext

● 500 young people took the high-speed train to Guangzhou and Foshan with HKFYG to find out about technological advancements ● First-hand exposure led them to see opportunities for their own development. ● Excerpts from these six essays reveal strong impressions of AI, big data, mobile payment systems, robotics and supercomputing

Robots and automation Five million jobs will be lost by 2020 due to automation according to the World Economic Forum. It may seem as if machines are taking over the world but this is far from the truth. Although physical and repetitive work will become increasingly automated, machines lack the individuality and creative flair that make us human. As a result, they leave space for us to explore and experiment with innovative ideas.

In order to get a good job in the future, we must differentiate ourselves from machines and be inventive. Mental elasticity and improvisation will be essential. Robots may beat us at calculation and problem diagnosis but they cannot think outside the box and create original content. As technology advances, we will step into a completely unfamiliar world with problems that we have never experienced before. We will need to adapt to sudden change and be flexible in order to find unorthodox solutions.

by Gladys Wong By 2050, I imagine a world where there will be no need to visit physical stores. Everything will be ordered online or created at home with a 3D printer. There will be no need to cook. Smart kitchens will be able to whip up all kinds of dishes with ingredients that are delivered automatically based on programmed personal preferences.

However, the creative design industry, where I see my future, will combine human originality and machine efficiency. In order to create abstract compositions one must be able to feel and to imagine. Perhaps we will be designing new materials for 3D printers and exploring endless other possibilities. We should not fear change but embrace it and dream dauntlessly of the future ahead, working alongside the machines that serve us.

Gladys Wong Hei-yu is studying law at the University of Hong Kong

Fed by a robot?

China is now the world’s largest robot maker and in 2017 it bought 36% of all factory robots made worldwide. Given the ageing population, a shrinking workforce and growing need for senior care services, is it enough? Early signs for senior carer robots can be seen among China's own robot manufacturers. A robot named "P-Care", for example, keeps an eye on the whereabouts of its users, chats, sings, dances, can serve food and drinks and help seniors stand up and walk. It will soon be able to monitor blood pressure, body temperature and heart rate, but not even the smartest robots today can fully replace humans. As demographic change speeds up, service robots will become more important, enabling old people to live alone and stay mobile for longer, ease loneliness and mitigate the effects of dementia. These robots will also be fundamentally different from industrial ones.

For now, elderly people who cannot look after themselves need other people.

Read more •

xinhuanet.com/english/2018-08/18/c_137399483.htm

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axios.com/china-robot-superpower-7819d408-0355-4820-8c03-0b676f0ddd6b.html

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economist.com/international/2019/02/16/an-ageing-world-needs-more-resourceful-robots

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Youth speak March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Change and progress

by Eilliam Li After the high-speed rail tour in Guangzhou and Foshan with HKFYG, I contemplated the changes that have taken place since I set foot there ten years ago while thinking about the #10yearchallenge which then was social media’s latest fad. My memories are quaint, like going to an ancestral hall and watching masters of martial arts or seeing skilled potters at work.

Alipay, they make shopping more convenient, and can offer a little bit more peace of mind and security than entering a credit card number online.

As a rapidly developing country with a population of nearly 1.4 billion people, there are many other signs of progress. One example is the digital wallet.

Sometimes known as eWallets, like WeChat Pay and

by Can Pac Swire flic.kr/p/zDK8zh

Much has changed since then and Guangzhou and Foshan have modernized. Clean streets, newly paved walkways and revitalized districts such as Foshan’s Lingnan Tiandi, one the attractions of the high-speed rail tour, reveal mixeduse urban redevelopment and reminded me of Hong Kong. Foshan has preserved many traditional buildings.

Designed as a low-carbon development with minimal environmental impact, it is home to Cantonese opera, ceramics, martial arts and authentic Chinese cuisine.

Eilliam Li Yee-lam is a 3rd year student at the Chinese University of Hong Kong doing a degree in Chinese language and literature.

Cashless society For managing money online, eWallets are convenient and easy, especially for online shoppers. PayPal and Skrill have the best known apps for international transfers but when Alipay came out in 2004, its mobile payment system for China leapfrogged online payment systems elsewhere because most people in China didn’t then have credit or debit cards. WeChat Pay followed Alipay in 2011 and both are now in use in other countries. Union Pay, an older, semi-official system, is linked to every bank account in China but currently Alipay is the largest Chinese online payment system for both online and offline transactions. eWallets are so big in China today that young consumers rarely carry cash and even buskers display Alipay and WeChat Pay QR codes instead of laying a guitar case on the pavement for cash and coins.

22

Next-generation work

by Stephanie Ng Within the next ten years, I am convinced that you will need to have a certain degree of creativity and be able to communicate and collaborate well in order to find a good job. The recent high-speed rail trip to mainland China with HKFYG reinforced this idea.

By 2050, I expect there will be a new job called “AI administrator.” If current technological trends are continued, AI will be seen at all levels of society. Talented people will be needed to manage it. Teamwork and communication skills will be needed in many jobs, including those of editors for example, a job I hope to do myself in future.

During our trip, we also visited three technology parks where innovation was being used for environmental protection and greening. It made me rethink my spending habits and begin to reduce unnecessary consumption.

I learned that as science and technology grow, the relationship between human beings and technology will also grow, making thinking skills increasingly important.

Stephanie Ng Cheuk-lam is a 3rd year student at Hong Kong Baptist University doing a degree in translation.

Language and AI

Renewing the power of speech

The brain can create an infinite number of combinations out of a finite lists of words − at present, too many for accurate machine simulations of human language. Children learn up to 10 or 15 new word meanings a day but most words aren’t directly taught.

They are assimilated through experience and the context in which words are used. There is no equivalent process for AI yet.

Earlier this year, neuroengineers in the US created a system that translates thought into intelligible, recognizable speech. This breakthrough, which uses speech synthesizers and AI, could lead to new ways for computers to communicate directly with the brain. The researchers used a vocoder, a computer algorithm that can synthesize speech after being trained on recordings of people talking. It is a development of the technology used by Amazon’s Echo and Apple’s Siri to give verbal responses to questions and eventually it is hoped it will help those who have lost the power of speech to talk again.

Also, languages evolve so quickly, especially languages like Cantonese. Dictionaries can’t keep up. That’s not to say software has no place in language learning and editing.

Editing software can check grammar and spelling, summarize documents, eliminate inconsistencies and find duplications.

For now, however, AI software for complex editing does not exist, partly because editing is about more than correcting text. It’s about understanding and manipulating linguistic tone and nuance. Software works in black and white.

Read more

sciencemag.org/news/2019/01/artificialintelligence-turns-brain-activity-speechend

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Youth speak March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Surveillance and big data

by Michael Fung I could really feel the high speed of technological advance in mainland China when I went on the HKFYG Youth High Speed Rail trip this year. Two technology companies in particular, Tuputech and EasyGo made a great impression on me.

Tuputech is a software company that provides image recognition services with state-of-the-art AI algorithms. It applies deep learning technology and claims to have 99.5% accuracy in its services to shopping malls, housing estates and game companies. It detects, among other things, the movement of shop customers with surveillance cameras and sensors. It can also detect any violent or threatening activity. The primary purpose is to help its clients understand their customers’ behaviour and provide customized marketing strategies that in turn boost sales.

My second example is EasyGo, a hardware company which also focuses on the retail industry. It creates unmanned convenience stores. Like Tuputech it uses AI and image recognition technology. To enter the stores, consumers scan a QR code and then use a messaging app, WeChat, to make purchases.

There are no staff in EasyGo shops and all transactions are done automatically via the cloud. All the shops operate 24/7 and their location is very flexible. It is a business model that is compatible to Hong Kong where rents and salaries are the main costs for the retail industry. EasyGo is comparatively low-cost with a small footprint and without on-site manpower.

Both examples show the effects of automation and technology. With Tuputech, shops can understand more about user behaviour. With EasyGo, they can cut costs. However, this coin has two sides. Automation and AI technology are replacing humans at work. Jobs will disappear as will traditional, local convenience stores. Furthermore, each of us who enters the shops will be recorded and the data may be used, or misused, in many ways, including posing a threat to privacy and safety. This is the kind of disruptive technological advance that will affect life in Hong Kong in future.

Michael Fung is the co-founder of iSEE Mobile Apps

Security, privacy and education AI used for facial recognition is expanding in China quickly, especially with the arrival of 5G, but so is AI for education. Adaptive learning is one application. Squirrel AI Learning is an example. Its call-centre employees phone parents who are potential clients by scooping their details from WeChat and other databases. Its adaptive learning algorithms mean that Squirrel can then survey students and pinpoint exact weaknesses before executing targeted lesson reviews online, saving time, teacher costs and overheads. Another company using AI in education is Beijing-based VIPKid, an English-language education platform that connects students in China to personalized teachers across the globe via the internet. A third startup, Yuahfudao backed by Tencent, has developed a free app that uses AI to check maths homework. Sounds simple, doesn’t it.

Read more • outerplaces.com/science/item/18985-artificial-intelligence-surveillance • fortune.com/2018/11/29/whos-teaching-who-ai-enabled-learning-is-booming-in-china/ • scmp.com/tech/start-ups/article/2185452/tencent-backed-ai-firm-aims-free-parents-and-teachers-checking 24

Opportunities in a 3D GBA

by Chinny Lee I would rate the likelihood of my looking for a job in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) within the next five years at nine on a scale of 0-10. On a recent visit, my eyes were opened to the opportunities close to home and as a through-and-through science fan, I saw that the gates to scientific exploration not only lay to the west, where innovation and creativity have long been part of popular vocabulary, but nearby as well. Hitherto, despite the presence of tech giants like Tencent, Huawei and Alibaba, I had never been able to connect China’s uptight culture with the idea of experimentation, exploration and discovery. That has changed.

The visit to Guangzhou and Foshan with HKFYG revealed how these two cities have been a hub for innovation for some time and we had the chance to sneak a glimpse of all the new quirky things happening there. These included supermarket robots, negative carbon emission incinerators, cultural sites integrated with AR and all sorts of other innovative designs. In effect, the visit made the GBA 3-dimensional. Instead of seeing only the pursuit of economic growth, I saw innovations that could lead to a better quality of life and realized I would

feel very proud and lucky to be part of this effort.

The most memorable experience was being introduced to a supercomputer. I went wild with excitement. As a chemical engineering student, I knew that computational chemistry had emerged as a bright star in recent years. Now I see that supercomputers like this unlock a universe of possibilities, allowing us to solve more complex problems than ever before. Gone are the days of spending huge amounts of time and money in the lab testing chemicals that may or may not yield the desired effect. With a simple click of a button, it is possible to simulate hundreds of reactions in the time it would take a lab tech to do a single experiment.

That said, where working in the GBA is concerned I am still 10% uncertain. A shroud of mystery still hangs over inner China. Even with no proof and no first-hand accounts, I still have an irrational fear. When will China shake loose that veil of secrecy so that I stop hearing whispers in the wind?

Chinny Lee is studying at Lee Po Chun United World College of Hong Kong.

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Programmes and competitions March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

HSBC Future Skills Development Project The new two-year HSBC Future Skills Development Project was launched in early 2019 and is being run

by HKFYG’s Creative Education and Youth Employment units and the HKFYG Leadership Institute. The project is based on a three-pillar model for enhancing employability in youth. It aims to nurture young people’s skills for future employment, enhance financial literacy and build awareness of innovation and technology. The programmes it offers are suitable for primary level upwards and are indicated below. They include diverse learning experiences with e-learning, experiential learning, workshops and competitions.

Learning experiences Primary level

Financial Capability, the first “pillar,” targets primary and secondary students as well as working youth. Its programme, called “$avvy Planner,” is run by the Youth Employment unit and involves enhanced financial management skills and knowledge of financial planning.

Secondary level

Future Skills for Employment, the second “pillar,” includes programmes at HKFYG’s Leadership Institute run for secondary and tertiary students as well as working youth. They are intended to raise awareness of team dynamics and improve both intercultural communication and critical thinking.

• School sessions about careers • Problem identification and problem-solving • Coding project showcase with MOOC & workshops • Financial literacy workshops • Competitions • Future skills careers talks • • • • • •

Public speaking workshops and competitions Hong Kong 200 Leadership Project Visits to businesses to explore career options Workshops led by industry specialists Financial literacy workshops Future skills careers talks

Tertiary level • • • • •

HSBC Financial Dialogue Series Placement programme Technical upskilling workshops and MOOCs Capstone project to integrate and apply skills Financial literacy workshops

Working youth

• Discovering opportunities: Pearl River Delta and Belt & Road “High level Exchanges” • Financial literacy workshops

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A three-pillared concept

Innovation and Technology, the third “pillar,” has programmes relating to occupational skill sets appropriate for future work. They include digital competencies and social skills to tackle the challenges of automation with workshops, schoolbased sessions, online courses, company visits, placements and a team competition. The unit in charge of organizing most of these is Creative Education. The Youth Employment unit also organizes primary and secondary school talks on careers in engineering and innovative technology.

The project is based on a “three-pillar model:” ● Future skills for employment enhance team dynamics, intercultural communication and critical thinking ● Financial capability programmes that cultivate concepts, skills and knowledge of financial planning and management ● Innovation and technology awareness through development of skill sets for coping with challenges of automation via competencies in problem-solving, creative thinking and digital literacy Future employability A recent international report by the Economist Intelligence Unit assessed 35 education systems for their ability to prepare 15-24 year-olds for future employability. Hong Kong ranked 14th, behind Singapore, Japan and South Korea.

The report pinpoints Hong Kong’s lack of a comprehensive policy for equipping youth with skills for future jobs.

Best Good Moderate Needs Improvement Not included in index Score range (out of 100):

Best: 75.9-88.9 Good: 5.3-75.8 Moderate: 45.5-65.2 Needs improvement: 23.5-45.4

Read more Worldwide Educating for the Future Index educatingforthefuture.economist.com

More details about the HSBC Future Skills Development Project hkfyg.org.hk/futureskills Enquiries tel (852) 2169 0255 email futureskills@hkfyg.org.hk 27

Programmes and competitions March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Coding a creative competition ● Creative Coding Competition for primary and secondary school teams ● Requires analytical and creative thinking ● Tests design skills and ability to code and solve problems

Computer programming, also known as coding, is the process of creating software and software is a set of instructions for a computer to perform. These instructions are usually called source code. It’s technical.

It’s analytical. Yet at the same time it’s creative.

Entry categories

HKFYG began organizing the Creative Coder Competition (CCC) for all local primary and secondary schools in the 2016/17 school year. It promotes STEM education and stimulates young people’s interest in coding while fitting into the broader framework of encouraging young people to learn skills that will be useful in future. This year, the rounds of the competition will be held in May.

• Competition day 4 May 2019 • At Hong Kong Science Park

CCC theme for 2019 Moving Coder Each year, the theme of the competition changes and this year it is Moving Coder. Participants learn about coding skills first so that they understand the operating principles behind different components better. Then, teams enter the competition and make use of their creative thinking and problem-solving skills. All entries must relate to the theme and there is a time limit within which teams must finish.

Installation Design & Mission Encounter The competition is in two parts. First, teams design and build an installation model with Arduino, an opensource platform used for building electronics projects, and micro:bit, an open-source hardware system used in computer education in the UK. The second part, called Mission Encounter tests actual ability to code and solve problems.

• Division A S4-S6 aged 19 or below • Division B P4-P6 or S1-S3 aged 17 or below • Division C P4-P6 aged 13 or below

Dates

10 skills for coding • Problem-solving • Logical thinking • Fluency in programming languages • Attention to detail • Innovative design • Abstract thinking • Creativity • Patience • Memory • Scientific method Read more computersciencezone. org/10-skills-necessary-coding/ courses.telegraph.co.uk/articledetails/216/learn-computer-coding/ news.codecademy.com/what-is-computer-programming/

More details ccst.hkfyg.org.hk Enquiries Edward Mak 2561 6149

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STEM the Hong Kong Student Science Project Competition ● Team competition for secondary schools ● Focuses on STEM and real-life problem-solving ● Tests innovative applications of technology and scientific principles

Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) is a game-changer. It can engage young people, keeping them curious, creative and competitive.

Awareness of STEM has been growing since the Education Bureau’s promotion in the curriculum in 2015. Many STEM-related skills are taught and learnt outside the classroom, providing inspiration for scientific and technical ingenuity in the world around us.

STEM-related competitions such as this demand a focus on real-life problem-solving. The skills they require have direct significance for future career paths. The annual competition is all about developing creativity and a STEM-oriented, scientific mindset. Its goals are to promote the innovative application of knowledge and skills through a better understanding of science and technology. Team spirit, good research, presentation and communication skills are all rewarded.

2019 Theme: From Theory to Practice Develop Science Potential Sub-theme: Energy, Engineering and Environment Projects

Dates

• Inventions New and original creations

Initial Judging cum Project Exhibition 23 March 2019

• Investigations Reports supported by

Both at Hong Kong Science Park

using scientific knowledge and imagination, workable and applicable to real life experimental data and results

Extras

• Scientific wallcharts Posters related to energy, engineering or the environment

Participants in junior and senior divisions can join sharing sessions with advisors and meet university academics. Winning teams may be selected to join overseas science and technology exchange programmes or participate in overseas science competitions.

Entry categories Junior Division S1 to S3 aged 17 or below Senior Division S4 to S6 aged 19 or below Scientific Wallcharts Division S1 to S6 aged 19 or below International Division Equivalent of S1 to

S6 aged 19 or below

Judging criteria Originality, definition and analysis of problem, methodology, realization of design and conclusion Enquiries Suki Wong tel 2561 6149

Final Judging cum Award Presentation Ceremony 27 April 2019

Partners The Hong Kong Student Science Project Competition is jointly organized by HKFYG, the Education Bureau and the Hong Kong Science Museum. It is supported by the Innovation and Technology Commission and Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation.

Web hksspc.hkfyg.org.hk/ 29

Programmes and competitions March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Innovation & Technology Scholarship ● For talented young people with a STEM background ● Overseas and mainland China attachment programmes included ● With a service project to promote innovation and technology among the public

Many of today’s environmental and social problems could be solved by innovative technology within a few decades. AI, the Internet of Things and robotics will all be involved. Already they affect not only individual businesses but whole segments of society, such as government, mass communications and transport, medicine, science and households.

The Innovation and Technology Scholarship, launched in 2011, gives recognition to outstanding science undergraduates at local universities who can provide talent for the local innovation and technology industry in future. Such students are nominated by university vice-chancellors and presidents and 25 are selected each year. All are passionate about science, engineering and technology. Their skills will bring about remarkable transformations in our own lifetimes.

Programme

Future pathways Past awardees have devoted themselves to careers in science, technology, engineering, computers, as well as social and health-related disciplines, with nearly a quarter continuing post-graduate studies in InnoTech-related programmes in local and overseas universities, including the University of Oxford and King’s College London. About 60% of them are already working in the InnoTech-related fields.

Some examples Lai Hei-ming pictured above, went on to Imperial College London after combining neuroscience and chemical engineering at Stanford University to develop a new lab technique that aims to cure dementia.

Jonathan Ching King-him dreams of being a technological entrepreneur and put his aspirations into action by joining Israeli students and gaining insight from the local startup community before going to the University of California.

• Scholarships of up to HK$150,000

Ng Un-I is doing research at Cambridge University into metal catalysis for organic reactions in order to contribute to cancer treatment.

• Overseas/mainland China attachments

Steven Lau Ping-shing, surveying student who will join the PropTech Conference in Europe in May and wishes to explore the idea of combining colour coding of buildings and AI for building inspections.

• Training to broaden industrial and international perspective

• Research and other learning programme attendance to widen global exposure

• Mentorships with outstanding figures in relevant fields • Mentors provide continued advice and guidance during and after the scholarship • Award ceremony 1 April 2019 Grand Hall, Central Government Offices

Partners

• Community service to promote innovation and technology to the public in HK, especially students and youth

Enquiries Judith Lee and Benny Cheng tel 2561 6149 Web innotechscholarship.hkfyg.org.hk/en/ innovation-and-technology-scholarship/

• Local internships* of 4-12 weeks to gain work experience and/or enhance market knowledge

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pp Scholarship winners with students: Lai Hei-ming (left photo) and Chiu Sung-hong (right photo)

*[optional, as available]

Jointly sponsored and supported by the Innovation and Technology Commission and HSBC.

Project Setup ● Aims to give youth skills for employment with management training plus job experience ● Targets tertiary students and sub-degree graduates ● Features app design, digital marketing and data analytics

Most startups and SMEs now rely on digital marketing and data analytics so an innovative management training programme is being run by the HKFYG Youth Employment unit to meet training needs. It offers an opportunity to 150 higher diploma holders or associate degree graduates aged under 24 to acquire high value future-oriented skills and gain work experience.

Project Setup is a 2-year pre-employment training programme. It includes management traineeships with JPMorgan Chase Foundation followed by 6-month full-time placements with startups.

Workshop features

• App design mobile app foundations, tool selection, content creation, layout design, mobile native controls • New generation computer apps With Fevawork* and HKIECA** (Hong Kong Internet & eCommerce Association)

• Data analytics Web crawling with MS Excel and Python in order to discover useful information and support decision-making • Photo re-touching • Video editing

• Digital marketing Using Facebook and WeChat as tools for e-commerce data collection, analytics and promotion on social media.

Includes the concept of digital payment, search engine optimisation (SEO) and marketing Enquiries Rennie Wong Man-shun Web yen.hkfyg.org.hk/projectsetup/ Supported by JPMorgan Chase Foundation and Labour Department * fevaworks.com/portal/site/index.asp ** hkieca.org.hk/aboutus pp Corporate teamwork training

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Perspectives March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Multiliteracy

another #10yearchallenge

by Amy Law

A decade ago, if you took a photo of a desk, newspapers, books and magazines dominated. Take a snapshot today and you will see that has all changed. With the rise of digital technology, much reading material has gained greater impact as a result of the added visuals on device screens and everyone who has smartphone can be a creator too. Photography and video could be the first step for learners to become makers in a multimedia, multiliterate age. A #10yearchallenge to literacy is taking place.

New technology, the internet and social media have made the world increasingly digital and virtual.

Instead of literacy in the traditional sense we now need “multiliteracies.” It involves what we hear, say, read and see plus the ability to identify, interpret, create and communicate content in various forms across various media, on giant screens, laptops to mobile devices. 1

According to Howard Gardner of Harvard University, traditional intelligence testing is too limited so he proposed the idea of “multiple intelligences” to account for the diversity of human potential in all age groups.2 In traditional classrooms, for example, certain types of intelligence such as “verbal-linguistic” and “logicalmathematical” may be an advantage. On the other hand, students who are physically active and have “bodilykinesthetic” intelligence might be labelled as trouble makers.

The moment by Amy, learning outside the classroom with the family, courtesy of Little Stories

Digital literacy has been identified as one of the essential 21st century skills and one of the ways it can be developed in parallel with multiliteracy is on social media such as TikTok (Douyin), Instagram and Facebook plus video-ondemand platforms such as YouTube and TED. With these, you can create content as well as receive information.

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Multiple modes involved in multiliteracy include visual, audio and spatial elements. These can motivate students to learn, creating a more inclusive classroom for students with multiple intelligences and can help identify learning goals and build intrinsic motivation to learn. Learner independence can develop gradually so that pupils actively seek what interests them and develop multiple intelligences within the classroom and beyond it.

Read more 1. Lo, M et al. Promoting New Literacies in Hong Kong Schools. Quality Education Fund. qcrc.qef.org.hk/Publish/ project_information/201206/20120620120647_8210bMjA wN.pdf (2011) 2. Gardner, H. Frames of mind. New York: Basic Books, 1983.

The moment by Amy with Valerie & Braydon Law, courtesy of Little Stories

● The concept of multiliteracy assumes that we make sense of information by various means apart from reading and writing.

What are the roles of teachers and parents in this multiliterate, digital learning process? They can be facilitators and active participants who help build an enjoyable, engaging, shared experience. Rather than dictating direction, content is chosen according to children’s interests and needs. Teachers can also facilitate the learning process by planning individualized teaching materials.

● Picking up linguistic, visual, audio, spatial and gestural cues for meaning and understanding are part of multiliteracy.

Lev Vygotsky’s social development theory explains how young people learn better through interaction with peers and/or adults. When young people participate in learning by watching an online TED talk together on a sofa with siblings or parents at home or by going into classrooms with peers and teachers, levels of interaction and engagement are raised.

Those who are multiliterate will grow and engage more effectively with the future world. Photography, video and other modes of learning will help everyone dig deeper into the sea of learning and develop a critical voice when analyzing sources of information, equipping their minds with the skills needed for change in future.

For example, as a primary school teacher, I once wanted to explain about feelings in an English lesson so I showed an extract of “Inside Out”, 'a well-known animated movie with cartoon characters representing emotions.

Even the unsettled kids in class watched intently, kept still and wanted to know what would happen next.

Amy Law graduated from the University of Hong Kong in Education and Journalism.

She became a fine art portrait photographer and freelance educator and writer after working as a teacher.

Web little-stories.co

Storytelling apps Digital technology encourages a broader definition of literacy and digital storytelling is popular. Here are a few examples: Hooked presents stories as text message conversations and makes reading fiction like using social media so it’s engaging for teens.

Kuaidianyuedu ( 快点阅读 ), a Chinese version of Hooked, makes reading an immersive experience with WeChat or QQ. Powtoon creates cartoon-style animated digital videos, with text and music.

Toontastic works offline and users can save cartoons to their devices.

PlayTime Theater has customizable characters that can be combined to create stories which appeal to both boys and girls.

ScribblePress is designed for classroom and home use with musical, voice, drawing tools and movie-making.

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Perspectives March 2019　|　Youth Hong Kong

Building for the future The construction industry around the world has operated in much the same way for many years with heavy reliance on manual labour, mechanical technology and established operating and business models. Meanwhile other industries have experienced a digital revolution. Now, digital technologies are arriving on the construction site as well, changing the way in which infrastructure, real estate and other built assets are designed, constructed, operated and maintained. They include building information modelling (BIM), automated and robotic equipment and 3D-printing.

In Hong Kong, the building engineering industry is also catching up. It has thrived because of high demand for housing and various major infrastructure projects. Yet today it is facing various challenges including lack of skilled labour, poor safety records and increased complexity in both building design and project delivery processes. Undoubtedly, these problems could hinder sustainable development and might deter new blood from joining the industry.

by Jason Cheung

Modelling and scanning technology In the more complex building projects, BIM and other advanced technologies, such as drones and construction robotics, are playing an increasingly important role.

Taking BIM as an example, 4D simulations are available to project management professionals. Making use of the software, engineers and supervisors can visualize and coordinate structural, architectural and building projects more efficiently and identify high-risk activities at an early stage. They can also illustrate the construction process to frontline staff and workers, thus minimizing safety risks.

3D-scanning technology also provides information which can be incorporated into a 3D model. This is particularly important in situations where engineers need to consider the surrounding environment before carrying out work.

For instance, before installing segments of a footbridge, engineers need to study carefully the location of the surrounding trees to avoid any obstructions or damage.

What is BIM? Building information modelling (BIM) software is used by individuals, businesses and government agencies who plan, design, construct, operate and maintain physical infrastructure, such as water, refuse, electricity, gas, communication utilities, roads, railways, bridges, ports and tunnels.

Therefore, those who are interested in careers in this field should know about the innovations taking place and the training available for advanced engineering and technological solutions. These include the Construction Innovation and Technology Fund established by the government in the 2018-19 budget with up to HK$1 billion to support the adoption of new technologies in the industry. The fund also supports training in these technologies, so young people can equip themselves with the skill sets they need.

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● The construction industry is facing some challenges. ● Building information modelling (BIM), drones and construction robotics are playing an increasingly important role. ● A HK$1 billion government Construction Innovation and Technology Fund supports training for relevant skill sets.

Drone technology In recent years, drones have become increasingly popular in the building engineering industry. Apart from site monitoring, such devices offer a reliable, efficient means of surveying. The data obtained can be recorded and analyzed for engineers to cross-check against design drawings.

A drone equipped with a thermal camera can also automatically carry out a site safety inspection and identify problems immediately, thus reducing risks for all personnel, especially those required to carry out routine inspections. Engineers or foremen can also use drones to inspect completed work in relatively high or inaccessible spaces, facilitating data collection and reducing both costs and safety risks.

Construction robotics and the future workforce Faced with a declining workforce, the construction industry is now recognizing the solutions that can be

It can result in savings and be advantageous for sustainability and carbon footprint. International BIM standards were published in January 2019.

Proponents claim that BIM offers: • Improved visualization • Improved productivity due to easy retrieval of information • Increased coordination of construction documents

offered by robotics. Robots can replace manual labour in repetitive tasks in a controlled environment and can also be adopted to carry out high-risk tasks, such as working at heights. It may seem odd that the construction industry utilizes so few robots, but there’s a good reason for this: construction tasks are notoriously difficult to automate and the construction worksite is the primary obstacle.

There are a few types of construction robots that may break into the construction market on a mass scale. One of these is a 3D-printing robot. This technology is used for buildings and is now being used for building bridges, with the first ever 3D printed steel bridge completed in the Netherlands in 2018. The first 3D-printed concrete bridge in China was unveiled in Shanghai in January 2019.

Adoption of all of these advanced technologies at scale and maximal use of data and digital modelling are strategies that are expected to enable change-management and adaptability.

These future scenarios also require talented people with substantially different skills from those possessed by today’s workforce and so training in such skills is essential.

Jason Cheung won the Innovation & Technology Scholarship award in 2013 when he was doing a B.Sc. Building Engineering and Management. He is now working for Hip Hing Construction Company.

• Increased speed of delivery • Reduced costs and reduced carbon footprint The Hong Kong Housing Authority started piloting BIM in 2006 and in 2014 integrated the use of BIM and GIS (Geographic Information System) for site planning. BIM models are now used with GIS data for the design of new housing estates with the goal of minimizing the visual impact of development to the environment. The HKSARG mandated the use of BIM for all government projects over HK$30M in January 2018.

Read more • hkdi.edu.hk/i.php?l=gb&s=4&p=796 • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Building_information_modeling • housingauthority.gov.hk/en/business-partnerships/ resources/building-information-modelling/ • weforum.org/agenda/2018/03/howconstruction-industry-can-build-its-future/ • robotics.org/blog-article.cfm/ConstructionRobots-Will-Change-the-Industry-Forever/93 35

Perspectives March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

Next generation workplace a contribution from AIESEC

In recent years, AIESEC (Association Internationale des Étudiants En Sciences Économiques et Commerciales: International Association of Students in Economics and Management) has served to represent young voices in Hong Kong, completing several surveys of their views.

The aim of the “Next Generation Study 2019”, published in February this year, was to understand what they value and prefer in the workplace, thereby fostering better understanding between young employees and employers.

“Millennials” and members of “Generation Z” find the workplace full of restrictions and want to work with a strong sense of purpose. However, in the eyes of some employers, they are lazy, impatient and hungry for instant gratification. From 2020 onwards, this group of people will make up nearly 60% of the workforce in Asia and many employers are worried about their work morale.

With their new set of perceptions and expectations of the workplace, how will they adapt? The “Next Generation Study” reports on its findings among over 640 local Hong Kong respondents aged 16-38. The data was sorted into three groups for analysis. The first group – “Generation Z”, aged 16-19, comprised 37% of respondents. We 36

called the second group “Young Millennials” aged 2024. They comprised 39% of respondents. The last group, the “Mature Millennials”, refers to respondents aged 25-38 who made up 24% of the total.

Where technology is concerned, “Generation Z” grew up in a digital world shaped by social media and smartphones.

They are more dependent on technology than any previous generation. Combined with the fact that STEM is now emphasized in Hong Kong’s education system, this means that “Generation Z” will have higher expectations than older people where technology and smart devices are concerned in their future workplaces, according to Justin Tang, President of AIESEC in Hong Kong.

Since technology will play a vital part in the development of businesses and industries it would be unwise of any employer to be left behind by the tide of technological advancement. However, while expanding knowledge and applications of tech, company management should not forget that it is not the solution to everything. Indeed, our study found out that only 44% of all survey respondents feel well-equipped for change due to technological advancement based on their formal education and/or workplace

● Younger generations in the workforce know the importance of technology. ● Nevertheless, on-the-job experience is their favoured form of training, according to a new survey by AIESEC. ● Expectations of the management cadre are higher and include authenticity and transparency. training. Therefore companies that offer training in digital technology while being early adopters of innovation would perhaps be more attractive to the next generation.

It does not replace human interaction or empathy.

While technology is valuable for promoting efficiency at work, the human element cannot be forgotten.

Surprisingly, despite technological advances, all the younger generations surveyed tend to work with the physical, “hard copy” format when it comes to developing professional and leadership skills. Learning through technology is their least favourite form of training and gaining on-the-job experience is their number one pick. We deduce, therefore, that technology is not as effective for communicating important yet abstract skills and knowledge for work.

Asked about their preferred leadership models, respondents were ranked six leadership styles defined by Daniel Goleman, a science journalist. As indicated in Figure 1, “Mature Millennials”, represented by the red line, ranked “democratic” and “visionary” leaders as their top preferences. However, as we move through the age groups, preferences shift slightly towards “coaching” and “affiliative” styles of leadership, as represented by the blue (“Young Millennials”) and yellow (“Generation Z”) lines.

Figure 1 Technology in the workplace On-the-job Learning

Mobile Learning

Figure 2 Preferred leadership styles

74% 80%

Visionary

16%

Coaching

12% 10%

Generation Z Young Millennials Mature Millennials

44%

Only 44% of all respondents feel well-equipped and prepared for changes due to technological advancement

AIESEC has been a global, independent, non-political and not-for-profit youth-run organization since 1948. With 86,000+ members in 125+ territories, its aim is to promote peace and the fulfillment of humankind’s potential.

Supported by education and business sectors worldwide, our members produce over 20,000 overseas internships and 24,000 leadership development opportunities annually. Some of our notable alumni include former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, former US president, Bill Clinton, and former president of Taiwan, Ma Ying-jeou.

AIESEC in Hong Kong joined hands with Wholistic Coachsulting Ltd to produce the “Next Generation Study” described in this article.

Web aiesec.hk

Democratic

83%

Commanding

Affiliative

Pacesetting For the younger generations, leaders need to be able to develop teams. The focus is no longer solely on charisma. “Commanding” and “pacesetting” leadership styles were equally unpopular across all three groups.

Firms should pay attention to such nuances to achieve the best outcome. Young people have a strong desire to take control of their work and not simply do as their seniors say. It is manifest that people possess various talents, no matter their age, and firms that recognize this will discover outstanding abilities of employees instead of creating a single pathway for them to follow.

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HKFYG December 2018 | Youth Hong Kong

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New!

Hydroponic farm at HKFYG H

ydroponics involves growing plants in nutrient water solutions. It offers greater control of environment and other advantages such as up to 90% more efficient use of water and no need for chemical weed or pest control. Hydroponic farming can also take place where weather and soil conditions are not always favourable for traditional food production.

Now, HKFYG is growing hydroponic vegetables and they are available at Café 21.

Promotion offer on now

Coming soon

● 10% discount at Café 21 for 2019

● Online ordering For your convenience

● For all HKFYG’s Café 21 customers

● Grow Your Own Take home your own hydroponic seedlings

How to benefit

● Fundamentals of hydroponics Including STEM basics, plant nutrients, irrigation, lighting, pest and bacteria control

◊ Complete a survey Tell us your opinion of Café 21

Farm location

● Free pack of hydroponic lettuce, fresh from the farm

◊ Go to Café 21 Facebook Fan Page ◊ Collect your free vegetables From Café 21, G/F, HKFYG Building, 21 Pak Fuk Rd, North Point. Building entrance 20 metres from Quarry Bay MTR station Exit C ● Promotion ends 30 April 2019, while stocks last ● Act now and avoid disappointment!

● Farm-to-School Educational workshops on basic environmental science and hydroponics theory

DD7 Lot1 RP1

Tai Hang Sha Lay Yuen Tai Po, NT, Hong Kong Enquiries Farm manager, Jason Lau email jason.lau@hkfyg.org.hk

HKFYG Hydroponics: growing fresh, safe vegetables, just for you

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ww HKFYG March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

We do a cappella The 2019 Hong Kong a Cappella Festival is ON NOW. Till early April, overseas and local vocal artists are wowing audiences in multiple venues around town. Don’t miss them!

Details of ticketing on the opposite page.

A cappella has been popular on American college campuses for decades but the arrival of web portals like YouTube and iTunes have seen it spread rapidly. With these media, young people around the world watch other talented performers and learn from them. Meantime, with solid support from HKFYG, it was only a matter of time until the live performances saw the genre come of age in Hong Kong. Now, we are delighted once again to present the annual Hong Kong a Cappella Festival starring three overseas ensembles supported by a host of local talent.

Cluster

was founded by five Italian students in 2004. Their innovative arrangements and use of technology create a blend of jazz, pop and fusion and their talent has led them to share the stage with national and international stars such as Andrea Bocelli in Italy, Europe, the US and Russia. Their first album, Italy’s first ever triple nomination in the Contemporary a Cappella Recording Awards (CARAs), went on to hold the top spot in the Italian iTunes download charts, even surpassing artists like Madonna and Coldplay. Their rise to the top continued with a breakout appearance on the first season of Italy’s X Factor and later albums received 12 nominations and 5 CARA awards including Best Original Song and Best Holiday Album.

Upper Structure

focus on creating unity through their music. They came together in 2015 at Berklee College of Music, Boston, Massachusetts, the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. The group brings an emotional, innovative view to their music that builds a family-like feeling between its members and the world around them. In 2018, shortly after they released their first studio album, one of the tracks was chosen for last year’s Best of Collegiate a Cappella album.

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Programme

23

March SAT 5pm

23-31 March

VOX Vocal Band

is Taiwan’s very first professional all-male a cappella group. Founded in 2012, no matter whether they sing original or covers songs, they have a warm reception and devote themselves to promoting Mandarin-pop a cappella. Their song, “The Brightest Star in the Night Sky” got the Best Recording Award in 2017 and was nominated for best arrangement in China’s Beehive Awards. In the same year, their album, “VOX 2” received a CARA nomination for Best Asian Album. On tour, before coming to Hong Kong , VOX visited the US, Canada, Japan, mainland China, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Austria and Germany.

25-29 March

29-30 March

Fri-Sat 7.30pm

5-6 April

Fri- Sat 8pm

The Hong Kong Melody was established by HKFYG in Makers (HKMM)

2004 with sponsorship

International a cappella Gala Venue Citywalk, Tsuen Wan Admission free

Mobile a cappella in the Community

Venues All around Hong Kong Admission free Stay tuned to Facebook page "acappella HK" for the route details

a cappella School Performances

For school participation only

International a cappella Extravaganza Venue Queen Elizabeth Stadium Arena Tickets HK$150

Hong Kong a cappella Parade Venue Multimedia Theatre, HKICC Lee Shau Kee School of Creativity Tickets HK$120 Free seating

from The Dragon Foundation. Reflecting the city’s vibrant performing arts scene, HKMM’s vocal bands perform in styles such as vocal jazz and pop. They are well-known, often for performances in more intimate, small group settings.

Programme enquiries tel 2395 5753

web acappella.hkfyg.org.hk

Tickets available from URBTIX

Passingers@HKMM

Groundbreaker@HKMM

Internet booking www.urbtix.hk Ticketing enquiries 3761 6661

Credit card telephone booking 2111 5999 Mobile ticketing app My URBTIX (Android & iPhone version) Discounts ● ● ●

Uweee@HKMM

● ●

50% off for full-time students, senior citizens aged 60 or above, people with disabilities & carers 20% off discount on full-price tickets for each purchase for 3 different performances 10% off discount on full-price tickets for each purchase for 2 different performances 10% off discount for each purchase of 10 or more full-price tickets for the same event 10% off for HKFYG members purchasing standard tickets

NB Offers cannot be used simultaneously

Presented by HKFYG Funded by Youth Development Commission, Home Affairs Bureau 41

Since 2009, the Golf Tournament has been popular with community and business leaders, as well as other participants. Their support has enabled The Dragon Foundation to raise funds for leadership programmes for Chinese young leaders around world.

More details dragonfoundation.net/golf2019 Make a donation now!

Leadership training is one of HKFYG’s core services and this month we celebrate the opening of The HKFYG Leadership Institute as a landmark in a Fanling heritage building equipped with state-of-the-art technology.

The HKFYG Leadership Institute The mission of the Leadership Institute, Hong Kong’s first, is to equip young people to take up leadership roles by helping them to gain a more global perspective, training them in effective communication and successful teamwork and developing their sense of responsibility.

Prejudice against SEN and disabilities

Y

outh with SEN or disabilities face lack of employment support, negative employer attitudes and misunderstandings of both colleagues and the general public, irrespective of their qualifications. How might the situation be improved?

The number of Hong Kong SEN (special educational needs) students studying in mainstream primary and secondary schools has recently been rising and the number in local post-secondary programmes is up by 50% since 2015. However, according to the Census and Statistics Department’s latest report (2013)*, 70% of the overall population with tertiary qualifications was employed compared to only 35% of well-qualified disabled people.

Key points from respondents 26% are unwilling to work with SEN youth. Their reasons include: ● 60.7% expect an increased workload. ● 43.7% say they don’t know how to work with them. ● 27.4% think SEN youth might be “dangerous or harmful”.

Comments from Youth I.D.E.A.S. think tank members Alan Yip, convener, & James Cheng, group member “The number of government placements in summer student internships should be doubled to 200 for all those with disabilities. The government should also make provision for post-placement civil service employment for outstanding SEN students and ensure that the overall percentage of civil servants with disabilities rises from 1.8% to 4%. New civil service hires of disabled people should be a minimum of 2% per annum.”

Darcy Fung & Christine Chan, group members “Subsidies for employing disabled workers should be available for a year instead of nine months in the government’s Work Orientation and Placement Scheme. The scheme’s maximum employer allowance should be maintained at HK$51,000. The recruitment service run by the Selective Placement Division of the Labour Department should not only provide low-skilled job openings for disabled applicants but also provide more opportunities for those who are technically well-qualified.”

Disabled and employed: all education levels

Report 36 HKFYG Youth I.D.E.A.S. Society and Livelihood group Published title Enhancing Career Opportunities for Higher Educated Youth with SEN or Disabilities Respondents 520 adults aged 18+ More details [in Chinese] yrc.hkfyg.org.hk/2018/11/27/yi036/ Enquiries Beji Ho 3755 7042

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Hong Kong 35.3% of disabled people aged 18-64 have jobs compared to 71.2% for those without a disability.

Australia 18.5% of the population is disabled. 53.4% of those in the labour force have jobs compared to 83.2% of people with no disability.

Singapore Around 13.3% of the over 50s and 3.4% of 18-49 year-olds are considered disabled but disabled people comprise only about 0.55% of the resident labour force. The overall employment rate is high at 97.8%.

UK 45% of disabled people of working age in the UK have jobs compared to 77% for those without a disability.

US 35.9% of US civilians aged 18-64 living with disabilities have a job, compared to 76.9% of others.

Sources • statistics.gov.hk/pub/B11301622014XXXXB0100.pdf* • ausstats.abs.gov.au/ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/9C2B94626F0FAC62CA2577FA0011C431/$Fi le/44300_2009.pdf • msf.gov.sg/media-room/Pages/Number-and-profile-of-persons-with-disabilities.aspxstraitstimes. com/singapore/people-with-disabilities-a-focus-for-2017-budget-indranee-rajah • stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/Unemployment-Summary-Table.aspx • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disability_in_the_United_Kingdom#Employment • respectability.org/2018/02/new-jobs-people-disabilities/

Giving a say on government spending

P

roper use of public resources improves livelihoods and promotes progress. Do young people think that community involvement in decision-making for public spending is a good idea?

Hong Kong government coffers have been healthy for some years and have allowed for steady enhancement of public services. Yet, 50% of the respondents in a local 2018 survey were dissatisfied with the government’s spending strategy,1 up from 12% in 2008.

Furthermore, the poverty gap has not improved.2 Given that taxes paid by today’s young people will provide the revenue for public expenditure in future, the study asks what the younger generation think of the government’s management of assets and what role would they like to take in the allocation and use of public funds.

Key points from respondents ● The government scored on average only 4.62 points and 4.22 points* for its reports on consultation exercises and heeding stakeholders views on public engagement in public finance management. [*On a scale of 0-10, where 5 indicates a pass.] ● 87.1% respond positively to government calls for opinions on the management of public finances. ● 83.1% are glad of opportunities to propose ideas. ● 62.9% do not trust the ability of the HKSARG to manage public finances. ● 60%, approximately, consider closer alignment with community needs to be the greatest benefit of involvement in decision-making for use of public funds. ● 48.5% consider their participation in decisionmaking for public funds to be important. ● 44.1% disagree, most saying that they have limited personal knowledge or influence in the field of public finance management.

Comments from Youth I.D.E.A.S. think tank members Ray Poon, convener “Opportunities for public involvement in the use and allocation of public money could be better. With reference to overseas experience, we recommend that 1% of salaries tax revenue be spent on collecting ideas and that a corresponding amount be used to improve public services.”

Ansel Lam, deputy convener “We recommend that the government’s consultation exercise on the budget starts as early as possible to allow more time for handling opinions gathered and to improve the transparency of the procedure.”

Report 37 HKFYG Youth I.D.E.A.S. Governance & Constitutional Development group Published title Involving the Community in Public Finance Management Respondents 520 18-34 year-olds Five focus groups were held during the period of time with a total of 24 young people for discussion on the subject matter. Five scholars or experts were also interviewed.

More details [in Chinese] yrc.hkfyg.org.hk/2018/12/20/yi037/ Enquiries Sharon Cheung 3755 7039 1.

hkupop.hku.hk/english/release/release1518.html

2.

Despite recurrent cash policy interventions, the poverty rate has stayed at 14.7% since 2016. info.gov.hk/gia/general/201811/19/P2018111900623.htm?fontSize=3

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Career and life planning education, how effective are schools?

W

hat do youth and teachers think about the career advice currently offered by schools and how well trained are teachers to give it?

The aim of career and life planning education (CLP), offered in its current form by schools since 2014, is to help students set personal goals, reflect, gain self-understanding and then progress towards career pathways. This survey asks for views on the value and effectiveness of CLP today, whether a whole-school approach is adopted and whether multiple pathways for future careers are promoted.

Key points from respondents ● Nearly 30% of youth worry that CLP is inadequate and/or do not think current CLP helps them understand the multiple pathway approach. ● They say teachers stress further study heavily as a career pathway. ● Neither teachers nor youth think CLP helps students manage the transition from school to work or adapt to the work environment. ● 74% of teachers and 63% of youth think that career-related job experience is the most important and effective form of CLP. ● 82.2% of youth say their parents are the biggest influence on career pathway planning.

Interviews with teachers working on CLP confirm that they receive support from stakeholders such as NGOs who partner schools to provide career-related services. Former students also sometimes encourage current students to focus on CLP as do companies that provide opportunities for career-related experience. All of these can be keys to successful CLP. However, in each of the schools surveyed, fewer than seven teachers were involved in CLP and on average fewer than half of them (3.14) had done any relevant professional training provided by the Education Bureau.

Report No. 38 HKFYG Youth I.D.E.A.S. Education and Innovation group Published title Improving the Effectiveness of Career and Life Planning Education Respondents 751 HKFYG members aged 12-24; 103 CLP teachers More details [in Chinese] yrc.hkfyg.org.hk/2019/01/30/yi038/ Enquiries Angus Choi 3755 7038

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Comments from Youth I.D.E.A.S. think tank members David Wong, deputy convener “Teachers are the major executors of CLP so it is essential that they understand concerns of stakeholders. The government should consider making CLP mandatory in teacher training and require all teachers to complete training progressively. This should enable schools to adopt a ‘whole-school approach’.”

Jason Cheung, group member “There is a huge demand for job-related experience from students so the government could consider subsiding companies that offer it.”

Allison Chan & Darren Lam, group members “Although teachers understand the importance and value of career-related experience, they face difficulties when gathering information about the opportunities. The government should consider allocating a specific unit to handle related matters to lighten the teachers’ load.”

Greater Bay Area opportunities and challenges

E

conomic cooperation between the three regions of the Greater Bay Area (GBA)* is set to deepen but it is believed that Hong Kong youth who plan to take up career opportunities in Guangdong Province will face a number of challenges. While they see more career opportunities ahead, many barriers to cooperation remain.

Key points from respondents

Comments from Youth I.D.E.A.S. think tank members

● More then 70% think the GBA will have a positive overall effect on Hong Kong’s economy and young people’s career opportunities.

Ernest Chan, group convener “To cope with problems of policy inconsistency, we recommend the setting up of a Greater Bay Area Coordination Bureau under the leading group of the central government for the development of the GBA. The Bureau would take charge of coordination between the ‘9+2’ cities according to the principle of ‘One Country, Two Systems.’ The Bureau should also provide a one-stop information platform for business and employment within the area in addition to simplifying various business procedures.”

● 86.0% say challenges to these opportunities lie in differences between Hong Kong and mainland China’s legal systems. ● 79.9% say tax issues present challenges. ● 39.1% agree that the GBA will increase employment opportunities. ● 37.0% are worried that they will face greater competition. ● 26.1% say the GBA will increase business opportunities. ● 17.6% are concerned that the work environment in the GBA will be more difficult.

In-depth interviews showed that consistency in policy is a key factor for young people who want to start or continue running a business in Guangdong. Complicated business procedures, unclear information, complex processes for cash transfers and high tax rates are discouraging factors. At the root of these hurdles lie two social systems, three customs territories, and three legal systems in one bay area.

Denis Huen, group member “The establishment of the GBA provides important opportunities for Hong Kong young people.

We recommend that the HKSAR government sets up a new office to help them develop startups or find jobs in Guangdong cities.”

William Du and Manson Chow, group members “We propose that Hong Kong young people who work in the GBA and meet certain requirements pay income tax to the mainland China government according to Hong Kong tax rates. Besides, the cap for transferring money out of mainland China should be doubled from US$50,000 to US$100,000 per year for Hong Kong young people employed in Guangdong.”

Report No.39 HKFYG Youth I.D.E.A.S. Employment and Economic Development group Published title Overcoming Career Challenges of Hong Kong Young People in the Greater Bay Area Survey respondents 522 Hong Kong working youth aged 18-39 Interviewees 20 Hong Kong youth aged 18-39 working in Guangdong and six experts or academics.

More details [in Chinese] yrc.hkfyg.org.hk/2019/02/26/yi039/ Enquiries Amy Yuen 3755 7037 *Note This report was based on a survey that took place before the “Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area” was released in February 2019.

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HKFYG

Future Skills HKFYG Calendar Spring 2019

March 2019 | Youth Hong Kong

18

HSBC Financial Dialogue Series (Dialogue 1)

HSBC Main Building, Central, HK

23

Hong Kong Student Science Project Competition Initial Judging cum Project Exhibition

Hong Kong Science Park

23

STEM Conference

Hong Kong Science Park

29

HSBC Financial Dialogue Series (Dialogue 2)

HSBC Main Building, Central, HK

31

Grand Opening HKFYG Leadership Institute

Former Fanling magistracy

1

Innovation & Technology Scholarship Award Ceremony

Grand Hall, Central Government Offices

9

HSBC Financial Dialogue Series (Dialogue 3)

HSBC Main Building, Central, HK

17-20

Hong Kong FLL Robotics Tournament Winners at FLL World Festival

George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, Texas

Hong Kong Student Science Project Competition Final Judging cum Award Presentation Ceremony

Hong Kong Science Park

Creative Coder Competition

Hong Kong Science Park

Hong Kong GreenMech Contest 2018/19

Hong Kong Science Park

March

March

March

March

March

flic.kr/p/25MpRDD

April

April

April

27 April

4

May

18 May

More details • • • • • • •

50

HSBC Financial Dialogue Series

Hong Kong Student Science Project Competition Creative Coder Competition

Innovation & Technology Scholarship

STEM Conference 2019

Hong Kong GreenMech Contest

Hong Kong FLL Robotics Tournament

leadershipinstitute.hk/event/fds hksspc.hkfyg.org.hk/ ccst.hkfyg.org.hk/ 比賽 / 創意編程設計大賽 / innotechscholarship.hkfyg.org.hk/ ccst.hkfyg.org.hk/2019/02/15/stem-conference-2019/ ccst.hkfyg.org.hk/ 比賽 / 香港機關王競賽 / ccst.hkfyg.org.hk/ 比賽 /hong-kong-fll-robotics-tournament/

51

23 March 2019 to 6 April 2019

Publisher : The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups

香港青年協會

hkfyg.org.hk．m21.hk

Youth Hong Kong: 21/F, The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups Building, 21 Pak Fuk Road, North Point, Hong Kong Tel : 3755 7084．3755 7108．Fax : 3755 7155．Email : youthhongkong@hkfyg.org.hk．Website : youthhongkong.hkfyg.org.hk The title of this journal in Chinese is Xiang Gang Qing Nian 香 港 青 年

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