XIANGRUI QU FS2021/22 PEKING UNIVERSITY

In the spring semester of 2022, I went to the University of Hong Kong for exchange. During this time, I encountered the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong. While most of the exchange students chose to fly back to their homeland or go on a vacation to other countries at the beginning of the outbreak, I took a bold choice to stay in Hong Kong for the rest of the semester. Now it seems like I had made a wise decision because I had an unforgettable and special experience in Hong Kong.

I felt overwhelmed by feelings of chaos and panic when the pandemic broke out in February 2022. I was living in the student residence hall and unfortunately, Omicron cases were found on the same floor I was living. The hall administrators locked down our floor immediately, yet their arrangements were disastrous. In the beginning, the administrators separated the infected students but due to the lack resources, all residents were not allowed to leave the floor. Sadly, sharing the bathroom was inevitable. In the following week, I witnessed the hallmates on the same floor were getting sick. With a severe lack of resources, no manpower could arrange food delivery but all residents had to arrange food order delivery collectively, twice in a day. During that time, the takeaway system was not running very smoothly, and it could have taken up to two hours. I was suffering from hunger and having irregular mealtimes over the week. Probably due to the limited manpower resource, we were the only floor that was locked down, despite there were positive cases in other floors as well. After almost ten days of suffering, I was bursting with anger. According to the regulations of the university and the government, we were not supposed to be quarantined. We kept communicating to the administrators on the situation we faced and hoped they could give us an explanation and when we could end the quarantine. Sadly, the response we got was not as we expected. One day, we were told that the quarantine was over. I was so happy that I got outside immediately to breathe fresh air. But just a few hours later, they said there was an error in the notice, and we should return hall for quarantine. Since I was already outside, I decided to stay in a hotel for a week. Although the hotel room was much more expensive than usual due to the pandemic, I didn’t have to worry about the food issue anymore. Things began to get better during my stay in the hotel. The hall administrators suggested my hallmates to go home or stay in a hotel temporarily, so that they could cut off the transmission and arranged a separate floor for quarantine use. When we get back to our hall, things magically went on the right track. No one on my floor was infected or quarantined after that, and we almost returned to our normal hall life. Although Omicron cases were still found in the community, we felt as if the pandemic were over in the hall.

As the saying goes, it’s always darkest before dawn. After the tough two weeks, my life and study in Hong Kong began to get on track. I started to visit many places around Hong Kong and witnessed a different side of it. The popular-scenic spots like Victoria Harbor and Shek’O were quite empty, so was in the campus. The flow of people on campus was greatly reduced and I could easily find empty tables in the canteen and library. Bars and many shops were closed, and when the night fell, hardly there were any pedestrians on the streets. This is indeed a special experience, because many people have seen hustle and bustle of Hong Kong while few people have

During my exchange, all the courses are taught online. My friends joked that I went to Zoom University for exchange. Over the screen, teachers and students naturally do not communicate as closely as before. Fortunately, some professors tried hard to liven up the classroom atmosphere and increase interaction and discussion. I also did my best to participate more in course discussions. What’s more, I think the meaning of exchange is not only to learn knowledge, but also to practice, communicate and cooperate with people from different cultures. I managed to make friends as well as gaining new knowledge through the courses. In addition, I really learned a lot from my teammates in group project. They reminded me of the importance of research ethics and the respect for minority groups. When we were working on a questionnaire, my teammates emphasized that the questionnaire should not make the respondents feel offended and be careful on research ethics. As such, in the questionnaire, we offered a variety of gender options and gave respondents the option of not answering some relatively sensitive questions. With the joint efforts of all group members, we made our project an exquisite academic work. It really gave me a sense of reward and satisfaction when the professor highly praised our project in the final presentation. During the last few weeks of my exchange, I witnessed Hong Kong’s gradual recovery from the darkest moments. With the gradual ease of the restrictions, the streets became more crowded. I could tell from my delivery app that many restaurants had reopened. On the subway, on the bus, and along the Victoria Harbor, the crowds of the past reappeared. I also went to visit many museums that I always wanted to visit. During such a tough time of the COVID-19 outbreak, I really had an unforgettable and special exchange experience in Hong Kong. Now, I cherish the hard-won normal life more than before. I feel sorry for those who tragically lost their lives in the outbreak and sincerely hope the world can recover from the gloom of the epidemic soon. Lastly, I would like to express my gratitude to Victor and William Fung Foundation and The University of Hong Kong for acknowledging me as one of the Fung Scholars. The scholarship has provided me with an easier budget. I am also grateful to Erin, JennyAnn, and other foundation staff for their kind concern and support during my exchange. I hope that in the future, I can participate in more Victor and William Fung Foundation events and help to grow the Fung Scholars network.

Taking courses via zoom

Hiking in Shek O

Enjoying the scenery at Carpgates

PRISCILLA CHAN (FS2013/14, XIAMEN UNIVERSITY)

CAREER SHARING: FROM SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH TO PE/VC

My name is Priscilla Chan. After graduating from Xiamen University, I went on to complete my PhD degree in LKS Faculty of medicine, The University of Hong Kong. Years of research experience gave me a keen interest in the transformation and commercialization of biotechnology. Therefore, I made a major transition in my career last year. Now I work as a postdoctoral researcher in Oriental Fortune Capital, one of the top PE/VC (Private Equity/ Venture Capital) companies in Shenzhen, China.

REASONS BEHIND CHOOSING PE/VC CAREER IN SHENZHEN

China is a massive and lucrative market, with new cutting-edge technologies and startups popping up every day. PE/VC is a way of investment and financing to realize the effective combination of technology, capital, talent with entrepreneurial enterprises, and it is also a booster to promote the transformation of scientific and technological innovation. Shenzhen, as one of the top ten financial centers in the world, has the natural advantage of smooth development of PE/VC. In recent years, the pharmaceutical investment market has become very hot due to the aging of the population, consumption upgrading, supply-side upgrading and other factors. Since the arrival of the new policy of Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2018 and the innovation board in 2019, the capital exit path of biomedical enterprises has been clear, which has led to a wave of investment in the capital market on the biomedical track, and even the value of some enterprises can be doubled several times a year. However, with the arrival of medical insurance negotiation and centralized purchase policy as well as the influence of COVID-19, biomedical enterprises have entered a cold winter period of break-out and stock price decline. Hopefully, when the false prosperity has passed, the market will return to rational value, which is more conducive to better development of this industry in China.

Oriental Fortune Capital Innovation Center

THE TYPICAL WORKING

MODE IN PE/VC

It’s indeed inspiring to meet innovative scientists and entrepreneurs with proven experience on pharmaceutical development from bench or clinical trial to commercialization. We have to learn quickly and constantly about new trends, starting from scratch and building up knowledge in new areas. Even if the companies are in the same area, each has its angle and specialization. We have to use established understanding of the industry to determine if it is an excellent opportunity and evaluate the options in a short period of time.

In my daily work, I am deeply involved in the following parts: 1. Business plans (BP) evaluation: We receive a lot of new BPs every day and we will do a basic selection first. We need to decide which projects are worth discussing further and which projects should be banned at the BP stage. 2. Meeting/communicating with founders: The next step is to arrange a time to meet with potential founders, either first via conference call or otherwise meet face-toface. 3. Project evaluation stage: The next step is to evaluate if the project is worth investing in or not. I am deeply involved in due diligence. Some colleagues will be responsible for the LDD (legal due diligence) and FDD (financial due diligence).

Gathering of investment managers and entrepreneurs

PREPARATION TO DO BEFORE ENTERING PE/VC CAREER

One large venture capital firm once surveyed its employees across seven dimensions that correlate with company performance. They looked at topics ranging from leadership effectiveness and sense of direction to innovation and learning. Besides, when recruiting investment managers, they appreciate specialized talents who can spot value creation opportunities at potential investment targets early on. Therefore, for students with medical background who want to enter PE/VC career, the first step is to understand some macro trends and policies of the pharmaceutical industry. Then you need to acquire a basic understanding of the upstream, middle and downstream industries in the pharmaceutical industry chain. The next step is to understand the ecology of the financial industry. Each sub-field of the pharmaceutical industry has its own logic. After gaining the basic 24 knowledge, you will know how to write a valuable in-depth report, how to do due diligence and how to use the database to find key data to support your report. To succeed in PE/VC career seeking, you have to bring something to the table that others can’t. It is about having a deep understanding of drivers and trends across sectors, in addition to knowledge of financial markets. On-the-ground experience in an emerging market is definitely a plus. There are many soft skills beyond technical skills, such as business operations, negotiation, legal and human resources. On top of this, you need to analyze, solve problems, and think strategically. In addition, building a strong professional network before applying for a PE/ VC job can be especially useful for gaining referrals. Part of investment management is also about identifying partners and experts to work with, and sometimes they are only a phone call away. of the new policy

ANDY WONG (FS2021/22, CITY UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG) START-UP PROJECT – WHEEL REAL EXPERIENCE

We are Wheel Real Experience; we offer wheelchair experiential workshops for corporate training.

Underwater shooting with the Olympic Division, Haley Hernandez in Joe and Jamail Swimming Center at UT Austin on 12 Nov 2021

Underwater shooting with the Olympic Division, Haley Hernandez in Joe and Jamail Swimming Center at UT Austin on 12 Nov 2021

There will be 3 million elderly in Hong Kong by 2030, but training is inadequate in the market for employees to learn to take care of this growing group. In our workshops, participants will be required to finish different tasks in wheelchairs so they will understand the needs of the elderly. We hope through the workshops they will learn how to design better products or services for the elderly. Moreover, this project enhances wheelchair users’ employability by providing on-the-job training to our wheelchair instructors. We hope to train around 3-4 wheelchair users into app developers or STEM workshop instructors every year. So far, we are supported by HSBC and GovHK Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Fund as well as Cyberport. Our clients include the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups, the Equal Opportunity Commission as well as a number of secondary schools.

During the pandemic, workshop-based business like us has been suffering a lot from the ever-changing regulations and policies. However, we also see this as an opportunity to transform. We switched our workshop delivery from offline to online and integrated new elements into the workshops to make sure our participants can still understand the difficulties faced by the elderly/disabled. Now we are incorporating technology into experiential activities so that participants can understand the problems faced by the disabled every day more clearly. We are developing mobile applications and incorporating them into empathetic training to make workshops more interactive.

Underwater shooting with the Olympic Division, Haley Hernandez in Joe and Jamail Swimming Center at UT Austin on 12 Nov 2021

We continue to provide on-the-job training for wheelchair users for instructors We continue to provide on-the-job training for wheelchair users as instructors

This year, I became one of the Fung Scholars in Hong Kong to travel to top universities in the world (i.e. Boston University, Lancaster University, University of British Columbia). After coming back, I plan to take a gap year to implement what I have learnt and focus on the project so it can expand to a higher level. So far, we have been providing corporate training to over 100 staff members from our clients, such as the Equal Opportunities Commission and Disneyland. Within this year, I hope to improve the content of the workshops with wheelchair users and teachers/social workers and we aim to prepare the society for the upcoming problems brought by the ageing population. We are also organising STEM workshops in secondary schools so they are able to equip themselves with the skills required to build their own social innovation to tackle the problems that they observe throughout the experiential activities.

Innovate to educate. This would be my way to contribute to the current and future community.

If you want to know more about the project, please visit: http://wheelchairexperience.com/ (website) https://www.facebook.com/ wheelrealexperience (Facebook)

XIAOYU LIU (FS2015/16, PEKING UNIVERSITY)

A GLIMPSE OF THE 20S

In January 2022, the National Archives UK released its records of the census that took place in England and Wales in 1921. Within a hundred years, the administration procedure has become a cultural record, although not always the same as people nowadays assume. Referred as the Roaring 20s, the 1920s decade marked an era of economic prosperity and cultural diversity that swept American and Europe, including London. With the help of the census, however, the National Archives aims to investigate and present what was “Beyond the Roar”, as their exhibition’s name suggests. Decorated as a 1920s street corner, the exhibition first shows the turbulence behind prosperity. Unemployment was high, social movements were common, and the First World War was still affecting life in the UK. The latter is also indicated in the census records, by an increased orphan rate, separation of existing couples, and a loss of servicemen.

“Beyond the Roar” also recorded a transformation in housing, public health, and social life. From letters, insurance certificates, and posters, the exhibition vividly presented an image of construction of standard houses, demolition of slums, regular disinfection, and increasing gambling and dancing. It is particularly interesting that the National Archives has a significant collection about 1920s’ nightclubs, the reason being the numerous inspections by the police – this detail is simply convincing to show how radical a nightclub could be, and how the society was exuberant.

For where I am living now, however, the 1920s hardly presents anything exuberant, although housing campaigns obviously influenced this area as well. My area used to be a suburban field before the 19th century. In the century, this area was rapidly filled up with working people, as a result of both expanding urbanisation and improving railway transportation. The population continues to grow, making it one of the most crowded areas in the UK today. By 1921, most of the Georgian residential houses in the area had been completed. This would remain the same for a long time, until some of these stylish buildings were bombed down in the Second World War.

On the bombsite stands the huge residential building where I live, and the 1921 census happens to become the last photo of this building. As it happened, Georgian houses were organised along the street and surrounding a small square. These houses must have accommodated fewer residents than today, but there was no less diversity in the neighbourhood. As I was consulting some research papers at the National Archives, I was curious to check my area on one of their computers which have free access to the census record. In the first house to be checked lived a vicar from Yorkshire, along with his 30-year-old younger wife; and, if we start gossiping, we will also find a SwissBritish couple, a British-French couple, and two Scots who registered their occupations respectively as “journalist” and “journalist’s wife.”

Instead of roaring, the street I live looked very peaceful. It seems that residents simply focused on their job in this massive city. For example, two sisters lived almost “next door” to me. Both born in the same year, these supposed twins kept a subtle balance of employment, as one of them worked in an artificial flower factory, while the other was responsible for chores at home. Similarly, there were a couple running a snack business together, an international businessman from the Continent, and three policemen living next door to each other. Although having more than four children was common, there were also several sweet one-child families. Even an audience from 100 years later could sense the intimacy between family members, and I found one such family was particularly sweet. In that family, both the husband and the wife were in their 20s, and their little daughter was only 1. Instinctively, I traced the names in the 1939 register, and was at a relief to find that they were still together, although having moved to a tranquil southeastern town.

Although the National Archives has ended their exhibition on 1920s social life, there is still much to dig out from the census records. Having surveyed about 38 million individuals, the 1921 census is supposed to be the largest one that has ever been released. It is also for the first time that released census data are available online with the help of Findmypast. com. Digitalisation must have taken a huge effort.

Reviewed 100 years later, 1921 is not a stranger to us. These two generations seem to share same problems - war, pandemic, unemployment, insecurity - but also the dangerous tendency of desperation and the deepest appreciation of hope. Looking back at 1921, we are not learning from history; we are learning ourselves.