Autumn Issue, 2017

“When on exchange to Paris, I was fortunate to be twice invited to meetings organised by the French Ministers of Culture and Education as a representative of international students in France. I had conversations with the Ministers and was shocked that their impression of China came only from the stereotypical, and often distorted images in the Western media.” Since then, Yuxin has endeavoured to explore and reveal the “true faces” of the world that are excluded from the mainstream media; and that of China to the rest of the world. The second edition of “The Other Hundred” with the theme of Entrepreneurs captures the reality of small and medium-sized businesses in not-so-developed regions that provide the majority of the world’s jobs. On a trip to Argentina, Yuxin visited a small shop selling handmade leather shoes, which was one of the winning stories in the Entrepreneurs edition. “When I showed the book to the shop owners, they were over the moon! They didn’t expect their story would appear in a book that has global circulation.” Yuxin still wears the pair of shoes he bought from the shop years ago. “They still look pretty.” The third edition, themed Educators, unveils the contribution of the uncelebrated educators who have pioneered unique ways of teaching and transferring knowledge. “The world is far more diverse and a lot more interesting than what is portrayed on the news and in magazines. Photojournalists support the mission of ‘The Other Hundred’ as many of them have actually been looking for such a platform to express themselves, rather than conforming to the criteria set by the news agencies.” As one of 11 GIFT staff members, Yuxin has been exposed to various projects that are both economically and socially beneficial in developing countries, including Mainland China, his birthplace. The upcoming project is about scaling up quality food production in Shaanxi amidst shifting social dynamics in China. Looking back, Yuxin said it was HKU that brought him to this interesting journey. “The IBGM programme is one of the best programmes at HKU. It is designed to have lots of sharing and deep discussions with guest speakers from around the world. All these have helped me develop my vision. I have to thank Professor Patrick Chau, Director of the School of Business and Professor Bennett Yim, Associate Director of Contemporary Marketing Centre, both of whom had the confidence in me and encouraged me to explore the paths less travelled; and Dr Derek Man, Associate Director of BBA programmes, who introduced GIFT’s GLP to me; and everyone who has given me opportunities to explore and experience, and to work with the wonderful people of the world.” Class Notes