Dear Colleagues,
During our recent Management Retreat and Townhall Meeting, we discussed the following aspirations:
Be Brave and Think Big
Look to the Future and Be Focused
Be Professional and Practical
Everyone is encouraged to reflect on, discuss and envision a bold future while staying focused on our specific roles and responsibilities. We emphasise the importance of professionalism and practicality in what we do, concentrating on our long-term contributions to the University and beyond.
In this context, a unifying theme would help focus our attention and optimise our resources for the University's future development. It occurs to me that the theme “comprehensive health (全方位健康／大健康)”, which is widely advocated in Mainland China and integrated into government and corporate policies, may help define and consolidate the unique elements in our teaching, research and outreach activities.
“Comprehensive health” embodies the multidimensional aspects of health, extending beyond physical wellbeing to include mental, psychological, societal and environmental health.
While the work of the N&HS naturally falls within the scope of comprehensive health, other schools can also play a vital role in supporting important components of health. For example, the A&SS can focus on mental and social well-being; the B&A can focus on economic and financial stability; and the S&T can focus on physical and environmental sustainability, for both our city and its citizens. In addition, the E&L, SOL and LiPACE can all make significant contributions within the framework of comprehensive health.
While Goal 3 of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – Good Health and Well-being – deals explicitly with health, many other SDGs are health-related too, including SDG 1: No poverty, SDG 2: Zero hunger, SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation; and, arguably, SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth, and SDG13: Climate action.
Health, as a broad aspiring goal, will assume greater importance in the future. We may therefore consider adopting “comprehensive health” as a unifying theme to guide our teaching, research and outreach endeavours.
Let us begin by building a healthy university with a healthy campus.
Paul LAM Kwan-sing
President
