Curriculum
9 related courses were offered in the 2023–24 academic year.
Research
The Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies conducted a telephone survey in May–June 2024, to gauge public perceptions of wealth disparity in Hong Kong. The results revealed that 69% of respondents viewed the disparity between the rich and the poor as a serious issue, a rise of 9 percentage points from the previous year. According to the survey, 10% of participants also reported that their household income was insufficient for daily expenses. In light of the current situation, 81% of participants believed the government should increase efforts to address the wealth gap, and 53% said that they were prepared to pay higher taxes to assist the poor.
Offering financial aid to students in need
Financial aid schemes, including ‘University Bursaries and Loans’, ‘Emergency Bursaries and Loans’, ‘Student Residence Bursary Scheme’ and ‘Summer Subsistence and Travel Loan Scheme’ were offered to students with financial difficulties to support their studies and help with their hostel residence fees. A new Summer Work-Study Scheme for Students was also introduced to help undergraduates improve their finances by providing them with on-campus part-time job opportunities.
In support of the HKSAR Government’s effort to alleviate intergenerational poverty, CUHK announced a landmark partnership with the Strive and Rise Programme. The government-led programme supported nearly 3,000 junior secondary school students from underprivileged families, providing the participants with mentorship, personal development planning and financial assistance. CUHK was the first local higher education institution to receive mentees from the programme. Several workshops and sharing sessions were held in 2024 to inspire and nurture the next generation of learners.
Caring for the community
We tend to think of ‘poverty’ as meaning that a person does not have sufficient resources to make ends meet, but it can also refer to an individual’s relative disadvantage compared with the majority. Since 2015, the Office of Student Affairs has been maintaining the Lean Poverty Alleviation Initiative. Through experiential learning activities and direct services, the programme allows CUHK students to explore the underlying causes of poverty in Hong Kong and build an enabling environment to moderate poverty.
To offer secondary school students a comprehensive understanding of poverty alleviation, the Social Responsibility and Sustainable Development Office launched the Design Thinking Summer 2023: No Poverty and Zero Hunger programme. Through a series of workshops and training, participants utilized the design thinking concept and compose multiple short videos as their response to this long-standing issue. The programme demonstrates the importance of SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), and how they contribute to the city’s sustainable development.
Our students and staff members run different projects with the support of the SDG Action Fund for various underprivileged groups, such as asylum seekers, ethnic minorities, migrants, and the homeless in HK.
Sharing on poverty eradication
The 32nd session of the I∙CARE Salon was addressed by Professor Wong Hung from the Department of Social Work, who discussed his three decades of work on poverty in Hong Kong. Professor Wong emphasized the need for social justice, advocating for systemic change to eradicate poverty. He noted that his research had informed the introduction of the Low-income Working Family Allowance, which had improved the lives of 143,700 working poor individuals. He underscored the importance of fieldwork, sharing insights from his Anti-Bed Bug Research Action Group, which aims to alleviate cleanliness issues faced by low-income households.
