Hong Kong could preserve Fulbright scheme spirit with a new programme
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The Fulbright programme is a US cultural exchange programme that aims to improve intercultural relations by 'expanding perspectives through academic and professional advancement and cross-cultural dialogue'. US citizens receive grants to study, conduct research, teach and otherwise make use of their talents abroad, and citizens of partnered countries do the same in the United States.
Hong Kong was once a partnered jurisdiction with an RGC-Fulbright (Hong Kong) Scholar Programme. Hongkongers received funds from the Research Grants Council, operating under the University Grants Committee, to go to the US while Americans received funds from Fulbright to come to Hong Kong.
However, the RGC-Fulbright programme
stopped in the 2020-21 academic year after US President Donald Trump signed the Executive Order on Hong Kong Normalisation on July 14, 2020. The programme has not restarted since.
As a former member of the RGC, I hope that it can carry on the worthwhile cause of increasing mutual understanding despite the cessation of Fulbright's partnership with Hong Kong. Given that it is highly unlikely that Hong Kong's Fulbright programme will resume any time soon, I would suggest that the RGC's funds for the Fulbright programme be redirected to creating and funding a new exchange programme.
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Such a programme could perhaps be named after Nobel laureate,
Charles Kao , an academic who pursued his research both in this city and at international institutions, thus echoing the intercultural element of the suggested programme.
The RGC currently has multiple excellent funding programmes that promote research collaboration between Hong Kong and other jurisdictions, including mainland China, France, Germany and the Europe Union. However, these programmes focus mostly on postgraduate research.
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