HKUST Annual Report 2022-2023

36 37 By supporting community service, promoting inclusivity and diversity, nurturing talents, and preserving traditional culture, HKUST adopts a multifaceted approach to improving lives both within and beyond the University community. Uplifting Society Via Service and Sports Driving tangible impact internationally and locally, undergraduate students from the University’s Student Innovation for Global Health Technology (SIGHT) education program continued to devise innovative health technology and social solutions to diverse issues in multiple cultural and urban settings. Three projects launched in the year 2022-23 included one in Sri Lanka that addressed peacock behavior to avoid crop damage, one in Thailand aimed at capacity-building among young school dropouts, and another in Hong Kong SAR to boost dementia patients’ cognitive abilities through healthy diets. Post-pandemic, our flagship community engagement platform HKUST Connect was revived. Reigniting the “Connect for Change - Global Service Day”, the program offered bonding opportunities between our campus members and the local community as well as a self-directed learning experience for students. Coinciding with Global Youth Service Day in April 2023, the initiative mobilized 400 staff and student volunteers across 26 service projects ranging from food recycling to elderly care. In support of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to address social issues such as poverty, hunger, health, and quality education, our volunteers reached out to the homeless, underprivileged, ethnic minorities, the elderly, and children, providing them with social support and practical help. Sport is another dynamic way the University links to society. Over the year, our Sports Tutorial Service Scheme was expanded from a campus activity to a community service. Launched in 2021 to facilitate welcoming programs for new undergraduates, the scheme has been providing sports tutorship training to senior students. From March to June 2023, our 24 student sports tutors reached out to three primary schools, bringing lively tutorial sessions in archery, fencing, korfball, and softball to children. The initiative received a boost when it secured funding from the Whole-person Development Fund from the University Grants Committee in May. Service will be further extended to secondary schools and community centers in 2024.