It is hard to imagine a trip to China without a visit to the Great Wall. The TWU China delegation spent Days 3 and 4 of the tour in the Chinese national capital of Beijing. TWU President Mark Husbands’ comments summed up the feelings of the group. “It’s a remarkable intersection of traditional China and modern China here in Beijing,” he said.
Visits to the Great Wall of China, Forbidden City, and Great Hall of the People were capped off with a visit to the Peking University Medical College (PUMC) in Beijing. Endowed with history, this college is one of the top medical institutions in China and has a long legacy.
Dr. Grypma, who served as both Associate Provost of Leadership Development and Dean of TWU GLOBAL, has been documenting the history of PUMC as a key part of her research on Canadian medical influences in China. “There is so much history here; it feels like coming home to visit friends,” she reflected.
The most important outcome for Dr. Husbands’ China tour is strengthening our government relations in China. On October 23, the delegation spent the morning with the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange (CSCSE). This organization is the key international arm of the Chinese Ministry of Education (MOE) and provides support for international exchanges of students and verification of international academic credentials.
During the meeting with CSCSE, delegation members were able to provide an overview of TWU activities in China. The meeting culminated with the renewal of an agreement for students from the CSCSE-sponsored Scottish Qualification Assurance Board Higher National Diploma (SQA HND) program in China to come to TWU to complete the BA in Leadership degree. “This long-standing relationship for TWU dates back 10 years to when TWU started to get actively engaged in recruiting from China,” stated Dr. Laird.
After lunch with the CSCSE, the delegation moved to a 3:30 p.m. meeting with the Canadian Trade Office hosted at the Canadian Embassy in Beijing. “We were thoroughly impressed with the Deputy Head of Mission, Mr. Jim Nickel. His knowledge of China and insight into the role education plays in international trade was remarkable,” stated Dr. Husbands.
Geoffrey Feng, who is the Executive Director for TWU GLOBAL connections and partnerships recognized Eric Pelletier, Counsellor and Senior Trade Commissioner, and Calvin Zhang, Trade Commissioner, for their support and help in making the connections in China and supporting our activities. Rochelle Bacigalupo, First Secretary of the mission in Beijing expressed interest in TWU’s seven sports and two music goodwill tours of China over the past 12 years. It is truly remarkable to reflect on the engagement TWU has had in China over the past decade.
Kevin Tsui, Managing Director of the BC Trade office in Beijing, expressed his interest in supporting TWU in the future as we continue to grow our global relations. After the meetings on Wednesday, October 23, we experienced the Chinese Acrobatic Show at the Chaoyang Theatre—a fitting end to a day that started with high expectations and didn’t disappoint.