LU’s successful Age Friendly City Project supports UN SDGs

The School of Graduate studies and the Asia-Pacific Institute of Ageing Studies (APIAS) celebrated the achievements of the Jockey Club Age Friendly City Project: Rural Neighbourhood Development Project on July 10. The event featured an awards ceremony for a STEM product design competition which was geared to explain what the district -based programme had accomplished. Certificates were presented to elderly volunteers known as"Rural Befrienders" to recognise their contributions towards building an age-friendly community, and prizes were presented to the winning STEM teams, the Pui Shing Catholic Secondary School and the Yau Tze Tin Memorial College. Around 80 people attended the event.

In his welcome speech, Professor Joshua Ka-ho Mok, Vice-President of Lingnan University, thanked everyone involved in the Age Friendly City Project."Lingnan engages different partners to co-promote an age-friendly city and the wellbeing of elderly people," Prof Mok said. He also noted that the project supported the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 17, namely Partnership for the Goals. The UN’s Goal 17 states that the SDGs can only be realised with strong global partnerships and co-operation, and that a successful development agenda requires inclusive partnerships at regional, national and local levels. With its focus on"Impact with Care" and knowledge transfer, Lingnan University is committed to achieving the SDGs with initiatives like the Age Friendly City project.

Prof Mok also congratulated team members for their resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic."During the pandemic, many face-to-face activities were cancelled, and scheduled home visits could not be made," he said."However, the Lingnan project team and its partner organisations have overcome these challenges by developing various online learning resources and programmes." Prof Mok also said he was pleased to see young students applying STEM knowledge to design gerontechnology products and solve real-life problems for rural elders.

A highlight of the event was the premiere of the Human Library's animated film, while elderly volunteers serving as"human books" talked about themselves so that the audience could learn more about their histories and lives. Students from the two winning teams explained how the project had both promoted intergenerational communication and identified the needs of rural elders.

Various dignitaries attended the event, including Cheng Wing-yang from the Tuen Mun District Office of Home Affairs Department and Rachel Kwong Hoi-ying from the Yuen Long District Office of Home Affairs. Annie Ng from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charity Trust presented the STEM awards.