Make a Difference (MaD) Forum 2015

About the Event

On 30 January to 1 February 2015, 25 Fung Scholars participated in the “Make a Difference (MaD) Forum” under the sponsorship of the Victor and William Fung Foundation. The theme of this year was “Village Reimagined”, which is a multifaceted process for 1,300 participants to reimagine ways to reorganise society and our lives with creativity, solidarity and the mindset of “villagers” — how we can build greater resilience towards the economic, social and ecological challenges of our time, and how we can innovate new systems with sharing, respect for one another and other species, and sustainability as our modus operandi. The Fung Scholars participated in various ripple forums as well as interactive workshops and activities, and exchange their thoughts on how to reconnect humans with nature creatively.

Reflections of the participants

Abi CHAN (FS2012-13, Lingnan University)

I realize that I am somehow pre-occupied of narrow thinking. ‘Socialization’ is not a new term to me. Yet, from joining different workshops and activities, I could truly feel how my mindset has been deeply influenced by our ‘social values and standards ‘. It seems that we often construct cages and boundaries for ourselves.

We should always remember there is not only one way in measuring our own values or success. In particular, in the ‘ Now to 60’ workshop, when it comes to the issue of ‘ career and life planning ‘, it is inevitably hard for me to cast off the set values and try to think big and step out of my comfort zone. Still, I would regard this Forum as a good start for me to think deeper about my life planning.

Vincci HUI (FS2012-13, City University of Hong Kong)

MaD Asia 2015 allowed me to immerse myself into our nature and land. While development is inevitable, our incredible ecosystem, environment, and humanity should be safeguarded. The past leaves us great assets to improve, but not to deteriorate. Life is not just about money and expansion, but more importantly, it is about compassion and culture.

Jimmy KAM (FS2013-14, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology)

I was particularly impressed with the speaker whom shared her insights about building a city for humans, not for cars, building a city for people that move at 5km/h instead of cars that move at 5km/h. It raised important questions such as what it means to really live in a city. Should we trade in efficiency for better living quality? Should efficiency be accounted as a part of high living standard? After attending the workshops, I was intrigued and inspired to discover and think more about these questions. We may not have an answer now, but I believe these would gradually come as participants and all people around us were very inspired to Make a Difference.

Jacky LO (FS2008-09, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Although the ideas and feelings I got from MaD might not be implemented in my work immediately, I believe I have built up some new “Dots” in my life. As Steve Jobs said in the famous 2005 Stanford Commencement Speech, maybe these Dots will be connected to form a decent picture later on in my life. I look forward to joining MaD again in the future.

Francis PHUANG (FS2011-12, Singapore Management University)

Nothing beats coming together with like-minded individuals. I recall attending the sustainable cities design lecture, where the class was asked to contribute ideas on how to make our cities more sustainable and livable. I felt so alive being a member of that class, as we all contributed excellent ideas to make our cities better for everyone. Through that lecture, I too made many new friends that will continue to inspire and challenge me each step of the way.