“Seek for Roots, Chase after Dreams, United as One, And Move Abreast” Youth Forum

Zhuowen Li
2017.06.23
News

The catkins are rootless, as Han Yu, the poet of Tang Dynasty, put it: "Floating clouds and catkins are rootless, as they are blowing in the wind in this infinite universe." (fuyun liuxu wugendi, tiandi kuoyuan sui feiyang) The bitter fleabane is rootless, as Yang Shen, the poet of Ming Dynasty, put it: "The bitter fleabane is rootless, as it is drifting at the mercy of the wind." (feipeng wu genzhu, piaoyao suifengqi) Lost and gloomy, the wanderers are always on the way of seeking for roots; Satisfied and fulfilled, they find a sense of belonging when reaching the homeland. Root seeking features in family cohesion and continuation, cultural inheritance, and the searching of the retreat of the soul. There's still a long way stretching before the youngsters, so it's significant to ask oneself when dashing: What is my dream and what do I aim for?

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland, jointly hosted by The Hong Kong Chinese Importers' & Exporters' Association (HKCIEA) and Guangdong’s Association for Promotion of Cooperation between Guangdong, Hong Kong & Macao, based on youngsters' visions and views, focusing on two themes, namely "Seeking for Roots" (xungen) and "Chasing after Dreams" (zhuimeng), with the aim to explore the development of the motherland, a series of youth activities named "Seek for Roots, Chase after Dreams, United as One, And Move Abreast" (xungen zhuimeng, tongxin tongxing) initiated. Arrived in Shenzhen on 13 June 2017, the organisations hosted the Youth Forum at 9:30 A.M. on 15 June 2017 in Qianhai.

Young students took this chance to generate a deeper understanding of the country's development, the opportunities and challenges faced by Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area under the instruction of "the Belt and Road Initiative". The Forum invited a number of Hong Kongers who started their business in mainland to share their experiences of starting and running business, encouraging the youngsters to have a national view, embracing the vast market to realise their own dreams.

LEUNG Chun-ying, former Chief Executive of HKSAR and Vice Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) delivered a speech, urging young people to endeavor to chase dreams. He also communicated with three Hong Kong young entrepreneurs who started up their business in mainland, two of which studied in Hong Kong University and the other was from Tsing Hua University.

Six university students from Hong Kong shared their experiences of 10-day dream-seeking trip.

Three outstanding young entrepreneurs shared their business-setting stories, giving suggestions on how to deal with hardships and challenges youngsters bump into. 

 The creator CHEUNG Dennis Lung-wa (Creator of ShowMuse, a knowledge sharing platform)

Don't be afraid of suffering losses. It won't last long. Instead, it may be the key to the door of business success. Life is an ephemeral thing, so keep moving. Think further, and take action as soon as possible. Never lose faith!

The dream-chaser NG Fanny Lai-wan (General Planner of CHAO Groups)

All the good luck will come to a person who loves smiling. Complain less, learn harder. Stick to your dreams with responsibility and enthusiasm. I declare that more efforts deserve better fortune.

The pioneer CHAN Chris Chi-ming (Founder of Smart Decision, a company focusing on big data analysis and application)

Test your limit while break it. Be bold. Accept the failure if there's any. Be brave enough to make breakthroughs!

It was an intriguing and inspiring face-to-face communication, where the Chief Executive, surpassing entrepreneurs, and university students from Hong Kong and mainland exchanged their thoughts to encourage more youngsters to strive for their dreams.

Students from Muse College took a photo to mark the occasion. 

Bearing the history in mind, we seek for roots.

Full of dreams, we meet.

Gathering together, we are united as one.

Embracing the future, we move abreast.

Muse College, always with you.