From July 19 to 22, the Beijing session of the Belt and Road Global Youth Leaders Summit 2019 co-organized by Peking University and Hong Kong Polytechnic University and sponsored by Shougang Group was successfully held in the New Shougang District. As a cooperation unit, BJUT selected 12 student representatives from the Fan Gongxiu Honors College, Beijing-Dublin International College and College of International Education to participate in the event together with nearly 100 youth leaders from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and 28 countries in the world.

The event is one of the series of activities of the United Nations on sustainable development and community/municipal sustainable development practice. At the beginning of the opening ceremony, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations and Sir Richard John Roberts, Chairman of the Laureate Science Alliance (LSA) sent video messages, encouraging global youth leaders to strengthen their sense of social responsibility, promote cross-cultural exchanges, enhance innovation awareness, and contribute to world development. Keynote speakers to the event include Liu Minhua, Deputy Director of the Beijing Bureau of Talent Work, Lu Lihua, Executive Vice President of Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and Liang Jie, Deputy General Manager of Shougang Group, delivered speeches. Robert Ainslie, Executive Secretary of the LSA, Professor Nicholas Rawlins, former Vice President of Oxford University, Keith Zimmerman, former University Secretary of The Open University, Rachel Wolff, Response Director for Bangladesh Refugees, World Vision International, etc. They interacted with students and encouraged young people to focus on global sustainable development and contribute their wisdom to the community of shared future.

109 youth leaders from 28 countries and regions participated in the event, including 51 non-Chinese and 13 people from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Themed with “innovation, responsibility, and development”, the four-day event included main forum, discussions, and presentation of innovation projects. Representatives from BJUT actively participated in the discussions and dared to innovate, showcasing the spirit and demeanor BJUT students. Chen Bing from the Fan Gongxiu Honors College, Ji Yuan from the Beijing-Dublin International College, and Cathy from the College of International Education worked with their teammates on “poverty reduction”, “education”, and “sustainable development” topics respectively, made innovative proposals, and won “Award for Most Outstanding Projects”.

During the event, exchange of minds and collaboration further improved the awareness of social responsibility in students. It enhanced exchange and interaction among college students around the world, improved their global vision and intercultural communication skills, and spread the essence of Chinese culture. Yang Minghan from the Beijing-Dublin College said “the Belt and Road Youth Leaders event allowed me to experience a different learning atmosphere. I worked with teammates to simplify a complicated plan. I shared my ideas with people of different ages and learned from their experience. It exposed me to diversified cultures, broadened my horizon and enhanced my knowledge.” As for Li Ya’ou from the Fan Gongxiu College, it was a great honor to learn from and work with great young people from the world. “The event has broadened my mind and improved my problem-solving ability. I hope I can have the opportunity to do it again in the future.”

During the event, foreign students visited the Shougang Winter Olympic Park, Zhongguancun Science Park, Peking University, Juyong Pass of the Great Wall and the Summer Palace with their BJUT buddies for first-hand Chinese culture experience.