The second phase of the Global Communication Competence Development Program for Tsinghua staff formally concluded on Thursday with a closing award ceremony.
A total of 59 staff members from 49 divisions and departments had participated in the second phase of the program, which started in June last year. The two phases of the program covered 18 themed lectures, two field visits, one workshop, and two team-building sessions.
With the participants from the first phase combined, altogether 110 Tsinghua staff members received training on global communication competence development, a figure matched with Tsinghua University’s upcoming anniversary numbers 110 as part of the anniversary celebration.
Qin Chuan, Head of Tsinghua University News Center, congratulated all the participants on their successful completion of the program, and encouraged them to make continued efforts in “strengthening theoretical foundation, embracing chances for practice, and improving skills of communication".
“There are certainly many challenges for us, but the opportunities we are facing represent probably the best period of development in Tsinghua's history." he said, as he shared some of the achievements and breakthroughs made by the University in global communication last year.
Qin also said that Tsinghua would release an upgraded version of the University’s website with a new look next month as the University celebrated its 110th anniversary.
Huang Youyi, Executive Vice-President of the Translators’ Association of China and Vice President of the China Academy of Translation, delivered a keynote speech on the topic “Telling Chinese Stories in International Communication - Reflections in the Post-Pandemic Era".
He pointed out that global communication practitioners need to overcome a set of factors such as differences between cultures, mindsets and languages, and the unpredictable influence of media, to make global communication effective.
“Against the backdrop of today’s world, each individual is a representative of his country, telling his own story and telling the story of his country,” he said, adding that it was a responsibility of every citizen to tell a good China story.
On the morning of the same day before the awarding ceremony, the second phase participants, who were divided into nine groups, presented each of their group projects on various themes online.
From these, five participants and four groups were announced “Outstanding Participants” and “Excellent Groups” respectively. They received the awards at the closing award ceremony.
Among them, two participants, Zhou Hongyan from the Office of International Affairs, and Fu Dandan from the School of Public Policy and Management, shared their experiences of participating in the program.
Following this, eight Tsinghua students were honored with the Global Student Ambassador Award for their outstanding contributions to the University’s global communication by sharing Tsinghua’s story with the world. Cassandra Ler Yiying, Ekaterina Kaligaeva, Darine Razmadze, Zhang Ruiru, Katherin THOUVENIN, Gu Nik, Enoch Wong, and Natalie Meyer received this honorary title. They are the first batch of students to receive the award.
Katherin THOUVENIN, one of the recipients and a first-year master's student from France studying at the School of Journalism and Communication, expressed her gratitude towards Tsinghua’s Global Communication Office for all the support and opportunities.
“I will continue to discover more exciting stories in the following months to share with our global audience, and make them feel part of Tsinghua despite the distance,” she added.
Cassandra, a second-year master's student from Singapore currently studying at the School of Public Policy and Management, shared her feelings via a video message. “I will remain as committed in promoting Tsinghua’s unique vitality and charm to a larger international community with what I see and experience here, using my strength in global communication,” she said.
(Reporters: Guo Lili, Sangeet Sangroula, Dong Lianqi)
