University heads from around the world are in the Chinese city of Hangzhou to attend the University Presidents' Summit this weekend. Just a few weeks ahead of the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China, the President of the University of Hong Kong, Peter Mathieson, spoke to CGTN about his opinions on education cooperation between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, and the heated debates on moral and national education in the Special Administrative Region. 

Mathieson reckons that massive progress has been made at the university but it's still not enough.

He said, “I suppose one of the really key things that we need to develop more, is our work with our alumni. We've been taking students now from the mainland for 15 or 16 years, and many of these students now are back in China, very successful. And we need to make sure that we communicate with them, we remain part of their lives, and they remain part of our lives. And I think this is true for our university in Hong Kong as well. Everyone is interested in links with the mainland, everyone is working on how to prioritize. China is such a huge country, with so many people that we have to focus, we have to focus on particular areas of strength. And I think it is the way that certainly we think in the University of Hong Kong." 

When asked about his views on heated debates about moral and national education in Hong Kong in recent years, Mathieson said that the University of Hong Kong needs to focus on its core principle and vision. The higher learning institution needs to provide the best opportunities for students and staff, and not be disturbed by short-term turbulence. He elaborated that universities are long-term organizations lasting hundreds of years, and that old and stable universities have to be able to weather the storm – to survive all the ups and downs of modern politics. 

Mathieson added, “There is so much opportunity. We must capitalize on the positives, and not to be too worried about the negatives. I think education is the answer to everything. So I think a lot of it is about education. Certainly for the young generation, many of them have been born in the period of time since the handover, since 1997. So all of my new students coming to the university, they were all born since the handover. So the only life they have known is the current situation in Hong Kong. And they hear the past. People always think the past was rosier and better. But I think we need to encourage them to understand that there are many opportunities, and they have opportunities that other young people around the world would really be envious of, to link with China, to explore what's going on in China, the rest of Asia, and indeed the whole of the world."