Four professors from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) have been elected as Cheung Kong Chair Professors to collaborate with four leading mainland universities, including Tsinghua University and Huazhong University of Science and Technology, to nurture professionals and conduct research.

Jointly established by the Ministry of Education and Li Ka Shing Foundation in 1998, the Cheung Kong Scholars Programme invites distinguished scholars to help mainland institutions on research and educational projects. A total of 109 outstanding scholars from all over the world were elected Cheung Kong Chair Professors this year. Ten were from Hong Kong, with CityU boasting the most of any local institution.

Professor Way Kuo, CityU President, said the University has strived to expand its collaboration with mainland institutions over the years through its established networks. With such sustained effort, Professor Kuo stressed that CityU would make a tangible contribution to help mainland China nurture talent and create opportunities for Hong Kong to develop itself into an educational hub.

“CityU will continue to recruit outstanding students from more than 20 mainland provinces and cities and strengthen its collaboration with mainland institutions to train professionals. The appointment of four CityU academics as Cheung Kong Chair Professors not only exemplifies the University’s commitment to promoting academic exchange between mainland and Hong Kong institutions, but also serves as an international recognition of CityU’s outstanding faculty,” said Professor Kuo.

Professor Gary Feng Gang, Associate Provost for Academic Planning and Undergraduate Education and Chair Professor of the Department of Manufacturing Engineering and Engineering Management, is an expert in intelligent systems and control. He will work with Nanjing University of Science and Technology to supervise PhD students, post-doctoral fellows and young scholars and conduct research in related fields. Intelligent systems and control, a frontier technology of importance to China and elsewhere, can be applied widely in engineering disciplines such as energy systems, mechatronic systems and communications.

Professor Wei Kwok-kee, Dean of College of Business and Chair Professor of Information Systems, will collaborate with Huazhong University of Science and Technology to nurture postgraduate students and young teachers in management science and information systems. He will also introduce new concepts of international research, with an emphasis on mobile commerce. As mobile phones are widely used in the mainland, Professor Wei said there is a huge potential market for mobile commerce. He will study with Huazhong University of Science and Technology on how mainland enterprises can explore new markets by using information technology.

Professor Leon Zhao, Head and Chair Professor of the Department of Information Systems, will help Tsinghua University supervise PhD students and post-doctoral fellows in the area of service science. As internet technology rapidly develops, mainland enterprises are implementing workflow automation by using web-based operation systems to manage and streamline their workflow to improve service quality. He will undertake research in related areas with Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management.

Professor Lai Kin-keung, Chair Professor of Management Science, will cooperate with North China Electric Power University to study energy economics and management. North China Electric Power University was established by the Ministry of Education together with a board formed by representatives of seven major electricity corporations, including State Grid Corporation of China. Professor Lai will work with the university, which has close ties with electricity companies, to conduct a series of research projects on energy management. The research will cover topics such as energy pricing strategies, energy supply chain management, energy allocation and distribution strategies and energy forecasting.

The Cheung Kong Scholars Programme is one of the major talent nurturing programmes of the Ministry of Education. With its mission focused on the recruitment of professors, appointments of chair professors and the launch of the Cheung Kong Scholars Achievement Award, the programme has won wide public acclaim and particular praise from the academic and higher education sectors.