On May 12, the second Greater Bay Area Engineers Forum was held in Hong Kong. Themed “Engineering Innovation, the Greater Bay Area Connecting the World ”, the forum was hosted by the Chinese Society of Engineers (CSE), jointly organized by the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE), the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences (HKAES), the Association for the Promotion of Science and Technology of Macau, the Macau Institution of Engineers and the Guangdong Provincial Association for Science and Technology, and co-organized by dozens of science and technology societies, professional associations, institutions and relevant entities in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macau. QIAO Weifeng, an associate professor of research and Assistant to Secretary-General of International Centre for Engineering Education under the auspices of UNESCO (ICEE), was invited to the forum and delivered a keynote report. 

Titled “New Challenges and New Trends in Training Excellent Engineers”, QIAO’s report focused on ten challenges facing engineering education, i.e. adapting to the increasing complexity of engineering; adapting to the accelerated iteration of digital intelligence technology; adapting to the shortening of half-life of professional knowledge; contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals; changing the practice of “emphasizing theoretical knowledge and neglecting problem solving”; addressing the issue of “emphasizing pre-service education and neglecting post-service training”; sparking the interest of adolescents; steering the engineering competency assessment; accelerating the cross-border flow of engineers; and accelerating the development of a world-class engineering education system with Chinese characteristics. QIAO stressed the need to effectively address the “academic drift” issue, and promote the reintegration of education elements and subjects in the pursuit of engineering excellence. 

Representatives from the engineering science and technology communities of the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macau, as well as international engineering organizations attended the forum to discuss issues such as promoting exchanges and cooperation and collaborative innovation between the Mainland, Hong Kong and Macao engineering sectors. At the forum, the host initiated the establishment of “Greater Bay Area Society of Engineers”.

The Second Greater Bay Area Engineers Forum 

On June 19, the meeting between the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) and the delegation of HKIE kicked off in Beijing. The meeting was attended by WANG Chen, Vice President of CAE, TIAN Qi, Director of the International Cooperation Bureau (ICB), DING Yangbing, Deputy Director of Bureau II of CAE, BU Guoming, President of HKIE, and YE Shuiqiu, Deputy Head of the Education, Science and Technology Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong S.A.R. QIAO Weifeng, an associate professor of research, and Assistant to Secretary-General of ICEE, attended and addressed the meeting. 

QIAO Weifeng introduces ICEE

QIAO briefed the HKIE delegation on ICEE‘s work and achievements made over the past few years. ICEE has always been committed to becoming a leading think tank and a platform for international exchange and cooperation in engineering education in China.

CAE has been in close contact and cooperation with HKIE. During the meeting, the two sides conducted academic exchanges in the field of engineering, laying the foundation for in-depth cooperation in the future.