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Photo: Wuhan University in China has launched its Luojlia Global Summer School 2024, which is focused on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Credit: Wuhan University. - Photo: 2024

Chinese University Leads with Innovative SDG Summer School

By Viliame Tawanakoro*

WUHAN, China | 27 July 2024. (IDN | Wansolwara) — An innovative summer school program by China’s Wuhan University focusing on reporting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) concluded on 26 July with its coordinator Professor Ji Li declaring “this will be the first of many more to come”.

The Luojlia Global Summer School 2024, focused on SDGs this year aiming to train young communicators towards global sustainability and leadership. The program included more than 30 university students from diverse backgrounds. In addition to about 10 Chinese students, it included students from Vietnam, Laos, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, United States and the Fiji Islands.

“SDG is not a slogan but an action,” argues Professor Ji Li, a professor in the School of Journalism and Communication at Wuhan University.

“As a world-class comprehensive research university domestically and internationally, why don’t we run an SDG-focused program when we welcome so many international students on our campus?” she asks, arguing that the SDGs provided a “shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet now and in the future”.

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Communication Professor Ji Li lecturing. Credit: Wuhan University.

“Chinese people cherish peace and prosperity, which have only been achieved in recent history for a short time. We have developed in recent years based on our own experiences and lessons learned,” noted Prof Li.

She said the program’s goal was to build a network of young people to promote the SDG idea and share with the world “what we have experienced, what we have learned, and what we can do collaboratively to inspire youth to work together to create a better world”.

Prof Li describes the program’s vision as “to let the youth do their job on SDGs. (by) helping them to become future leaders, enlightening the youth with the ideas”. It is about training them with essential skills to practice the ideas. Build a network to work together “when the youth innovate bright ideas”, she explained further.

Different priorities

Dr Kalinga Seneviratne, a Senior Development Journalist and Consultant to the Summer School Program, who also taught at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji, said students from different countries may have different priorities to bring to discussions and projects related to the SDGs.

“For Vietnamese, food security due to Mekong River flows decreasing or salivating could be an issue. For the Pacific, the impact of climate change on coastal communities, in particular, would be an issue. For Sri Lanka, the impact of the debt crisis on public health and education may take priority,” he explained.

He said students could develop some of the key skills or competencies through their participation in this summer school and understand the SDGs through the content or perspective of grassroots communities.

The focus of the program, Dr Seneviratne explained, is to teach young people “how to listen to their (peoples’) concerns and draft reports to reflect these without pointing fingers at governments purely because governments are supposed to be accountable to the people.” And he argues, that there are many other players that should be held accountable, and “students need to understand these relationships.”

The program not only imparted theoretical knowledge but also fosters practical skills through open discussions, field trips, and interactive sessions led by esteemed professors and experts in various fields from Tashkent State University of Economics (Uzbekistan), Wuhan University, Duke University (USA), and many more. The program also included a lecture via zoom from China’s Xinhua news agency’s North American correspondent based in Mexico on how the Chinese media looks at development and political issues from that region.

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The program not only imparts theoretical knowledge but also fosters practical skills through open discussions, field trips, and interactive sessions led by esteemed professors and experts in various fields from Tashkent State University of Economics (Uzbekistan), Wuhan University, Duke University (USA), and many more. Credit: Wuhan University

Benuka Senadheera, a student from the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka, a participant in the summer program said the insights he gained from both theoretical and practical lectures expanded his understanding of the sustainable challenges faced by different regions, including developed countries.

“Coming from a South Asian country, sustainable development has always been in the discourse of our learning curriculum. However, due to the poor living conditions of the general public, the discourse is limited to academic gatherings and interested parties such as NGOs,” he noted.

Powerful impact on the general public

Senadheera said at this global event, he wanted to gain insight into how to apply sustainability to our projects to have a powerful impact on the general public.

Among the many Wuhan University students involved in this program, Danhua Liao expressed her appreciation for participating in this cross-collaboration summer program. “In my view, challenges are always there, and I really appreciate the summer program with the focus on SDGs, which emphasises the whole benefits to mankind.”

Liao said learning with students from different cultures has been wonderful and has improved her experience during the summer school. “Although we may face language barriers that hinder our understanding, I believe it’s crucial to be courageous in expressing ourselves and striving to comprehend each other,” she added.

Commerce student Phoutthasack Senamounty from the National University of Laos shared similar sentiments. “This program has motivated me a whole lot, from the economic point of – a nation cannot survive without its people”, he noted, adding, “this has prepared me to step into my role of contributing to aiding my country. I have had the opportunity to lead projects, discuss, create guidelines for the SDGs, and bring these approaches from China’s eyes to the home country of Laos”.

Students can develop some of the key skills or competencies through their participation in this summer school, and by introducing the concept of mindful communications, the students were encouraged to understand the SDGs through the context or perspective of grassroots communities.

Through Wuhan University’s visionary approach, the summer school program, many participants felt, should stand as a beacon of empowerment and collaboration, united under the banner of the SDGs, which aim to cultivate a new generation of leaders equipped to drive meaningful change worldwide.

*Viliame Tawanakoro is a student at The University of the South Pacific, who attended the Summer School Program at Wuhan University in China. This story has been transmitted by IDN-InDepthNews under arrangements with the University of the South Pacific students’ newspaper Wansolwara. [IDN-InDepthNrews]

Photo: Wuhan University in China has launched its Luojlia Global Summer School 2024, which is focused on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Credit: Wuhan University.

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