Care in the community

During the eight weeks Eliz Wong spent working for a charity in Inner Mongolia last summer, the Chinese University student witnessed first-hand how NGOs empower and support disadvantaged women.

"The group offers local women access to microfinance, giving them the opportunity to exercise their rights and helping them achieve gender equality. With the money they can decide on - or at least discuss with their husbands - what plants to grow and what animals to rear, among other things," says Wong, a sociology student in her third year whose internship was organised as part of the university's I-CARE programme.

One of Wong's tasks was to interview the recipients of microfinance loans, determine how effective the assistance was and find out what other needs there were. "I lived in a village for two weeks and spent a lot of time chatting with the locals, understanding the challenges faced by the rural population in China," she says. Inspired by the experience, Wong has decided to pursue a master's degree with a focus on the development of civil society in Hong Kong, the mainland and Taiwan.

In recent years universities in Hong Kong have been rolling out programmes to promote civic and social engagement to encourage students to help solve problems in society, both locally and abroad. Rather than one-off volunteering events, these initiatives range from summer internships with NGOs and in-depth research projects, to year-long education programmes in primary schools or homes for the elderly. They aim to give students a chance to thoroughly examine an issue in society.

"University students shouldn't just spend time on acquiring [textbook] knowledge or finding a job. They should take on responsibility for our society and nation," says Professor Joseph J.Y. Sung, vice-chancellor of Chinese University and co-chairman of the steering committee of the I-CARE programme that was launched last year.