Hong Kong Youth Leadership College at MGIMO
On November 14th, 2019 MGIMO Odintsovo welcomed students from the Hong Kong Youth Leadership College for a tour of our campus and facilities, and to discuss the potential for cooperation between our institutions.
HKYLC is a non-profit academic organization in Hong Kong which aims to create a platform for the continued educational development of undergraduate and post-graduate students, with support from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Government. This organization has served thousands of students through leadership trainings and other events since its inception in 2017.
In support of the Belt and Road initiative, and in order to cultivate international talent, twenty-three students and three administrators of the "Walk and Film Together - Russia Youth Exchange Program" from HKYLC are in Moscow from Nov. 8th through Nov. 17th, and plan on visiting some of the most famous cultural and political landmarks, as well as making stops at partner universities and organizations. The aim of this program is to provide its young participants with an opportunity to gain a better overall understanding of Russia, and to promote cross-cultural exchange.
After meeting with the Director of MGIMO Odintsovo, Dr. Sergey Vasiliev, the students were treated to a tour of MGIMO's fantastic sports facilities, which are available for use year round for both resident and exchange students. Following the tour, our visitors attended a brief introductory lecture about the history of MGIMO and the Odintsovo campus in particular. Students also learned about the various international academic exchange programs available at Odintsovo, about our joint ventures and cooperation with partner universities worldwide. Rounding out the informative part of our campus tour, HKYLC students learned about MGIMO's Summer Program for Foreigners during a short presentation by the program Director, Igor Viktorov.
Perhaps one of the most interesting parts of the meetup was the youth discussion session, wherein students from HKYLC split up into three groups along with attending students from MGIMO Odintsovo, several of whom are currently studying Cantonese and Mandarin. These three groups of students exchanged gifts, discussed campus life and answered each others questions about their countries of origin, their cultures and lifestyles. The discussions lasted for over an hour, and gave much needed insight to both Russian and Hong Kong students about their counterparts’ academic and everyday life experiences.
MGIMO Odintsovo and HKYLC staff noted the beneficial nature of this event for their students, and discussed options for further cooperation, including repeat and reciprocal visits and the possibility of facilitating student exchanges in the future.