Teaching & Learning

1. "Promote the creative transformation and innovative development of Chinese excellent traditional culture"

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that it is necessary to "promote the creative transformation and innovative development of Chinese excellent traditional culture". The countryside is the place where the excellent traditional Chinese culture is rooted and where the outstanding achievements of farming civilization gather. "If the nation is to be rejuvenated, the village must be revitalized." Using the power of creativity to excavate local cultural resources in the countryside and tell local cultural stories well is an important way for the creative and cultural industries to empower rural revitalization.

The launching ceremony of the "2025 Ministry of Education : Mainland China ,Hong Kong and Macao Higher Education Teachers and Students Exchange Program Project - Art Rural Development - More Than Just a Concept, Youth Rural Innovation Workshop" was held in Yaoli Village, Shanlian Town. The workshop was initiated by the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Affairs Office of the Ministry of Education, co-hosted by the Faculty of Art and Design of Macau Polytechnic University and the Cultural Industry Research Institute of Peking University, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the People's Government of Nanxun District, Huzhou City, the Huzhou Hailian Association, and the Overseas Chinese Federation of Nanxun District. The Rural Cultural and Creative Professional Committee of the association serves as the academic guidance unit. 35 teachers and students from the Macau Polytechnic University, Peking University, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong will experience the rich history and culture and unique natural scenery of Shanlian through a week-long "village experience",and explore the symbiosis of art, culture, creativity and land, countryside and nature relation.

2. The project is a successful example of cross-regional, cross-school, interdisciplinary and other cross-field cooperation

A total of 32 students were recruited for Art Rural Development - More Than Just a Concept, Youth Rural Innovation Workshop, of which the majority were students from Macau Polytechnic University (16 in total), and the remaining 16 students were from Peking University, the Chinese University of Hong Kong,  Nanjing University and other universities. 

Speakers at the workshop include Associate Professor Wong In Nga, Programme Coordinator of the Design Programme  of the Faculty of Art and Design of Macau Polytechnic University, Professor Xiang Yong of Peking University, and Associate Professor  Lin Guowei of  the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

3. The project has been reported by the local municipal government, academic circles, media and other circles and received unanimous praise

The project has been highly praised by the local municipal government, including the People's Government of Nanxun District, Huzhou City, Huzhou Hailian Association, Nanxun District Overseas Chinese Federation, China Cultural Industry Association, etc. Supported and affirmed by Shanghai University and other academic circles; it has received multiple reports and unanimous praise from media such as China News, Wenchuang China, Shanlian Wenlv, Wenlv China, and Xiangchuang China. 

In order to promote cross-strait exchanges and to build up the innovative development of cultural industries with rural characteristics, young students from the Macao Polytechnic University, Peking University and other universities participated in a one-week workshop.

The workshop was held in Yoli Village, Nanning District, Huzhou City, with the participation of 16 students from the Macao Polytechnic University (MPU) led by Associate Professor Wong In Nga, as well as 18 teachers and students from other universities. Combining the innovative training mode of cultural and creative industry talents in higher education institutions with the talent needs of local rural cultural industry development, the aim is to guide university students into the villages, conduct practical creative project planning and operational practice exploration, and help local villages revitalize their work with the cultural and creative thinking of creative management, art empowerment, and aesthetics of life.

The trainees visited the Shanlian Paste Pen Museum and Shanlian Lake Pen Factory for an in-depth cultural understanding. At the opening ceremony of the camp, Mr. Shi Zengzhong, Executive Vice Minister of the United Front Work Department of the Nanning District Committee, Secretary of the Federation of Industry and Commerce and Director of the Overseas Compatriot Affairs Office, warmly welcomed the experts and professors from the Macao Polytechnic University, Peking University, and teachers and students to the camp, and introduced the development of Nanning in the areas of culture and industry-academia-research exchanges, and integration of agriculture, culture, and tourism in Nanning District. Associate Professor Wong In Nga also commented on the practical experience of this activity and his thoughts on the direction of design, and hoped that the students could gain their own insights and experiences in this activity.

This activity is divided into two parts, practical and theoretical, practical around the "village construction" as the theme of creative activities, the intention is to broaden the thinking of students, unite the strength of the group to put forward a team plan for the transformation of the countryside; and the theoretical direction is to invite teachers and designers to teach students, so that students can learn the real practical village construction effective methods and the design direction. Associate Professor Wong In Nga of the PolyU shared the regional renovation plan , so that the students could understand the real plan, which was beneficial for the students to put forward more practical suggestions for the "village revitalization". In the end, students from Macao Polytechnic University and other universities of put forward good opinions and ideas on the transformation of villages and the construction of villages and put forward four proposals. Through this exchange activity, students expressed that it was an opportunity for them to go into the villages and understand the real face of the villages, and students also burst out their own unique thinking in the exchange session, which also facilitated and exchanged their understanding of the development of "Village Revitalization".

1. The Workshop adopts a mode of teaching and learning activities that combines offline teaching and field research

The ": Art Rural Development - More Than Just a Concept, Youth Rural Innovation Workshop " adopts a mode of teaching and learning activities that combines offline teaching and field research, rationally arranges the course flow, and combines the stage feedback to lay a solid theoretical foundation for the students' field research, so that they can carry out the research with questions and master a certain practical methodology of the research, which well promotes the assimilation of the contents of the course and the conversion of the results of the research.

2. The project's continuity and scalability will lead to a more profound academic impact

The project has received support and recognition from the Ministry of Education of China. The Macau Polytechnic University and Peking University have signed an agreement, and since then, workshops related to the project have been held continuously for nearly 10 years. The project began as a joint venture between the two universities a decade ago, attracted by the Chinese University of Hong Kong several years ago, and this year expanded to Southeast Asia with the inaugural 2025 International Art Symbiosis Project. This project has fostered in-depth dialogue between Yaoli Village in China and villages in South Africa, Indonesia, Thailand, South Korea, and Vietnam, adding a vivid chapter to international rural exchange.