Advertisement
Opinion

For the youth of China and the US, there’s no better time to study abroad and break down walls

Curtis Chin says young minds in the US and China need exposure to other viewpoints. While studying overseas has many benefits, efforts can also be made at home to understand all who lead different lives

Reading Time:4 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Curtis Chin says young minds in the US and China need exposure to other viewpoints. While studying overseas has many benefits, efforts can also be made at home to understand all who lead different lives
Curtis Chin
More effort and resources should be dedicated to ensuring our youth better understand one another – both at home and abroad. Illustration: Craig Stephens
More effort and resources should be dedicated to ensuring our youth better understand one another – both at home and abroad. Illustration: Craig Stephens
Understanding begins with engagement. With that in mind, as 2017 unfolds, there is certainly more reason for greater US-China engagement, and, for that matter, engagement between Hong Kong and the mainland. This should include greater study abroad and student exchange programmes, as well as investments in evaluating and improving schools and teachers.
Last year, we saw rising levels of both anti-China and anti-US rhetoric on opposite sides of the Pacific. As the US election year unfolded, China lost an international tribunal ruling on the South China Sea, and Rodrigo Duterte came to power in the Philippines. The aspirations of Hong Kong’s young people also gained global attention as youth activists took to the streets and, through elections, to the city’s Legislative Council.
The year ahead may well prove equally tumultuous, as the incoming US president Donald Trump threatens to revisit, if not overturn, accepted diplomatic protocols of the past. Tensions also continue to simmer over Beijing’s role in the selection of Hong Kong’s next chief executive.
Advertisement

Far away from the geopolitics, here is one suggestion towards greater long-term understanding. If the young are to inherit the Earth, then more effort and resources should be dedicated to ensuring our youth better understand one another – both at home and abroad.

Chinese and other foreign students threatening to crowd out Americans at elite US colleges

In our increasingly connected world, the right study-abroad programme can increase understanding of another culture and view, help with learning a second language, and give one a step up in a competitive workplace. By going abroad, students may also return with a greater appreciation of their own homes, including their rights and freedoms.

Advertisement
Select Voice
Choose your listening speed
Get through articles 2x faster
1.25x
250 WPM
Slow
Average
Fast
1.25x