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Peking University Students Explore Christchurch and Learn about City Rebuilt
12/04/2018 - The University of Canterbury (UC) was delighted to welcome a group of 12 Peking University students in January-February 2018. Along with 15 students from Beihang University, a group of 12 Peking University students visited the University of Canterbury in January – February 2018 and undertook a course called Re-imagining the city: lessons from Christchurch. This required the students to work in small groups to develop proposals for improving Christchurch, linked to the aspirations of the Christchurch Central City Recovery Plan.
PKU students are welcomed by CU and City Council (from left: Will Shannon, UC International Partnerships Coordinator; Lianne Dalziel, Christchurch Mayor; Jimmy Chen, Christchurch City Councillor; Ashley Stuart, UC student and programme support; and Jack Chaney, Christchurch City Council Civic and International Relations Coordinator)
The students were aided in this task by various lectures, discussions and site visits led by city leaders, including Christchurch Mayor, Lianne Dalziel. They also received guidance and feedback through workshops run by the UC Centre for Entrepreneurship and the Ministry of Awesome, as well as discussions with UC students. Students presented their final proposals at the end of the course and received extremely positive feedback from the audience, which included a representative from the Christchurch City Council. The aim of the course is to encourage students to reimagine what a 21st century city should and could be, gaining insights from their time in Christchurch that they can carry with them on their return home. This was the fourth group of Beida students to come to UC and UC International Partnerships Coordinator, Will Shannon said that the students were once again a credit to Peking University. “They used every minute of their short amount of time in Christchurch to engage with the city and the content of the course. Their final proposals were without exception outstanding and provided invaluable food for thought for the Christchurch residents in the audience.”
Will Shannon & Nina Hannuksela Present the Programme Certificates to PKU Students
Mr Shannon added that it was fantastic to see the strong connections that the students made with their UC counterparts and expressed enthusiasm about running the course again next year. “We would like to thank the Peking University New Zealand Centre and International Office for their ongoing support. We look forward to working together to welcome more students in 2019.” |
