Issue 10 - Aug 2025 Research Bulletin Editorial Board
FHM Secures HK$5.96 Million in RGC Research Funding for 2025/26
The Faculty of Humanities (FHM) has achieved significant success in the 2025/26 Research Grants Council (RGC) funding exercise, securing a total of HK$5.96 million under the General Research Fund (GRF) and Early Career Scheme (ECS). This year’s results support 10 diverse research projects spanning disciplines such as Cultural Studies, Literature, History, Arts, Linguistics, and Language Education, highlighting FHM’s dedication to advancing interdisciplinary scholarship and fostering academic excellence.
PI Project title Prof John Erni (IRCCS) Health Discourses from Below: Exploring a Citizen Self-health Approach to Sustainable Care in Hong Kong Dr Fung Chi Wang (LCS) The History of Thought in the Imperial Edicts of the Song Dynasty: Shangdi, Confucius, Buddhism, and Taoism Dr Lee Ju Seong (ELE) Enhancing Speaking Skills in Less Resourced Regions: AI-mediated Informal Digital Learning of English (AI-IDLE) Dr Li Zhen Jennie (CHL) Preparing Hong Kong pre-service teachers to notice and respond to diversity: A mixed-methods, experimental study Dr Jason Petrulis (LCS) Banjo on the Black Ships: Making a Black Pacific on the Perry Expedition to Japan, 1852-1856 Dr Zoran Poposki (CCA) Zeroing Art’s Carbon Footprint: Greening Hong Kong's GLAM Sector with Bold Neutrality Strategies *Dr Pramod Sah (ELE) Fostering Racial Equity and Inclusion: Community-based Participatory Research on Linguistic Citizenship among Hong Kong’s Ethnic Minority Youths Dr Wang Cong (CHL) Linguistic and Cultural Convergence: How Cantonese and Hakka Influence the Tanka Language Prof Wang Lixun (LML) Comparative Analysis of Health Concepts among the Youth and the Elderly in Hong Kong: A Corpus-based Study *Dr Zhang Zimu (LCS) Tracing the Chinese Pearl River Waterscape through Eco-arts
The 10th International Conference on Teaching Chinese as a Second Language (CHL)
The 10th International Conference on Teaching Chinese as a Second Language, themed ‘Discipline Formation and Development’, was co-organised by CHL, Graduate School, CKC TechCulture Innovation Centre at EdUHK, alongside Shandong International Chinese Education Research Association, International Education College of Shandong University, and International Journal of Chinese Language Education (IJCLE). The event took place on 27-28 May with support from the International Society for Chinese Language Teaching and Ministry of Education, China.
- Over 250 participants from Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, UK, France, USA, etc.
- Included 8 keynote speeches, 13 expert forums, and 156 paper presentations.
- Focused on ‘Discipline Formation and Development’ in Chinese language education.
- Covered topics such as AI-assisted teaching, teacher training, intercultural communication, and inclusive education.
- Featured discussions on learner diversity and digital-age teaching resources and methods.
- Organised various exchange activities, including ‘Deans’ Forum’ and ‘IJCLE Seminar’.
For more information, please contact Dr Zhang Ling at zhangl@eduhk.hk.
Details
Knowledge Transfer: Online Corpus-Based Language Pedagogy Workshop Series 2025 (LML)
- LML and Global English Education China Assembly cohosted the Online Corpus-Based Language Pedagogy Workshop Series 2025.
- The workshop engaged over 1000 language teachers and researchers, demonstrating how AI-powered corpus tools can transform language education and research.
- Nine distinguished speakers were invited to lead the workshops, including Dr Angel Ma, Dr Rebecca Chen, and Prof Jackie Lee from LML.
- Dr Angel Ma presented a workshop titled “Corpus-Based Language Pedagogy 2.0: Harnessing the Power of AI” on 14 February 2025, with an attendance of over 500 participants.
- Dr Rebecca Chen conducted a workshop titled “Enhancing English Speaking with AI & Spoken Corpus” on 12 March 2025, with an attendance of over 300 participants.
- Prof Jackie Lee delivered a workshop titled “COCA Unleashed: Maximising Its Potential for Language Learning and Teaching” on 26 March 2025, attended by over 160 participants.
For more information, please contact us at lml@eduhk.hk.
Fellowship participation in the Heidelberg University Visiting Fellowship “Worldmaking from a Global Perspective: A Dialogue with China” (LCS)
Dr Zimu Zhang (LCS and IRCCS) has been invited as a visiting fellow from June to July 2025 at Heidelberg University’s Center for Asian and Transcultural Studies, as part of the center’s worldmaking project “Epochal Life Worlds: Man, Nature and Technology in Narratives of Crisis and Change”. During the fellowship, Dr Zhang worked on a new transdisciplinary research project on pollen allergy cultures in contemporary China.
- The project examines pollen allergy as a cultural phenomenon—a co-constitution of contemporary life under plant-human entanglement.
Her research draws on Heidelberg University’s extensive library resources in China studies, particularly those related to environment history and medical history.
Dr Zhang participated in the regular fellows’ seminars and two international conferences, engaging with a global network of China studies scholars across multiple disciplines.
She also hosted a screening of Hong Kong eco-short films in Heidelberg, followed by a discussion on eco-creative narratives from Hong Kong.
For more information, please contact Dr Zhang at zhangzimu@eduhk.hk.
Details
Jason Petrulis wins award for article on “jawbone/quijada” musical instrument (LCS)
Jason Petrulis, Assistant Professor of Global History (LCS), recently was awarded honorable mention for the 2025 Frances Densmore Prize from the American Musical Instrument Society. His winning article, “From Jonkonnu and Son de los diablos to Congo Square and Son Jarocho: Global Histories of the Jawbone/Quijada as a Black Musical Instrument,” was published in November 2024 in American Music.
- A global history of the horse/mule/donkey/cow jawbone, which analyzes this Black musical instrument across a dozen countries and 500 years.
- The prize committee “was impressed by the article’s significant contribution to organology as it recontextualizes the jawbone/quijada, highlighting its multifaceted cultural roles.”
- Read the article here (via EdU Library).
For more information, please contact Dr Petrulis at petrulis@eduhk.hk.
ELE’s 6th International KT Forum: Empowering Human-Centric ELT (ELE)
On 5 May 2025, the Department of English Language Education (ELE) teamed up with Universitas Sebelas Maret (UNS) and TEFLIN to host the 6th International Knowledge Transfer Forum, “Human-centric ELT: Empowering Educators through Collaborative Innovation and Deep Learning” at Muhammadiyah University of Surakarta (MUS).
- The day was enriched by insights from leading voices in the field: Prof. Harun Joko Prayitno (Rector, MUS), Dr Didik Suhardi (Chairman, Muhammadiyah Central Board), Prof. Utami Widiati (TEFLIN President), Dr Nur Arifah Drajati (UNS), Dr Ju Seong Lee, Dr Tim Taylor, and Ms. Winsy Wan Yee Lai (EdUHK)
- The hybrid event brought together 950 passionate educators from 20 provinces and 65 regions across Indonesia, underscoring its truly national scale.
- Beyond the forum, the ELE team visited SMP Muhammadiyah, where they engaged with students and participated in a podcast to share firsthand stories of research, teaching, and learning.
For more information, please contact us at ele@eduhk.hk.
.png)
Understanding the Motivations of Volunteer Teachers in Sustaining a Community-Based Art Education Programme for Rural-to-Urban Migrant Children in China (CCA)
Dr Luo’s study explores what motivates volunteer teachers to sustain a community-based art education (CBAE) programme for rural-to-urban migrant children in China, highlighting both altruistic and egoistic motivations. This study contributes to the understanding of the factors that drive consistent and enduring volunteer teaching behaviour.
- Altruistic motivations include promoting educational equity and supporting migrant children’s growth.
- The findings showed that two volunteers were intrinsically motivated, enjoying art teaching and sharing local culture while two others demonstrated extrinsic motivations, such as career advancement and employment needs.
- Prior artistic experiences shaped volunteers’ sustained commitment, while their current roles and responsibilities influenced their motivation levels.
- Leveraging students’ Funds of Knowledge is key for effective CBAE programmes.
For more information, please contact Dr Luo Ning Luna at nluo@eduhk.hk.
Online Symposium "Creaturely Stories – Interdisciplinary Dialogues of Sustainable Humanities Research" (IRCCS)
The Creaturely Stories symposium, held on 19 May 2025, organized by the Sustainable Humanities Project (SUSHUM), IRCCS (EdUHK), brought together scholars and practitioners to explore how narratives about non-human life shape sustainability. Hosted online via Zoom, the event featured two panels and a wildlife film screening.
- Event included speakers from HKU, Lingnan University, the University of Oulu, and eco-art practitioners.
- The panels examined legal and cultural approaches to island and marine wildlife conservation and discussed multispecies storytelling in urban environments.
- The film “Life (Cycle) of the Hong Kong Newt” was screened, followed by a discussion with the filmmaker, Fung Hon Shing.
- Themes ranged from eco-legal critiques to community-based art and conservation, with audience engagement facilitated through Q&A sessions and interdisciplinary dialogue.
- The symposium fostered cross-sector discussions on sustainability, storytelling, and human-creature coexistence.
For more information, please contact us at cchokiu@eduhk.hk.
Academic Visit to Beijing Language and Culture University (CRCLE)
- Dr Yan Jing, representing CRCLE, conducted an academic visit to Beijing Language and Culture University from 4 to 11 June 2025.
- The visit aimed to strengthen academic exchange in international Chinese language education and reinforced reciprocal exchanges and joint research initiatives
- A series of seminars were delivered by Dr Yan, fostering scholarly dialogue between the two institutions.
For more information, please contact Dr Yan Jing at yanj@eduhk.hk.
Enhancing Social Care through Research on Care Discourse (CRLLS)
Dr Jesse Yip has led a series of research projects addressing various care-related issues in Hong Kong society. These projects focus on topics including elder care cultures, the identity of autistic individuals and doctor-patient interactions, contributing to the faculty initiative, Comparative Cultures of Care (CCC) and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- Supported by the Faculty Development Fund, Dr Yip’s project employs corpus-assisted discourse analysis to explore and compare elder care cultures.
- Funded by the Early Career Scheme, Dr Yip leads a project examining Chinese news representation of autistic individuals and their self-perceptions.
- Dr Yip has also published a journal article in Health Communication examining practitioner-parent-child communication in Traditional Chinese Medicine consultations.
- These research projects align with the SGDs of Good Health and Well-Being, Reduced Inequalities, and Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions.
For more information, please contact us at crlls@eduhk.hk.
Reimagining Cultural Studies for a Connected World (IRCCS)
Over the past three years, IRCCS has achieved substantial milestones that underscore its dynamic role in advancing cultural research. Its core members have secured 13 RGC-funded projects, yielding a remarkable output of over 100 scholarly publications. The Centre has also demonstrated strong leadership in convening academic dialogues, having hosted six international conferences and two local symposia that brought together distinguished scholars, practitioners, and community stakeholders.
- Research Priorities: Critical Migration Studies, Comparative Cultures of Care: An Interdisciplinary Project, and One City One Book Hong Kong
- Research Strengths: Interdisciplinary breadth and knowledge transfer
- Emerging Trends: Evolving digital landscape
- Incubator and Catalyst: Advancing FHM’s strategic foci
- Future Directions: Enhancing research portfolio and global engagement
- The Essence of IRCCS: Culture as care
For more information, please contact us at irccs@eduhk.hk.
EdUHK's Groundbreaking Creative Arts Research Centre Championing Public Value (RCCAPV)
The Research Centre for Creative Arts and Public Value (RCCAPV) was established in July 2025. This innovative centre aims to become an internationally recognised university-level institution at EdUHK, harnessing the transformative power of creative arts to generate meaningful public value.
In an interview with FHM Research Bulletin, RCCAPV Director Prof Mette Hjort, Head of the Department of Literature and Cultural Studies at FHM and Chair Professor of Film and Media Studies, outlined the Centre's vision, core focus areas, strategic partnerships, and its commitment to promoting public value across society.
- Scope: From traditional forms to emerging expressions
- Foci: Artistic projects as catalysts for policy formation, creative arts for human flourishing, and global wisdom exchange in a Metaverse Creative Arts Lab
- Vision: Supporting human thriving through arts practices
- Collaborations: Focusing on the African continent
- Public Value: Generating through three channels
For more information, please contact us at rccapv@eduhk.hk.