获委任为香港中文大学第七任校长，我感到无比荣幸又感到兢兢业业。创办这所大学的，是一群以弘扬中国文化与思想为己任的学 者，他们以无比的热情教育年轻人成为成熟和负责任的成人。这些前辈先贤指出，要令我们的国家和世界变得更进步更美好，科学与技术固然重要，但人文学科也不可或缺。他们凭着这些信念，在六十多年前为这所大学奠下稳固的根基。

    中文大学在歷任校长的英明領导下，成为亚洲顶尖的研究型综合大学。我们引以为傲的双语双文化传统、融会东西文化的深厚人文主义精神、坚定推行的通 識和全人教育，以及借着书院提供的独特生活教育和关顾，在过去近半个世纪令我们屹立于世界一流学府之林。但是，我们今天面对前所未有的挑战。

    全球的大学教育正在急遽改变。世界各国埋首于追逐经济发展；推动学者做研究的是资源，而非对知識的好奇；大学重视排名，而忽略培育年轻的靈魂的使 命；教师的回报主要取决于他们的「生产力」，而非学养，凡此种种，都令危机悄然出现。如果这个趋势持续，世界各国就只会制造出汲汲于利的成品和个人，而不 是有主見、尊重見解不同于己者、能洞察别人的需要，以及有悲天悯人心肠的负责任公民。同时，想象力和创造力、科学研究的人文内涵，以及慎思明辨的能力将逐 渐丧失。教育的价值也会湮没。

    奥尔科特說过：「教育是把思想从靈魂解放出來，与外界事物聯系，并返观自省，从而洞察其真实和形态。」当国家高谈经济发展之际，大家不要忘记在世 界上最富裕的国家仍然有饥民和病人；当全世界的目光都放在发展科学、生产食物和延长寿命之时，请牢记「西方最大的疾病不是肺痨或者痲疯，而是爱的贫 瘠」（德蘭修女）。在中大这所综合大学，科技与人文齐头并进，符合世界的需要。我们将继续捍卫人文价值、培养学生敏于体察别人的需要和苦难，以及教导他们欣赏艺术和音樂。

    泰戈尔提醒我们，「单单获得知識和挪取他人的意念，是无法令心靈得到真正的自由；心靈的真正自由，乃源于形成自己的判断标准，萌生自己的想法。」 苏格拉底說：「未经反省的人生，是不值得人活的。」今天的教育重视信息与技能，不重视追求真理和创造力。学生花太多时间记诵事实，而不是对既有概念反思批 判。不懂得反思自省会令目标含糊，信念不坚定，最终迷失方向。训練学生慎思明辨是高等教育的重要职责，而我们持之以恒的是：歷久弥新的通識教育传统，书院无微不至的关顾，以及对思想和信仰兼容并蓄的开放精神。

    尼赫魯說过：「和平是…不能分割的，自由亦然。现在，繁荣以至灾难也是一样，因为这个世界已畛域难分，无法再划分为互相隔绝的部分。」我们比起以 前更须依靠素未谋面的人，这些人也要依靠我们。我们需要解决的问题──经济的、环保的、宗教的和政治的──无論就其范围和性质而言，都是牵涉全球的。我们 渐渐明白，我们全都是世界公民，不但应致力发扬中国文化，还要了解其他民族和国家面对的挑战。中文大学致力与其他世界知名学府携手，开展教学与研究的合 作，以及学术交流和交换学生，并透过我们的书院提倡社会服务，令本校师生以及大家都明白自己是地球村一员。我们致力保护环境，也是在履行世界一分子应尽的 责任。我们应当学习回应世界的需要，而非在象牙塔内画地自限。

    保存人文精神、培养创新和批判思维，以及造就世界公民，是我们的指导原则，我们会继续凭着这些原则來教育学生，并带領大学迈进下一个五十年及更长 远的未來。如果老师缺乏热诚、奉献精神和使命感，我们就无法达成这些使命；如果没有政府、慈善家和校友的信赖和支持，我们就难以实现这些梦想；更重要的 是，如果没有不断探索知識、永远渴求真理和不屈不挠力争上游的勤奋学生，我们就不能保持这些大学教育的理想。

    主席先生，我自医学院毕业后便加入中文大学，既当医生，也从事研究和教学。当了医生二十五年，我知道医学既是科学又是艺术；从事学术研究二十五 年，我学会一方面维持独立判断，一方面与同事羣策羣力；为人师表二十五年，我深深体会到教育需要从心出发，也要进入靈魂深处。我承諾竭尽所能，以热忱和坚 持不懈的精神，在今后的日子服务大学。校长一职，任重而道远。知道我前面的挑战，不比我以往的少。前面的责任，比以往更重更大。但钱穆先生的辞，给我无限 鼓勵。「艰险我奋进，困乏我多情。千斤担子兩肩挑，趁青春（我想我还剩下一点），结队向前行。珍重珍重，这是我中大精神。」

I stand before you greatly honored and with humility to be appointed as the 7th Vice-Chancellor and President of The Chinese University of Hong Kong. This University was founded by scholars who embraced Chinese culture and philosophy, who had great passion to educate young men and women to become mature and responsible adults, who pointed out that we need humanities as much as science and technology to make our country and our world a better place. And with these commitments they laid solid foundations for our University over 60 years ago.

Under the capable leadership of my predecessors, The Chinese University of Hong Kong has become one of the top comprehensive research universities in Asia. Our cherished traditions in bilingualism and biculturalism, our heritage of profound humanitarianism, blending Eastern and Western cultures, our commitment to general education and whole-person development and our unique non-formal education and pastoral care through our colleges has put us on the global map of higher education in the past 50 years. But today we are facing unprecedented challenges.

Radical changes are occurring in university education worldwide. A silent crisis has started when nations thirst for economic growth, researchers are driven by the search for resources more than curiosity, universities look up to rankings more than nurturing young souls, and professors are rewarded primarily by their “productivity” rather than their scholarship. If this trend continues, nations all over the world will only be producing revenue-generating products and individuals, rather than responsible citizens; responsible citizens who can think for themselves, respect those who are different and understand others’ sufferings and needs. On the other hand, the imaginative and creative capability, the humanistic aspects of scientific research, and the capacity for rigorous critical thinking will diminish. The value of education will be lost.

Bronson Alcott said: “Education is that process by which thought is opened out of the soul, and, associated with outward things, is reflected back upon itself, and thus made conscious of its reality and shape”. When the nations talk about economic growth, we must not forget there are still hunger and sickness in even the wealthiest countries in the world. When the world focuses on scientific advancement, food production and prolonged longevity, we should be reminded that “the most common disease is not tuberculosis or leprosy, but the hunger for love” (Mother Teresa). As a comprehensive University, our balance of science and technology against humanities meets the demand in this world. In our University we will continue to uphold human values, to cultivate sensitivity to people’s need and suffering, to educate for appreciation of the arts and music.

Tagore reminded us that “Our mind does not gain true freedom by acquiring materials for knowledge and possessing other people’s ideas but by forming its own standards of judgment and producing its own thoughts”. Socrates proclaimed that “the unexamined life is not worth living for a human being”. Today’s education puts more emphasis on information and skill, less on pursuit of truth and creativity. Too much time is spent on retaining facts rather than critiquing concepts. A lack of training in self-reflection and examination leads to unclarity about goals, wavering of opinions and ends up with loss of direction. Training of a critical mind is a crucial role of higher education. It is embraced in our time-honored tradition in general education, in our belief in college pastoral care and in our openness to all ideologies and beliefs.

Jawaharlal Nehru said: “Peace is…indivisible, so is freedom, so is prosperity now, and so also is disaster in this One World that can no longer be split into isolated fragments.” More than ever, we depend on people we have never met and they also depend on us. The problems we need to solve – economic, environmental, religious and political – are global in their scope and nature. We gradually come to realize that we are all citizens of the world. We need to embrace our Chinese culture on the one hand, but also need to know the challenges of different ethnic groups and other nations. The University’s commitment to research and teaching collaborations with other world-renowned institutions, in provision of student and academic exchange, the promotion of social services through our Colleges, will help our faculty and students, as well as others, to cultivate the ability to see ourselves as members of a global village. Our commitment to environmental protection is another endeavor to fulfill our global responsibility. We should learn to respond to the need of the world instead of building in our ivory tower.

Based on these pillars of preserving the humanities, cultivating innovation and critical thinking, and realization of world citizenship, we will be educating our students and leading CUHK into the next 50 years and beyond. This mission cannot be accomplished without the dedication of our teachers who are passionate in their teaching and research, not seeing it as a job, but a vocation. These dreams cannot be fulfilled without the support of our government, philanthropists and alumni, in giving their trust and their support to the University. Most importantly, the true spirit of a university education cannot be continued without the hard work of our students to keep their minds inquisitive to knowledge, their thirst for truth unquenched and their desire to excel invincible.

Mr Chairman, after I graduated from medical school I joined the Chinese University as a physician, a researcher and a teacher. Working as a medical doctor for 25 years, I have learned that medicine is both a science and an art. Working as an academic researcher for 25 years, I have been trained to think critically while working with my colleagues as a team. Working as a teacher for 25 years, I have come to realize that education requires a heart and a soul. I pledge to give my best skills, my passion and my perseverance to serve this University in the years to come. The Vice-Chancellorship of CUHK is a lofty one. I know that what lies ahead is more challenging than what I have experienced so far. And my responsibilities would beunprecedented. But I am much encouraged by the words of Professor Ch’ien Mu. He said, “It is such uncouth environment that prompts me to struggle for excellence, and the state of deprivation only encourages my affections for others to flow. Be it a load of a thousand stones, I bear it upon my own shoulders. Let us, in our youth (I hope there’s still a little bit of it left in me), join together and progress towards the future. Take care! Take care! This is the spirit of CUHK!”