On March 5, the Australia China Alumni Association (ACAA) hosted a landmark Celebration Dinner at NSW Parliament House, commemorating 100 years of Chinese students studying in Australia.
We were honoured to welcome an exceptional lineup of distinguished speakers, including Senator the Hon. Penny Wong, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the Government in the Senate, Prof. Annemarie Jagose, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Sydney, the Hon. Verity Firth AM, Vice-President (Societal Impact, Equity, and Engagement), UNSW, Luke Sheehy, CEO, Universities Australia, Leigh Howard, CEO, Asialink, Sara Cheng, Chair, ACAA, Grace Li, Co-Chair, ACAA. David Goodman, Director, China Study Centre and Member of the ACAA Advisory Board, Tim Harcourt, Industry Professor an Chief Economist at UTS.
We were also delighted to welcome senior leaders and academics from Australian universities, industry bodies, political and business leaders including Gary Cowan, CEO, National Foundation of Australia China Relations, Jason Yat-sen Li, MP, George Wang, CEO of AIMS Financial Group, the Hon. Cameron Kerr AO, CEO, Taronga Conservation Society Australia, and alumni from academia, industry, and business including alumni award winners Eric Gao of Boman Group Steven Bai of Sencity Corporation, elite alumni representative Amy Mo of Austlink Education Group and more. The event also received strong media coverage from Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC),2CR, Chinese Herald Daily Australia and many other leading Australian and Chinese media outlets. Thanks to 2CR for contributing the pictures for the event.
This gathering was a powerful testament to the vibrant Australia-China student and alumni ecosystem. The key message of ACAA—calling for the ecosystem's collaboration to foster an inclusive and empowering environment where international students, young alumni, and skilled migrants can thrive and better contribute to Australia’s global competitiveness—was strongly echoed by our esteemed speakers and guests.
To further this mission, ACAA is proud to announce:
🌟 The 17th Australia China Alumni Awards – Nominations are now open! Nominate here: https://lnkd.in/gPQKAyrT
🌟 ACAA Student Scholarships – Supporting current students
🌟 Masterclass & One-on-One Mentorship Program – Empowering young and mid-career alumni
🌟 Exclusive Industry Networking Events – Connecting senior alumni across industries
A highlight of the evening was a remarkable solo performance by Sun Yi, Associate Concertmaster of Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the winner of the 2024 Australia China Alumni Award for Arts & Creative Industries.
A heartfelt thank you to all our esteemed speakers, guests, and supporters for making this such a memorable and meaningful occasion. We look forward to continuing our mission and seeing you at the next ACAA event!
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