The following comes from the original project proposal submitted for funding of the CoP:

‘The objective of this project is to form a community of support and experience/practice sharing among faculty and staff members on efforts to enhance quality intercultural learning and competence among both UG and PG students at HKUST. This is to expand on the research efforts made by a study done on UG students’ expectations of their intercultural expectations in 2017 (conducted by CEI), and survey and focus-group interview results on faculty and staffs’ understanding of such student expectations as well as efforts made towards students’ intercultural learning in 2019 (conducted by Prof. May-yi Shaw from HUMA and Dr. Beatrice Chu from CEI).

The expected outcomes would be enhanced capacity among participating faculty and staff to raise better intercultural awareness and competence among both students and colleagues, and to create effective and positive intercultural learning experience through teaching and leadership in co-curricular student programs.’

At early meetings of the Community, our mission and specific goals were discussed and negotiated:

The following was put forward and negotiated as a mission statement for the CoP at our inaugural meeting in 2019:

• To contribute to and innovate existing structures to effect change, in order to foster understanding and inclusiveness and enhance students’ intercultural learning experiences.

The following specific objectives to work towards this mission were proposed:

• Create forums for people to listen to each other: facilitate conversations and perspective-taking
• Promote awareness (of your own and other cultures) and understanding and development of intercultural competence (a capacity to interact across difference)
• Integrate these ideas in teaching and learning contexts
• Promote learning beyond the classroom, including cultural and other events
• Promote a diversity mindset in student groups/societies and administrative functions: be concerned with diversity in all aspects of university life (not just teaching & learning).

As the community met over the first 2 years, issues associated with and strategies for fostering a diversity mindset emerged. It is believed that without such a mindset, intercultural learning experiences will be of little value, possibly even ineffective, and that it is unlikely that intercultural competence will develop.

The community supports achievement of the University’s strategic objective to be a champion of diversity.