[The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.]
The inaugural event in the Distinguished Lecture Series on Global Sustainability hosted by City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) deals with issues that affect the quality of life and future prospects of millions of people around the world.
The aim is to shed light on different aspects of social and economic development, with an emphasis on the importance of environmental factors, education and careful management of resources as an essential guiding principle.
This aligns with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, championed by the United Nations and it will be an opportunity to identify and address specific challenges confronting Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area, and the wider Asia-Pacific region.
“CityUHK has been actively exploring innovative solutions to address global development challenges. Through these lectures, we hope to lay the foundation for collaboration and unite all sectors of society in building a sustainable future.” said Professor Lee Chun-sing, Provost and Deputy President of CityUHK, in his welcome remark.
The main theme of his talk was “Promoting skills to promote equality and social mobility”, with the focus on practical ideas and intelligent actions that enhance next-generation welfare and will lead to prosperity in all segments of society.
“We can use research to create much better policies to tackle aspects of poverty, inequality and social mobility,” said Heckman, a Nobel laureate in economics who, in recent years, has been an active supporter of initiatives to assist rural communities in some of the poorer areas of China. “What’s missing is an understanding of skills, skill formation and the importance of human capital, not just physical or financial capital.”
Traditionally, he noted, economists have not analysed human capital, though it is clear that skills gaps open up very early between different socio-economic groups. There is a genetic component to this, but in the modern world, skills are shaped in substantial part by investments and environments, rather than family background.
“Genetics is not the whole story; it’s about much more than IQ,” Heckman said. “We need to capitalise on growing knowledge of life-cycle skill formation and recognise the importance of the early years in creating the multiplicity of cognitive skills that are the base for everything that comes later.”
Over the past 50 to 60 years, major advances have been made in understanding which human capacities make for success in life.
Besides cognitive ability, these include social-emotional factors like motivation, self-regulation, attentiveness, and self-esteem. There is also the ability to defer gratification, adapt and change, and deal with job complexity, otherwise known as executive functioning.
International research has been done on the effectiveness of early targeting to promote these skills and to identify possible risk factors that can arise from not taking action.
Such studies have wide-ranging policy implications, particularly when relevant authorities have to consider how best to tackle the root cause of social problems relating to crime, poverty, health, and much else.
Indeed, there are strong indicators showing that the right kind of early- years instruction – or lack of it – has a direct impact on everything from educational attainment, healthy behaviour, civic participation and future earnings to criminal involvement, teenage pregnancy and unemployment.
“Skills are about much more than years of schooling. PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) scores or IQ tests,” Heckman said. “It starts with realising the importance of character and personality, and then developing the mechanisms to develop these skills and engage the parent in the life of the child.”
In this respect, he emphasised the vital role of the family in shaping skills and providing the “scaffolding” every child needs. This is not a matter of spending money, but of exerting a positive influence through attachments and relationships, encouraging curiosity, willingness to try new ideas, and showing how to cope with disappointments or failure.
“The home environment plays a huge role,” Heckman said. “That’s why we are engaging the parent to engage with the child to engage with the rest of the world.”
Going further, he outlined the concept of dynamic complementarity, which holds that investment today in the base capabilities of young children leads to better long-term returns for society, with no recurring trade-off between equality and efficiency goals.
“There is a dynamism we need to capture in public policy,” Heckman said. “Skills beget skills, and there is long-run evidence on the effects of early intervention.”
As illustration, he cited results from different programmes in New Zealand, the United States, Ireland and Jamaica. These showed various benefits for participants, as well as their siblings; the value of a “plan, do, review” curriculum; and why it pays to have regular home visits made by a local trained in the necessary protocols.
For the subsequent panel discussion, Professor Heckman was joined on stage by a number of eminent speakers, each with first-hand experience of programmes specifically designed to alleviate poverty and create better opportunities for education and employment.
The participants included Mai Lu, former Vice-Chairman and Secretary-General of the China Development Research Foundation; and Leong Cheung, Chief Strategy Officer of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s Exchange Fund Investment Office.
Also taking part were four CityUHK representatives: Joseph Tse Lap-bun, a council member; Professor Kalok Chan, Dean of the College of Business; Professor Zhou Jin of the Department of Economics and Finance; and Professor Zheng Wang, Associate Vice-President (Strategic Research), who served as the moderator.
The discussion highlighted the work being done since 2015 by the Huachi project centred on a village in China’s Gansu province, which has had a positive impact on young children’s language, social-emotional and motor skills.
From Hong Kong, there were examples of how the successful Key Steps programme for kindergartens has expanded since it was first launched in 2017. It is a joint initiative of The Hong Kong Jockey Club, universities and NGOs, and it specifically helps underprivileged families faced with a shortage of resources and skills.
“In each case, we need to develop sensitivity to what the situation is,” Heckman said. “Also, the way to engage is evolving. With the internet and social media, new skills will emerge.”