2025 Talent Development Commencement Day, “Embrace our Future, Rising Stars in Transformation”

Date: 15 August 2025                                                  Venue: Inno Centre, Kowloon Tong 

With the successful conclusion of the Commencement Day 2025, The D. H. Chen Foundation Hub of Advanced Technology for Child Health (HATCH) has officially completed its annual Talent Development Programme. Anchored by the “Industry-Academia-Research” collaboration framework, the programme integrated its curriculum and activities to offer interns deeper insights and understanding of practical operations and processes in life science, research startups, and community engagement.

19 interns from the Summer Microbiome Institute (SMI) and 8 from the Microbiome Health Ambassadors (MHA) participated in the 3-week and 4-week Talent Development Programme respectively. Despite the limited timeframe, the interns’ enthusiasm for knowledge fueled active learning and inquisitive discussions. Through the hands-on laboratory experiences and visit to the animal facility, biomedical science knowledge came to life before their eyes. Unique community outreach activities allowed them to visit LevelMind Centre and offer suggestions, raising their awareness about themselves and peers’ mental health. Most importantly, the sharing of research experiences and personal journeys by various speakers provided profound inspiration and impact for their future career planning.

Theme of this year - “Embrace our Future, Rising Stars in Transformation” challenged SMI and MHA interns to collaboratively create a children's storybook. Through engaging and creative stories, they educated young children about gut health and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). On Commencement Day, they showcased their storybooks to attending guests, sharing not only the narratives but also their creative concepts, challenges, and reflections. Unlike previous years, this Commencement Day adopted a novel format, inviting guests to visit four story booths hosted by intern groups. This setup fostered close engagement and direct interaction with the interns. The approach enhanced opportunities for communication while encouraging creative thinking, strengthened connections with diverse communities and upheld their commitment to community outreach.

Beyond showcasing their learning outcomes, SMI and MHA representatives from each group took the stage to share their experiences in the Talent Development Programme, anecdotes about bonding with new peers, and how their initial focus on pursuing researchers expanded into recognising boundless possibilities and hope for the future. On the event day, Professor Francis Chan, a HATCH Steering Committee member and Choh-Ming Li Professor of Medicine and Therapeutics at the Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CU Medicine), delivered an inspiring opening speech. Additionally, Professor Sandra Chan, a HATCH Executive Committee member and Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at CU Medicine, and Dr. Oscar Wong, HATCH Clinical Research Team Leader and Assistant Clinical Professor in the same department, shared their reflections on the interns’ exceptional performances. They emphasised the indispensable role of storytelling in communication, leaving a lasting impression on all those present.

All guests received a stamp collection map at registration. By visiting the four-story booths and interacting with the interns, guests could collect stamps on their map. Upon collecting all stamps, each guest received a copy of the storybook as a souvenir to share with children in their communities or give to suitable recipients. This not only fosters parent-child relationships but also allows the interns’ learning outcomes to be sustainably extended to various communities.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude for the unwavering support from our growth partner and funder, The D. H. Chen Foundation, as well as our power hub - Microbiota I-Center (MagIC), for their tremendous support for the programme. HATCH looks forward to continuing to collaborate with all partners to bring health and hope to the next generation.

 About HATCH:

HATCH, its full name being The D. H. Chen Foundation Hub of Advanced Technology for Child Health, was jointly established by the Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong and growth partner and funder, The D. H. Chen Foundation. With our innovations in microbial diagnostics and replacement therapies, HATCH’s mission is to bring health and hope to our future generation through research, education, and community outreach.