3 June 2008

Reaching out to make a difference:
NUS President at Commencement events

HONOURED: NUS President Prof Shih Choon Fong delivering his address at the Brown University's Commencement Forums.

EUROPEAN explorers launched "journeys to the West" to discover new lands, frontiers, and fortune. More recently, journeys to the West have sought scientific and technological advancement. In today's interdependent and culturally complex world, journeys to the West have come full circle – they have also become searches for understanding different peoples and cultures.

This in essence, was NUS President Prof Shih Choon Fong's talk at the Brown University's Commencement Forums. Conferred an honorary doctorate degree at its 240th Commencement (25 May), Prof Shih discussed the modern significance of Journey to the West, the 16th-century Chinese classic that recounts an epic journey in search of knowledge and wisdom.

	FEELING THE PULSE: Prof Shih (centre, right) at the IIT Kanpur's 40th Convocation.

Graduates at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur) were also urged to catch the wave of opportunity – to catch it with their mind, and heart. In his Convocation address to graduands of the Class of 2008 of IIT Kanpur (40th Convocation), Prof Shih recalled how a choice he had made 40 years ago, has led him on a journey of "adventure and service".

While studying at Singapore Polytechnic, he was recommended by a visiting professor to take up graduate studies in North America. He took up the offer. "That choice took me to Harvard, where I earned my PhD. That choice took me back to Singapore to become President of NUS. That choice is now taking me to Saudi Arabia, to become the Founding President of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)," he said.

"Going to America, coming back to Singapore, going to the Middle East... these are my personal journeys to the West. The path I chose has enabled me to find fulfilment. These days, the path to America is a well-trodden one, one that is also more congested. For IIT Kanpur graduates, staying in Asia may appear to be the road less travelled. Yet this road less travelled may offer better opportunities. Today I see the winds of change blowing in Asia. We are on the cusps of a new wave of opportunity in a rising Asia... See the world around you, feel its pulse, reach out and touch lives, make a difference..." he urged the young graduates.