In honour of our traditional Chinese virtue of respecting the elderly, the Senior University of China (SUC) and the Chinese Association for Non-government Education have jointly organised a series of both online and in-person activities.
These events are designed to demonstrate our love, support, and responsibility towards our senior citizens as we celebrate the Double Nineth Festival with them.
"Health and Happiness Lectures for the Double Ninth Festival" were streamed on various social media platforms, including Douyin, WeChat Channels, and China Media Group Mobile. Esteemed guest lecturers like Professor Hu Dayi, a chief physician from Peking University People’s Hospital; Professor Cao Hongxin, former president and principal investigator of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences; and Professor Fu Guobing, a chief physician in the Massage and Physiotherapy Department at Dongfang Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, shared their expertise on health and answered questions from online attendees.
Over 1.5 million people tuned into the streamed sessions of the Health and Happiness Lectures for the Double Ninth Festival. Elderly individuals nationwide remarked that they acquired genuine and useful healthcare knowledge from the activities during the Double Ninth Festival.
Meanwhile, the SUC also offered a course package as a gift to elderly learners, ensuring that every older adult can pursue the courses they're interested in and embrace lifelong learning.
Considering the local circumstances, each branch, branch school, and joint development unit of the SUC organised a variety of vibrant offline events. These included fun sports events, garden tea parties, intangible cultural heritage projects on campus, free clinics, showcases of teaching achievements, and displays of calligraphy and painting works.
Fun sports event, on the SUC’s campus at the branch school of the Ministry of Education
The Double Nineth Festival garden tea party on SUC’s Weigongcun Campus
2023 Intangible cultural heritage project entering campus initiative, in the theme of “Double Nineth Festival, Our Tradition” at Ningbo Branch
Volunteering activity, smart senior care in the communities at Henan Branch
Free clinic at the Lanmao Square, Songming County, by Yunnan Economics Trade and Foreign Affairs College
The Second Double Nineth Festival showcase of teaching achievements of Jilin senior education, Jilin Branch
The SUC was officially established on 3 March 2023. As a direct initiative stemming from the principles set out at the 20th National Congress of the CPC, the SUC aims to address key national priorities, notably offering education that resonates with the public and devising proactive strategies to address the challenges of an aging population. With its core values centered around "virtue, learning, health, joyful life, and accomplishment," the SUC is dedicated to assisting older adults in cultivating virtue, pursuing lifelong learning, proactively maintaining health, embracing a joyful life, and achieving positive accomplishments. By continuously catering to their diverse learning needs, the SUC aspires to create a nationwide repository of knowledge, a haven for life, and a spiritual sanctuary for the elderly.
By Zhang Jun, Jiang Haiyan, Yao Yue, OUC