From March 4 to 8, a team of seven members from the Global Health Research Center and Environment Research Center of Duke Kunshan University traveled to Manila, Philippines, seeking further partnerships with leading international organizations and the University of the Philippines.
The delegation, led by Dr. Yunguo Liu, Co-Director of the Center for Global Health, visited the Asian Development Bank, the College of Medicine at the University of the Philippines, and the World Health Organization’s West Pacific Regional Office.
Dr. Yunguo Liu introduced the basic information of Duke Kunshan University（DKU） to the visiting institutions. Founded in 2013 as a U.S.-China partnership between Duke University and Wuhan University, DKU has attracted students and scholars worldwide with its innovative education model in the past decade. Extending the research strengths of Duke University and Wuhan University, as well as the close cooperation with Duke-NUS Medical School, Duke Kunshan University hopes to bridge further collaboration in research and education in the Western Pacific region through this visit.
Yingming Yang, Vice President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), extended greetings to the Duke Kunshan University delegation and introduced the ADB’s current strategic priorities in climate change and health. The delegation also met the Health Sector team and the People’s Republic of China Poverty Reduction and Regional Cooperation Fund team to learn about specific pathways for providing knowledge support in aging, health emergency response, and climate change and health in the future.
The University of the Philippines Manila Chancellor Michael L. Tee welcomed the DKU delegation and looked forward to more in-depth cooperation between the two universities in education and research. Experts and scholars from both sides exchanged research interests on aging and NCD management, environmental health, and One Health and formed follow-up plans.
At the WHO West Pacific Regional Office, Dr. Saia Piukala, the Regional Director of WPRO, warmly welcomed the DKU delegation. During the two-day visit, the delegation met with different division teams to have a detailed understanding of the current work of WHO, including the Program Development and Operations, Division of Administration and Finance, Programs for Disease Control, Division of Healthy Environments and Populations, Division of Health Securities and Emergencies, Division of Data, Strategy and Innovation, and Division of Health System and Services. The two sides discussed future research and technical collaboration, student internships, and the establishment of WHO Collaborative Centers at DKU.
During this week-long visit, the delegation gained a comprehensive understanding of the three organizations’ current development strategies and work priorities. Duke Kunshan University will further mobilize resources with follow-up actions to initiate new platforms and collaborations with the three institutions, contributing our efforts and strengths to the urgent global challenges in health and climate change.
