On January 21, 2017 Washington University in St. Louis hosted the Forum for Greater China at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Shanghai for over 200 attendees. The Forum convened representatives from leading universities in Greater China which partner with Washington University on research and academic programming.
The Forum’s goal is to stimulate collaborative research and conversation between partner universities that will advance solutions to challenges, such as aging populations. Over the past two decades, Washington University has developed close partnerships with many universities—including China Agricultural University, Fudan University, Peking University, Tsinghua University, University of Hong Kong, National Taiwan University, and Xi’an Jiaotong University—through its McDonnell International Scholars Academy.
For the first Forum event, two Washington University researchers, David Holtzman, MD, PhD—a leading global expert on Alzheimer’s Disease and related neurological diseases—and Nancy Morrow-Howell PhD, Director of the Institute’s Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging and a leading global expert on civic and social engagement later in life—served as keynotes. They discussed the social, economic and medical implications of an aging population in China and globally, followed by panel discussions with leading Chinese experts from the university, corporate, and government sectors.
“It was very exciting to be part of such an informed discussion about aging issues in China. In my session—Social and Economic Consequences of the Aging Population—experts from Fudan University, National Taiwan University, Renmin University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, and University of Hong Kong shared their research and experiences,” said Morrow-Howell.
“We discussed economic security, health and long term care, and social engagement. The cultural and sociopolitical variations in approaches to our common challenges were highlighted; what we learn from the effects of these variations can help inform the development of policies and programs moving forward for all of our communities.”
See event program. See article in the Source.