Lingnan University to confer honorary fellowship upon five distinguished individuals

Lingnan University will confer honorary fellowship upon five distinguished individuals, namely, Mr James Chen; Mrs Sophie Leung Lau Yau-fun, GBS, JP; Prof Anna Pao Sohmen, SBS; Mr Tang Shu-wing and Prof Tang Yunwei, in recognition of their valuable contributions to the well-being of society.

A successful entrepreneur and seasoned executive who manages a diverse portfolio of businesses, Mr James Chen is actively involved in philanthropy and community service. He chairs The Chen Yet-sen Family Foundation, named after his father. He founded the Hong Kong Chapter of Bring Me a Book, a charity promoting early childhood literacy. He also sits on the Board of Directors of the China Exploration and Research Society, dedicated to conserving the culture and bio-diversity of China. Mr Chen is a long-standing member of the Outward Bound Trust of Hong Kong, former president of the Young Entrepreneur’s Organisation, Hong Kong Chapter and a current member of the Young Presidents’ Organisation, Hong Kong Chapter.

Mrs Sophie Leung is widely recognised for her public service in Hong Kong, particularly in the development and implementation of the healthcare system. She was a founding member of the Hospital Authority and had been an active board director until 2002. She served on a number of constituent committees and was a trustee of the Hospital Authority Charitable Foundation. She has also chaired the governing committees and management boards of major hospitals such as Queen Mary Hospital, Castle Peak Hospital, Tsan Yuk Hospital, Yan Chai Hospital, Our Lady of Maryknoll Hospital and the privately funded Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital. Mrs Leung is also a founder and chairman of The Young Entrepreneurs Development Council, a non-profit organisation that seeks to cultivate entrepreneurial spirit, business acumen, governance and leadership qualities and skills in Hong Kong. She had been a member of the Legislative Council between 1996 and 2012, and is a deputy to the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China.

Over the years, Prof Anna Pao Sohmen has been actively involved in community service ranging from business chambers, environmental groups, arts and culture as well as education. She has served as Council Chairman of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts for 10 years, Honorary Chairman of The Chinese Manufacturers’ Association of Hong Kong, Chairman of Hong Kong Eco-Products Award, member of the Culture and Heritage Commission, Town Planning Board, Hong Kong Business Coalition on the Environment, the Industry Department’s Small and Medium Enterprises Committee, as well as Financial Secretary’s Business Advisory Group. She is also a founding member of Helping Hand, founding chairman of the Hong Kong Liver Foundation, as well as founder of the Chinese International Schools Foundation.

A law graduate of the University of Hong Kong who has studied theatre arts in Paris for six years, Mr Tang Shu-wing is an acclaimed theatre director, actor and drama educator. Since he returned to Hong Kong in 1992 with a Maltrise Diplôme in theatre studies from the New Sorbonne University (Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle), Mr Tang has been very active in theatre work. He has directed over 40 productions of drama, dance and opera, including Life and Death Trilogy (1997-2000), Between Life and Death (2002), Phaedra (2005), Hamlet (2006), Titus Andronicus (2008), Princess Changping (2009), King Arthur (2009), Rubik’s Cube and Its Aftermath (2010), Detention (2011) and Thunderstorm (2012). Mr Tang’s major professional awards include Distinguished Interpretative Performance in the Tashkent International Theatre Festival (1993), Best Actor in a Leading Role in the Hong Kong Drama Awards (2003), Best Director in the Hong Kong Drama Awards (2006, 2007 and 2011), and the Best Artist of the Year Award (Drama) of the Hong Kong Arts Development Council (2013).

A prominent accounting scholar in China, Prof Tang Yunwei graduated from the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics with a doctoral degree in 1987. He has served as lecturer, vice-president and president of his alma mater, and is now an adjunct professor there. He was a senior fellow in the International Accounting Standards Committee, and is now a member of the China Accounting Standards Committee, chairman of the Shanghai Accounting Society and an honorary member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in the United Kingdom. Prof Tang founded the China Professors’ Association of Accounting and served as its chairman. He was an editor of China Accounting and Finance Review and chaired the editorial board of Shanghai Accounting. He has also written several books on China’s accounting and auditing.

A ceremony will be held at Chan Tak Tai Auditorium, Lingnan University on Monday, 21 October 2013 to confer the honorary fellowships.