The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) launched the "Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme" today (7 October 2022) and shared its achievements on social media to promote equal opportunities for young people.

Youth work is one of the priorities of the HKSAR Government. As President Xi Jinping in his important speech on 1 July this year mentioned that “Hong Kong will prosper only when its young people thrive; Hong Kong will develop only when its young people achieve well-rounded development; and Hong Kong will have a bright future only when its young people have good career prospects”.

Mr Gary WONG Chi-him, Convenor of Community Participation and Publicity Committee of the EOC, said, “If we want to eliminate discrimination in society and promote the value of equality, diversity and inclusion, we must start with young people, let them understand the situation of different communities, encourage them to respect and accept differences, establish positive values and foster empathy, and actively participate in building our society. The EOC attaches great importance to its work targeting young people, and has been cultivating the concept of equality and inclusion among young people through different activities. In order to promote the value of equal opportunity, diversity and inclusion to the young generation, and unite young equal opportunity supporters, the EOC launches the "Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme".”

The purpose of the Scheme is to recruit tertiary students to become "Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassadors", enhance their awareness and experience of equal opportunity through experiential learning activities, strengthen the connection and sense of belonging of tertiary students with the EOC, and finally build a team of youth ambassadors who are encouraged to promote equal opportunity on campus and among their peers.

Dr Ferrick CHU Chung-man, Executive Director (Operations) of the EOC said, “One of the key objectives of the Scheme is to give youth ambassadors a better understanding of equal opportunities. The EOC will provide a series of experiential learning activities and mentoring activities for youth ambassadors to participate in, including sporting activities with athletes with disabilities, visits to training centre for guide dogs, visits to a company which employs persons with disabilities or ethnic minorities, visits to religious establishments (e.g. mosques), training on anti-discrimination ordinances and mentoring activities. A recognition ceremony would be held at the end of the Scheme. The Youth Ambassadors will be required to produce a short video or conduct a brief presentation to recount their experiences upon the completion of the Scheme. These materials will be presented at the recognition ceremony. They will also be posted on the webpage of the Scheme and on social media. We hope to spread the message of equality and inclusion among young people's groups through social media platforms and youth ambassadors' networks.”

Dr CHU continued, “What students from tertiary institutions can gain from this Scheme is not just to participate in experiential learning activities and mentoring activities, deepen their understanding of equal opportunity, and make friends with students from other tertiary institutions who share the same vision to support equal opportunity, the youth ambassadors who have completed the Scheme with a satisfactory attendance rate will receive multiple rewards. They include a certificate issued by the EOC, a written reference letter signed by EOC Chairperson and a digital recommendation granted by EOC Chairperson on LinkedIn. We believe that these awards are positive encouragement for the participants.”    

The "Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme" will be open for application from 10 October 2022, and the deadline is 31 October 2022. Full-time students from any tertiary institution in Hong Kong are welcome to apply through the Scheme’s dedicated website. For enquiries, please call 2511-8211. An independent Assessment Panel made up of EOC Members will select the Youth Ambassadors. Members of the Assessment Panel include Mr Ricky CHU, EOC Chairperson (Panel Chairperson); Mr Gary WONG, Convenor of the Community Participation and Publicity Committee of the EOC; EOC Members Ms Maisy HO and Ms Rosanna CHOI. 

In addition, the EOC officially launched its Instagram (IG) profile “平．常．事 EO Matters” in September last year. Mr WONG said, “By naming the EOC’s IG profile ‘平．常．事 EO Matters’, we aim to convey the message that equal opportunity, diversity and inclusion are not abstract theories or sophisticated concepts, but practical issues that are closely related to our daily lives. To attract the younger generation, our IG profile uses a fresh, modern and colourful design. It shares eclectic and fun-filled contents, including explainers on diversity and inclusion issues that we may come across on a daily basis but do not pay much attention to or are not well aware of. For example, how Braille on an elevator control panel works, what can be done to alert people with hearing impairments when fire breaks out, what halal food means and how it is certified. The EOC also hosted its first live show on the platform, featuring singer-songwriter Jay FUNG and Hong Kong-born Filipino talent Marla ENRIQUEZ. The video of the half-hour-long mini-concert was well-received by the young generation and has attracted more than 17 000 views.”  

Mr WONG also explained how the EOC’s IG profile attracts the attention of the younger generation. “We must connect with young people and keep up with trends. Adopting an equal opportunity perspective, our IG profile seeks to provoke reflection and discussion on hot topics. For example, we will discuss how anime and manga have broken gender stereotypes, and quiz netizens about how to assist persons with visual impairments in participating in swimming competitions by riding on a popular TV drama. In addition, we shared stories of Hong Kong people from different backgrounds, including a Hong Kong-born firefighter of Pakistani descent, a young athlete in a wheelchair, a single mother living with depression, and a foreign domestic helper who founded a support group for her fellow workers. The EOC is honoured to have invited renowned photographer Mr Brian CHING to take portraits of them. We hope this campaign can raise young people’s understanding on the situation of different communities, and help eliminate stereotypes and prejudices. Our IG profile also regularly introduces activities related to equality and inclusion organised by the EOC or other organisations, and services provided by voluntary organisations, such as support services for persons in distress.”

Mr WONG shared the achievements of the EOC IG profile and said, “Since the EOC launched the IG profile in September last year, it has reached over 900,000 users and attracted nearly 60,000 interactions, including likes, shares, comments and saves. Within one year of its launch, it garnered over 8,200 followers, over 90% of the users are aged 13-34 and nearly 40% are aged 24 or below, which proves that our IG profile has successfully won the support of the younger generation. More importantly, this reflects that depending on the means and channels of publicity, messages such as equal opportunity, diversity and inclusion can actually resonate with young people.”

Dr CHU concluded, “The EOC’s IG profile has received many positive comments from netizens. Also, various organisations have shared our posts, spreading our message to a wider audience. It can be observed from the IG profile that there are many young people in Hong Kong who are concerned about equal opportunity. They have great passion and hope to see positive changes in society. The EOC will further implement youth work to nurture the concept of equality and inclusion among young people from an early age. In addition to the IG profile, the ‘Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme’ launched today serves as a focal point for tertiary students to enhance their understanding of equal opportunities through experiential activities, and to promote values of equality, diversity and inclusion among their peers. It is hoped that they will continue to do so after entering the workforce. We appeal to the community to support the EOC’s IG profile and the ‘Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme’.”

In June 2022, the EOC announced the launch of a citywide awareness and promotional campaign “Equal Opportunities Month: Together for an Equal and Inclusive Hong Kong”, as celebrations pick up for the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Featuring a plethora of online and offline activities and promotions across multiple platforms, the campaign is aimed to highlight the importance and shared benefits of equal opportunities, and mobilise community members to embrace the values of diversity and inclusion. The “Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme” is one of the highlights of the campaign.   

For details of the “Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme”, please visit: www.eoc.org.hk/youth.

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Equal Opportunities Commission
7 October 2022
 

Mr Gary WONG Chi-him, Convenor of Community Participation and Publicity Committee of the EOC (second from right); Dr Ferrick CHU Chung-man, Executive Director (Operations) of the EOC (first from right); Ms Shana WONG Shan-nar, Head (Corporate Communications) of the EOC (first from left); Mr Kim MOK Kim-wing, Founder and Chief Executive of Hong Kong Network for the Promotion of Inclusive Society (HKNPIS) (centre) and Ms Christy YIU Kit-ching, Chief Coach of the Fearless Dragon Running Team of the HKNPIS and long-distance runner (second from right) attended the press conference. The HKNPIS will hold part of the experiential learning activities for the Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme.

Full-time students from any tertiary institution in Hong Kong are welcome to apply for the Equal Opportunity Youth Ambassador Scheme.

The EOC launched its Instagram profile “EO Matters” in September 2021, and attracted over 8,200 followers in a year.