#UWaterlooDoesAsia – Fall 2015

Thursday, March 10, 2016

Written by Davene Palvetzian

This past November, I had the great pleasure of representing the University of Waterloo in Hong Kong, Singapore and Jakarta. Alumni Relations co-hosted three global events over five days, connecting with close to 800 alumni and friends, as well as dozens of UWaterloo co-op and exchange students who were abroad in these locations for their fall term.  

I’m pleased to share some highlights and photos, as captured along the way…  

Alumni volunteers

UWaterloo alumni volunteers behind the scenes getting briefed before the annual Hong Kong alumni dinner. Thank you Danny, Howard, Jenni, Lilian, Chris, John, Dom, Virginia, Daisy, Alec, Letica, Erica…The dinner ran smoothly thanks to you. M goi.

Alumnus, Aaron Grant

Alumnus Aaron Grant, Co-Founder of Thalmic Labs, joined us in Hong Kong to present at the Cyberport Conference on November 19 2015. Thanks Aaron for making the trip, attending the alumni dinner and bringing a MYO for the giveaway!  

MC Jenni and Howard

You would have thought they rehearsed all year. Our lively emcees, Jenni and Howard, wearing designs by fellow alumna, Joanna Duong-Chang’s, company, Henkaa. You can wear that dress 20 different ways, and Howard’s tie is reversible too! Thank you Henkaa for giving us these items so we could help show them off. 

Alumni dinner

Not an empty seat in the room. We had more than 300 guests this year!

Joe C. Lee


“Think big, but be small.” – Keynote address by alumnus, Mr. Joe C. Lee (BMath '98; MACC '98).

Mr. Lee is the Founder of Kuaidi Taxi, which later consolidated into Didi-Kuaidi. It is now a leading innovative technology company that provides mobile transportation services, including taxis, limousines, designated drivers, coaches and more, in over 360 cities across the Greater China Region.

Palette

Everyone was pleased to stick around for our lucky draw prizes this year! We gave away alumni technologies including the: (Later rebranded as Fitbit) Pebble, MYO, Blackberry Priv, Palette gear (later Rebranded as Monogram Creative Console), and more!

AcSci alumni

Former AcSci classmates reunite at Singapore’s SG50 Alumni Reception.
 

UWaterloo students

Current UWaterloo students join in while in Singapore on exchange. #SG50

Feridun

We were pleased to welcome the High Commissioner of Canada to Singapore, Ms. Heather Grant, and University of Waterloo President, Feridun Hamdullahpur, who shared some exciting news about a new partnership agreement between UWaterloo + SUTD Singapore University of Technology & Design. Oh, and all birthdays need a cake!


Chinese food


Mmmmmm Xiao Long Bao…Wait a minute..how did this picture get in here?

Alumni Dinner Speech

Here you have one final picture worth a thousand words, including, Thank you.

Thanks to our extraordinary alumni volunteers, Danny Ying (BMath ’80), President of the University of Waterloo Alumni Association Hong Kong (pictured above), and Jon Kwan, (BMath ’01), Director of the UW Alumni Chapter – Singapore, for the countless hours and energy they dedicate to leading our alumni chapters in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Program

Next stop, Jakarta Indonesia…

Group photo

On November 24th, 2015, the Government of Canada & University of Waterloo launched the READI Project: Canada’s Risk Management Economic Sustainability & Actuarial Science Development in Indonesia. The kickoff took place in Jakarta, Indonesia and included a day-long workshop that brought together industry leaders and stakeholders for a collaborative and effective day of project planning. The workshop was followed by a reception attended by partners, supporters and UW Alumni living in Indonesia. You can read more about READI here.

skyline


With 10 global alumni chapters spanning our globe, UWaterloo is widely represented and this presence continues to grow. There are many ways to stay connected and getting involved in our growing global community is easy. Keep your alumni and communication preferences updated so that we know where you are in the world, and we can be sure to extend an invitation to events near you! Hope to see you at the next one!

You can see more event photos and follow along with our Chapters on Facebook:
University of Waterloo Alumni Association Hong Kong
UW Alumni Chapter Singapore