China Newsletter March 2009 Alberta China Office (ACO) - An Overseas Representative Office of the Alberta Government Email: [email protected] Fax: 86-10- 5139 4465 Website: www.albertachina.com After a quiet December and January due to the holiday period, we had a very busy February and the first snow storm in Beijing in 2009. In fact this was the first precipitation in 110 days as China is experiencing a serious drought. Upcoming holidays in China are: April 4 – Tomb Sweeping Day, and May 1 – Labor Day, which this year is only a one day holiday. The Alberta China Office will be closed for Good Friday April 10. Pictures of Snow Storm Inside Articles: Mayor Mandel’s Visit to China Edmonton bid for 2015 Universiade Games Alberta Day in Shenzhen Updated Study Permit Application Kit for Chinese Students University of Calgary Engineering Students Visit Alberta China Office Shanghai School Makes MBA Top 10 in the World Life Sciences Symposium in Alberta Alberta Green Construction Mission to China 1 Mayor Mandel’s Visit to China Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel led a delegation to China from February 11 to 18, 2009, as part of an effort to gain support for the City of Edmonton’s bid for the 2015 Universiade Games. The Edmonton delegation included representatives from the City of Edmonton, University of Alberta officials, and representatives of Edmonton Tourism.The Alberta China Office provided support services for these Mayor Mandel’s visit and Edmonton 2015 Summer Universiade Bid As part of their mission to promote Edmonton, the delegation took part in the opening events for the 2009 Winter Universiade in Harbin, in China’s Heilongjiang Province. In addition to official meetings with the International Federation of University Sports (FISU) officials, Mayor Mandel spoke at the Mayor’s Forum of the 2009 Winter Universiade Sports Science Conference – “Winter Cities, Winter Sports” where he presented an overview of the City of Edmonton’s recreational focus as a ‘Winter City’. The Edmonton delegation also attended Canada Night, where Team Canada was introduced and the flag bearer for the Opening Ceremonies was announced. While in China, Edmonton’s Mayor also met with the Mayor and Vice Mayor of Edmonton’s sister city - Harbin A highlight of the meeting was the signing of a new tourism agreement, which aims to boost interactions between the sister cities, and promote relationships between post-secondary institutions in Harbin and Edmonton. The Mayor’s trip also included visits to the City of Shanghai and the City of Chengdu. Meetings in these two cities included discussions of tourism and environmental matters, and meetings with Shanghai 2010 World’s Fair officials. Signing Ceremony of the Memorandum of Tourism Cooperation between Edmonton and Harbin 2 "Canada Night" on Feb. 16, 2009 at Harbin Universiade was attended by over 200 guests and featured First Nations performances from Edmonton. Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel Presents a Canadian Hockey jersey to Mr. Zhang Xiaolian, the Mayor of Harbin From Left to Right: Mike Mahon, Dean of the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation at the University of Alberta and? Vice President of the Canadian Bid Committee; Zhang Tianbo, Director General of the Harbin Foreign Affairs Office; Mayor Stephen Mandel; Wang Li, Vice Mayor of Harbin, and Eric Newell, Chancellor, University of Alberta, and President of the Canadian Bid Committee. 3 From left to right is Garry Lin of Nait, Mr. Zhang, Mayor of Harbin, Dick Wong of Mayor Stephen Mandel’s Office, and David Wong – Alberta China Office Alberta Day in Shenzhen The Alberta International Offices in the Greater China area held a promotional event in Shenzhen, on February 23, 2009, led by the Alberta Hong Kong Office. The event featured two seminars and a networking luncheon. There was one seminar session on geomatics in the morning and one on green building in the afternoon, both had about 60 participants. This well-attended? event provided opportunities for Alberta companies to promote their products and services, and to establish business networks in the area. Networking luncheon held on February 23, 2009. In addition to representatives of the four Alberta offices of Greater China, Robert Lai, Wade Muri and Song Wang from Alberta Advanced Education and Technology attended and presented the new Alberta Integrated Resources Management (IRM) Program. Ms. Julia Mah from Alberta International and Intergovernmental Relations attended and made a presentation on Alberta's building products and construction sector. Several companies that participated including: Master Flo represented by Mr. 4 Roberta Belter and Mr. Arthur Chow, Rohl Geomatics Inc. represented by Mr. Richard Grier, and Green Alberta, represented by Stephani Carter. Updated Study Permit Application Kit for Chinese Students was Posted on Line The long-awaited new China-specific student kit for study permit application is now online. This kit, which guides applicants through the process, has also been modified to reflect that 12 months [versus 18] of banking history is required to demonstrate funding to support the study. The link to the Study Permit kit can be found through the below link, under the Heading Visas for Temporary Visits: Study Permit Kit: http://geo.international.gc.ca/asia/china/immigration/beijing/application-kits-en.aspx , or accessed directly here: http://geo.international.gc.ca/asia/china/immigration/beijing/documents/STU_KIT_2008_ 12_EN.pdf We also received excellent news from the Visa Section. In 208, the number of students heading to Canada increased by 46 per cent in 2008 - from 9, 228 Study Permits issued in 2007 to 13, 526 in 2008, with an approval rating now close to 80%. For short term students, we're seeing a continued high approval rating -- close to 90% -- with over 2400 travelling in 2008 for short term programs. Source: Canadian Embassy For further details please contact Jenny Luo. University of Calgary Engineering Students Visit Alberta China Office Due to the success of the Student Study Trip in January 2007, and a high demand, 30 University of Calgary engineering students made a study trip to China from February 10 to 22, 2009. The purpose of the trip was to expose students to the Chinese culture and economy, and prepare students to become more international citizens. As part of their trip, the students visited the Canadian Embassy on February 13. Mr. David Wong gave a presentation on China’s economic development and the China market followed by a Q&A session. Mr. David Wong and office staffs answered the students’ questions. Alberta China Office hosted a welcoming lunch for the students. Shanghai School Makes Top 10 List BEIJING, February, 2009 -- The China-Europe International Business School (CEIBS) became the first business school in Asia to make the Financial Time's Top-10 MBA programs since the newspaper started ranking programs a decade ago. 5 The school ranked eight in the top-100 list of full-time global Master of Business Administration programs, school officials announced today, up from 11th place last year. In addition, CEIBS graduate salaries increased by an average of 179 per cent in the three years after graduation, which is the highest ranked pay rise among the schools. Graduates' weighted salary reached 151,641 U.S. dollars, based on the Purchasing Power Parity of the World Bank. Meanwhile, CEIBS graduates' employment rate at three months was reported to have hit 92 percent. "For a school that is only in its 15th year, to rank among the Financial Times' Top Ten is an extraordinary accomplishment," said CEIBS Executive President Pedro Nueno. Source: www.chinaview.cn 2009-02-02 For more details, please contact Jenny Luo. Alberta Green Construction Mission to China Ms. Julia Mah , Trade and Investment Officer, North Asia, Alberta International and Intergovernmental Relations and Ms. Stephani Carter, Vice Director of Alberta Chapter, Canada Green Building Council visited China in February. In addition to an ‘Alberta Day’ event in Shenzhen, officials attended a series of key meetings and activities with representatives in the region. This included a tour of the Vanke Architecture Research Centre and ChiXiao in Shenzhen, where? they gathered information about the pre-cast technology and the process of modular housing in China. Meetings were also held with the China Green Building Council, China Housing Industry Association and Beijing Environment Office, to exchange information about green buildings in China and Canada and to gain a better understanding of the net zero energy emission building in Beijing. The delegation also visited the Department of Construction in Tianjin. Throughout the meetings, valuable information was exchanged about energy savings programs in Alberta and China and future collaboration is likely between Green Alberta and China Academy of Building Research. http://www.greenalberta.ca/ (the website of Green Alberta) For more details contact: Sophia Sun 6 From left to right: Sophia Sun, Yanqing Zou, Julia Mah, Stephani Carter, Youwei Wang, David Wong, and Shirley Jiang 7 .