About the Conference
Name of Conference
The RIPPLES Conference
Dates of Conference
21st – 24th January 2007
Venue / Country of Conference
Hong Kong University / Hong Kong
Objectives of Conference
1. To enrich delegates’ understanding towards issues of Corporate Social Responsibility and Entrepreneurship
2. To introduce the Chinese cultures in Greater China region to the world
3. To discuss AIESEC experience focusing on Cultural of Excellence (CoE)

Conference Bring Back
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The session I enjoyed the most was…
(Describe the session and why you enjoyed it the most)
The Walk with Entrepreneurs. It was a session where delegates were split into 2 subgroups, each subgroup interacting with 2 groups of guest speakers, who themselves are entrepreneurs. For my subgroup, we got to meet Ms. Belle Liu the founder of BeansBox Studio Ltd., as well as four entrepreneurs from The Entrepreneur’s Network. They were Mr. K.K. Lim, Mr. Philippe Degrange, Mr. William Griffith and Mr. Danny Kwan.
The session was enjoyable, as the speakers were eloquent, inspiring and friendly. They showed us, not told us, what it takes and how it feels like to be an entrepreneur. They were excellent in empowering you and challenging you to make the change you want. To me, what they said were not only useful for my future (should I decide to be an entrepreneur), but also enlightening for me as an individual. ‘Make the change you want, for no one else will do it for you!’, ‘Nothing is as good or as bad as it seems’, ‘do things that you are PASSIONATE about’, ‘Walk your talk’, ‘Think big, start small’. These words will stay in my head, and continue to encourage me through the tough times.

My key learning points from the conference (both personally and in terms of AIESEC information) was…
Keep an open mind when attending a conference. Be open to different kinds of learning. You will never know what to expect for a conference. So welcome every kind of experience, embrace every person you meet. There is always something there to learn at all times. If session is boring, learn to be patient; if the session is too short, learn time planning for future conference when you are the OC; if you are too sleepy to listen, learn how to slap yourself awake! Step out of your comfort zone, and interact with them. Learn things in a different way, see things in a different perspective. And you will be pleasantly surprised. In terms of AIESEC knowledge, I’ve learnt a lot about the AIESEC situation in other countries. For example, the way the culture of excellence is implemented, the way they disseminate the bulk of AIESEC knowledge to their new members by installments, the way they recruit their members, the way they involve their members everyday.
However, we may not be able to implement all their ways in Singapore, as the level of popularity of AIESEC is different. In other countries, specifically Hong Kong, AIESEC is already well-known among students, and it is considered to be an honour to be able to join AIESEC. Thus, AIESEC Hong Kong has larger number of applicants. They can afford to set a more stringent criteria. In Singapore, AIESEC yet to stand out from the rest of the CCAs. Thus, our main focus should be to attract as many interested students as possible, and not to only select students that we deem to possess appropriate mindset to be an AIESECer.
Nonetheless, the ideas learnt are not totally irrelevant. There are still useful tips that Hong Kong AIESECers have taught me, which I thought would be useful. Firstly, it is the way AIESEC knowledge is imparted to new members. They use AIESECers who have had the relevant AIESEC XP to explain the relevant AIESEC knowledge. These are the ideas that we can adopt, to make AIESEC knowledge more digestible and realistic.

The biggest impact for me at the conference was….
Empowerment! I feel motivated by the delegates, inspired by the guest speakers, and empowered by the conference. After the conference, I feel more empowered to achieve the dreams I want, to realize the change I want to make to the world, as well as to AIESEC in Singapore. If I want the change, I need to create it myself!

Brief Description of Sessions
1. @ Knowledge: CoE and PBox
Culture of Excellence (CoE) is not about excellent LCs, but about LCs which strive to be excellent. AIESEC Hong Kong defines CoE as the ability of LC to attract and retain talent, and create a culture and an environment that values excellence and achievement. The facilitators then go and to explain the importance of retaining talents and the actions taken to cultivate the culture.
PBox sessions saw delegates from NTLC (National Taiwan University) presenting their PBox projects meant for their internal PBox competitions. The presentation was followed by a discussion on various issues about their projects.

2. Charcoal Nite
It was a barbeque session for group to have better interactions with each other. We had great fun barbequing, chatting, playing games and conducting forfeits. Through the session, we got to know each other better, which ensures better communication for the later days.

3. CSR Cup
Groups were divided into bosses and workers. Workers had to perform tasks under harsh conditions with little assisting materials provided, for example, cutting circles without a scissors, and arranging decks of cards with only one hand and without a table. Workers could then request for extra materials from boss. Meanwhile, boss earned money by playing a modified captain ball, then they had to use the money earned to purchase materials that workers requested, or other materials that they deem helpful. It was a session for us to realize that what boss deemed necessary may not be what workers truly need, to illustrate the need of communication between boss and workers.

4. Building up spirit
Groups played station games that emphasized on the need for leadership among groups, good communication, trust, and proper task allocation among members.

5. Guest Talk by The Honourable Bernard Chan
The Honourable Bernard Chan is the legislative councilor as well as the chairperson of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service. He shared with us how his council encourages CSR among companies in Hong Kong.

6. Embark upon CSR
It was a series of presentations by the three organizing LCs to introduce to us the situation of CSR in their countries, namely China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

7. Guest Talk by Dr. Charles Yeung
Dr. Charles Yeung was the CEO for the Glorious Sun Group. He shared with us the philosophy and principles behind the running of his companies. His philosophy centres around Confucius and Meng Tze’s philosophy. He also shared with us why companies should regard CSR as a very important issue.

8. On the Stage, Below the Spotlight
It was a session for groups to take a video of topics assigned, such as AIDS, Water Pollution, and Smoking. Groups had to discuss the problem and the possible problems to solve this, and finally come up with an advertisement for the topic.

9. Stand for CSR
Delegates were given materials regarding the implementation of CSR by western and eastern countries and were asked to discuss the differences between both and the reasons behind the differences.

10. Recapturing
Felix Thai the facilitator gave the delegates a few thinking questions such as ‘When was I at my best today?’, ‘Who is the person who has inspired me?’, and ‘What are the 3 things I want to bring back to LC?’. These questions were meant to help us consolidate things we have learnt today.

11. Study Tour
Groups are divided into three teams heading for three different tourist destinations: The Peak, Tsim Sha Tsui and Mongkok. It is also a chance for delegates to interact with each other better. To ensure a good mix between delegates from different countries, there is a quota for number of people from the same country going for the same destination. Within the three destinations, groups were further divided into smaller groups to ensure easy management.

12. Morning Plenary

Rollcalls and dances from different countries were exchanged here.
13. Guest Talk by Mr. Cheung Leong

He shared with us the hardships of being an entrepreneur.
14. Start Your Business
Groups received a different case study of an entrepreneur. After reading the materials, groups have to draw out his path to be an entrepreneur, and discuss the obstacles along the way.

15. Entrepreneurship
This was a short presentation by each group based on the case studies done in the previous session.

16. Work it Out

17. Walk with Entrepreneurs
Delegates were split into 2 subgroups, each subgroup interacting with 2 groups of guest speakers, who themselves are entrepreneurs. Subgroup A met Ms. Belle Liu the founder of BeansBox Studio Ltd., as well as four entrepreneurs from The Entrepreneur’s Network. They were Mr. K.K. Lim, Mr. Philippe Degrange, Mr. William Griffith and Mr. Danny Kwan, while subgroup B met up with Mr. David Lee the chairman of Team and Concepts Limited and Mr. Francis Ngai the Head of Strategy of PCCW Solutions.
Speakers spoke about their ideas behind their enterprise, their challenges as well as tips for success.

18. Deep in Your Mind
This was a recapture to summarise things learnt during the previous session – ‘Walk with Entrepreneurs’

19. Cultural Exchange
It was a session to introduce the countries where delegates and facilitators are from. Groups could do powerpoint presentation, videos, present in traditional costumes, or bring traditional or symbolic food to share with the delegates.

20. Greater China Politics
The main them was corruption. There was a presentation by Guangzhou LC regarding corruption in the Greater China Region. Then, each group will perform a skit, where group members took up roles in the drama. They would be given instructions on the general storyline individually, but they were free to make certain decisions, which were explicitly related to corruption. A conclusion was done by Guangzhou LC to wrap up the session, as well as to introduce the various measures adopted to reduce or eliminate corruption.

21. @ Party
It was held in one of the residential halls in HKU. During the party, there were fashion show performance by every group, as well as skulling among groups, OC and facilitators. After that, it was AIESEC dance session.

22. It’s your turn
It was a simulation of everything we have learnt throughout the four days. Every member was given an identity with different backgrounds. They had to earn money or learn skills during the session. There were different stations set up, namely the CSR stations, education stations, skills learning stations, employment stations, gambling stations, stock market stations and prison. Groups collect stamps after successfully performing certain tasks. Some tasks required pre-requisites from other tasks.
After that, it was a business plan writing competition. Each group had to come up with a business idea, write a business plan about it and present it to the judges. Scores would be given according to their performance.

Our AIESEC XP
Create the change you want!

Craving for a wholesome AIESEC EXPerience, 10 Singapore delegates, originating from 3 LCs, fulfill their desires by missing a week of school to attend the RIPPLES Conference organized by the Hong Kong University LC. Indeed, 21st to 24th January marked one of the greatest AIESEC moments the delegates had up to date. It was a time to meet and make global friends, a time for intense learning, a time for sight-seeing at famous tourist destinations, a time for good food, a time for fun.

The main topics for the conference were Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Entrepreneurship. CSR encompasses sensible welfare for workers as well as responsibility of companies to contribute back to the society, while entrepreneurship is about starting a business on your own. Speakers holding vital positions in companies were invited. They spoke fluently about their passion, their roads to success, their guiding motivation, their challenges and their solutions to these challenges. Some friendly speakers actually left with us their contacts and invited us to contact them to clear more doubts!

Knowing that international delegates would naturally be fascinated by Hong Kong tourist destinations, the Organising Committee (OC) was kind enough to insert a study tour for us. We had a choice of going to The Peak, Tsim Sha Tsui or Mongkok. Scenery from The Peak was superb as it overlooks the entire Hong Kong island and Kowloon. The chilly wind up there was a kind of ‘cool’ experience on its own as well. The walk at Tsim Sha Tsui allowed us to have a panoramic view of uncountable skyscrapers at Hong Kong Island as well as being excited over handprints of the many famous Hong Kong stars at the Avenue of Stars. Mongkok was a shoppers’ paradise. It had so many merchandise to offer that those who went came back empty-handed as according to them, ‘We don’t know which stall to stop at, as once you stop, you can’t move on!’

One of the most enjoyable moments during the conference was the meal times! Our stomachs were well taken care of, possibly due to the generous sponsorship by various companies (a demonstration of CSR!). During main meals, we sat in groups of 10, enjoying up to 15 delicious dishes of dim sums, fried milk, lemon chicken, tofu and others. We were well-treated with Hong Kong delicacies even during tea breaks. Egg tarts, pineapple buns (bo luo bao), black sesame dessert, bean curds were a few to name of.

Hong Kong is renowned for its vibrant AIESEC activities. In fact, Hong Kong won the 2006 UBS Global Excellence Awards for Asia Pacific region last year in the Poland International Congress! Within HKU, it wasn’t hard to see that their members are empowered and motivated individuals. Many of the first year members have already attended more than 3 conferences within the year! The OC of the conference was made up purely by Student Nominees (SNs) who will be going on exchanges.

We’ve made great friends! Through great friends are a lot of great ideas exchanged. Roll calls, culture, We’ve learned a lot about AIESEC in other countries, as well as AIESEC knowledge. This time, we particularly discussed a lot about People Development (PD), as we thought that PD in Singapore is one area which has a lot of room for improvement. Enthusiasm for AIESEC is what we saw in them and what we hope to culture in Singapore as well.

This trip to Hong Kong has also illustrated to us how AIESEC can connect people in the world. While checking into hotel on the evening after the conference has ended, a lady approached us and asked ‘Are you all from AIESEC?’. Apparently she was the LCP of the Auckland University of New Zealand ‘many years ago’, to put it in her own words. That evening, we had dinner with her, and had had a hearty chat about how difference AIESEC is years ago and now, as well as how AIESEC NZ is different from AIESEC Singapore. What a surprise encounter!

On a final note, the RIPPLES Conference has increased our concern for the corporate world, deepened our AIESEC knowledge, widened our circle of friends and fired up our passion for AIESEC and our commitment to make a change in the world. Sharpening our skills, attending more conferences, organizing more conferences is what we will continue to do, so that we can be the change agents, to bring about the change we want!