Overcoming barriers, inspiring change towards gender equality

Original GCO TSINGHUA

2022.3.8

International Women's Day

Today marks International Women’s Day, a global day to celebrate the accomplishments made by women around the world and to call attention to the challenges they continue to face.

Let’s have a look at the life of four inspiring women who started young at Tsinghua and have taken different paths in their lives, achieving outstanding results in their respective fields.

Zhou Shuyun

“Research is like an adventure. You always set out with innovative ideas and feasible technological routes based on previous research, but you are going to places that no one has ever been before, so there is always a certain amount of uncertainty, and it is normal to encounter difficult problems,” says Zhou Shuyun (China), Professor of the Department of Physics at Tsinghua.

Shuyun won the 2021 "Huang Kun Solid State Physics and Semiconductor Physics Science Research Award" for her outstanding research contributions in the field of two-dimensional materials.

Receiving the award was especially meaningful for Shuyun as the award commemorated Huang Fun, the founder of condensed matter physics in China and a role model for younger generations. “It is both an encouragement for our work ahead and an incentive for us to pursue excellence in scientific research,” recalls Shuyun.

To the students who are unsure of their career and life paths, Shuyun has this to say: “If you just blindly follow a large group of people walking, you may lose yourself. But if you work hard to find your way, slowly your path will become clearer.”

Lin Xiying

“Balancing all my roles is exhausting, but I feel worth doing it for the little warriors,” says Lin Xiying (China), a senior student in the School of Life Sciences, refereeing to the children battling cancer with whom she spends time as a volunteer.

Although her academic life keeps her busy, Xiying makes sure she has time to get involved in some extracurricular activities. She serves as an editor for in-depth reports at Qingxin Times, whereas for Curekids, a charitable project run by the Shiyu Children Foundation to raise public awareness about childhood cancer, she volunteers as a content writer.

Reporting on the issue of childhood cancer at times can be emotionally challenging. But Xiying says listening to the inspiring story of the children battling cancer motivates her to continue telling their stories.

Every word she writes for Curekids captures the victory of these little warriors in their battle against cancer. Childhood cancer has a relatively high recovery rate, but the journey to recovery is not always smooth.

“It is hard to imagine the hardships they have to go through. Also, it is hard to believe that death is actually near-at-hand for them,” remarks Xiying, who is hopeful that more students would contribute to charity events and embrace the spirit of Curekids, which is “using your profession to light up hope.”

Victoria Khu (Russia)

“There is not a single profession that does not benefit from the ability to communicate with people and the ability to analyze information,” says Victoria Khu (Russia), an alumna of the School of Journalism and Communication.

Enrolled at Tsinghua to pursue her master’s degree, Victoria was impressed by the wide range of resources available for students and the relentless motivation in every TsinghuaRen. Victoria clearly remembers the various activities she took part in, which were decisive to shape her career path. These activities included two summer programs—European Innovation Academy and Asia Innovation and Entrepreneurship Academy, workshop series, iTalk dialogue with peers, and many more.

During her time at Tsinghua, Victoria aimed for the best and was determined to further advance her career in international exchange. She now serves as Co-founder and President of the SCOLAR Network, a platform forging ties among young leaders from Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) countries.

Over the past four years, the SCOLAR Network has set up 11 city-based hubs in nine countries and hosted over 350 events with more than 13,000 participants, promoting extensive communication and achieving increasingly practical and sustainable impact.

Even after graduation, Victoria’s connection with her alma mater remains strong. She holds workshops on soft-skills development and global competencies at Tsinghua. “Over 150 students have already participated. I am very happy for the opportunity to give back to the community,” expresses Victoria.

Jiang Hui

“We can try to do our best to devote more time to study and research, to communicate more openly with the rest of the world, and to collaborate to overcome obstacles. If we do so, a bright future awaits us,” says Jiang Hui (China), a graduate student in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Tsinghua University.

Her journey to becoming a chemical engineer began with monitoring air pollution in her hometown when she was in high school. She noticed that chemical engineering has continuously played a key role in human development and human well-being, and is likely to play a vital role in the future. It only motivated her to study chemical engineering at university, she says.

Jiang Hui explained that she liked the field of engineering as it emphasized practicality by promoting cross-disciplinary collaborations and proposing technically and economically feasible plans to ongoing problems.

Since joining Tsinghua, not only has she immersed herself in her study, but also participated in various activities aimed at raising awareness about plastic pollution, winning many eminent awards like the 2019 Chemical Engineering Department’s Excellent Student Cadre.

Jiang Hui thinks young engineers should direct their efforts to addressing urgent environmental issues and to achieving common goals such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals. “Nothing can stop you from achieving your values, and you can always take more responsibility for society.”