USJ Students Participate in 2025 Southern Lingnan Study Tour
USJ Students Participate in 2025 Southern Lingnan Study Tour
16
Jun
16/06/2025
The Office for Student and Alumni Affairs at USJ led a group of students and staff to the “Southern Lingnan Medication Diet Study Tour – Beautiful Danxia, Yao Medicine Mystery” organized by the Shaoguan University in Shaoguan to deepen students’ understanding of traditional Chinese wellness culture.
The Office for Student and Alumni Affairs (OSAA) of the University of Saint Joseph (USJ) led a group of students and staff to participate in the “Southern Lingnan Medication Diet Study Tour – Beautiful Danxia, Yao Medicine Mystery” organized by the Shaoguan University in Shaoguan, Guangdong, from 2nd to 9th of June, 2025. The programme was aimed to deepen students’ understanding of traditional Chinese wellness culture and it brought together over 20 staff members and students from different higher education institutions in Macao and Hong Kong for a seven-day immersive exploration of the region’s unique natural ecology and Yao ethnic medicinal traditions.
Through carefully arranged ice-breaking activities and an opening ceremony, participants quickly bonded. The itinerary featured field visits to Danxia Mountain, a UNESCO Global Geopark renowned for its crimson sandstone formations, as well as Wanmun Mount and Tianjing Mountain National Forest Park, where the group witnessed the rich biodiversity of the Nanling region. A trip to Diuzitong Village provided first-hand insight into China’s rural revitalization achievements.
Cultural immersion activities included hands-on workshops on traditional Yao crafts. Under the guidance of the local instructors, participants tried botanical pressing, medicinal hammer making, and the intangible cultural heritage technique of brewing rice wine. These experiential learning opportunities revealed the Yao people’s profound medicinal heritage and their philosophy of harmonious coexistence with nature.
USJ students mentioned that the most impressive part of the tour was discovering how the Yao community integrates herbs into daily cuisine and healthcare—a “food-as-medicine” approach , which exemplifies the wisdom of traditional Chinese wellness. During the closing ceremony, participants shared reflections on how the tour had broadened their perspectives and inspired new thinking about sustainable development and cultural preservation.
A representative from OSAA emphasized USJ’s commitment to experiential education, noting how this study tour embodied the ancient adage, “Read ten thousand books, travel ten thousand miles“. By combining academic knowledge with real-world cultural interactions, students developed a more holistic cultural literacy and interdisciplinary thinking skills.
Looking ahead, USJ will continue to promote study programmes and tours that combine traditional culture with modern education. This tour did more than strengthen academic exchanges between institutions in Macao, Hong Kong and mainland China; it also left participants with an unforgettable cultural experience and lifelong inspiration.
