My name is Tamara Ta. I am a Swiss student at Peking University HSBC Business School. I would like to take this opportunity to, first of all, thank for having me today. I am very honored to be standing here at the Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School’s 15^th anniversary Summary Meeting.

I came to China for the first time more than a year ago, in October 2015. At that time, I lived in Beijing, a bustling metropolis where there is always something going on. I remember, there was no day passing by that I did not feel like I will miss out on something if I stayed home. Living in a dynamic city like Beijing made me realize how much I can learn from this environment and that this is the place to be. To me, China is a country with a lot of contrasts and sometimes a place with contradictions that exist right next to each other. On one hand, China has an extremely rich culture and its history goes back 3000 years. On the other hand, its modern cities operate with the most advanced technologies. I remember how amazed I was to be using WeChat for the first time; with only one single application I could order a taxi, to pay our bills, to look up flights and to even have our lunch delivered to the office. So despite negative comments on the slowing down of the Chinese economic growth, I still think China is the place to be – and it is crucial and of great importance to understand China today; because it is catching up and it will shape the future.

I decided to join PKU Shenzhen because of various reasons. Shenzhen is like Beijing a metropolis with more than 15 million inhabitants. However, compared to Beijing, Shenzhen’s traffic is better, its weather is milder and, most importantly, it has less air pollution than Beijing. As the first and the most successful Special Economic Zone, Shenzhen is a leading city in China today. It’s a hub for technological innovation, it’s a hub for manufacturing, and it’s a hub for start-ups. In recent years, Shenzhen has become China’s second biggest financial center and has overtaken Beijing, now ranking right after Shanghai.

By establishing a campus in Shenzhen, PKU combines academic excellence with the entrepreneurial spirit of Shenzhen. In this context, being a student at PKU Shenzhen offers me the great opportunity to get closer to top companies such as tech giants Tencent, Huawei, and rising stars like DJI Technology, the world's No. 1 supplier of civilian drones. All of them are concentrated here in the megacity of Shenzhen and are shaping China’s economic landscape. In this regard, it is my greatest wish to take part in this exciting development ahead. I believe that Peking University HSBC Business School is the perfect institution to equip me with the relevant skills to understand China today. I am humbled by the University’s highly praised reputation and I am grateful for all the great support I have received from the University ever since I came to Shenzhen. Also, I very appreciate to be studying in a unique and dynamic environment with the best students coming from all over China. With this said, I wish PKU Shenzhen a very bright future and I am glad to be here celebrating its 15^th anniversary. Thank you very much.