The first Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area International Communication Competition for College Students concluded on May 17 with an awarding ceremony at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, celebrating the creativity and insight of student storytellers from Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR and other parts of China.
Launched in December 2024, the competition was co-hosted by Sun Yat-sen University's School of Journalism and Communication and GDToday. It drew 206 teams from 33 universities from the mainland, Hong Kong SAR, and Macao SAR, generating nearly 250 submissions. After a blind review by 22 expert judges, 50 outstanding works were selected for awards.
The awarding ceremony. (Photo: Pan Jiajun)
Empowering young storytellers on the global stage
Zhao Yang, Editor-in-Chief of GDToday, emphasized the region's strategic role. "The Greater Bay Area is not only economically powerful but also a vital link between China and the rest of the world," he said. "We hope to build more creative platforms that help students take their work beyond the classroom."
Chen Rongrong, Deputy Director of the university's publicity office, stated that communication must balance technology and empathy. "Today's international storytelling needs both digital skills and a human touch," she shared with the students.
Zhong Zhijin, Dean of the School of Journalism and Communication, expressed that the contest aimed to empower students as global communicators. "Their work shows both creativity and concern for real-world issues," she said.
Youth perspectives on real-world issues
Participants tackled a wide range of topics, including China's modernization, artificial intelligence, environmental issues, daily life, and more.
Cai Runlin, a student at Sun Yat-sen University, was part of the team that won first prize in the audio & video category with a VR documentary on rural house renovation in Yunnan Province. "We went there not just to record something, but to experience it ourselves," she reflected on her role in China's narratives. "We are not just documentarians, but part of the stories", she said, "that's what makes the story real."
Cai and her team receive first prize in the audio & video category. (Photo: Pan Jiajun)
As the year 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of China's victory in the war of resistance against Japanese aggression, Lu Xuan and her team from Nanjing University analyzed how various AI platforms present the Nanjing Massacre. "This is a story that deserves to be heard, especially in global conversations," she said, "and that's why I came to participate in the competition. I want more people to understand what happened."
International students also contributed actively. In a second-prize-winning video, Russian and Zambian students from Jinan University donned traditional Hanfu and toured the historic city of Xi'an, offering a cross-cultural view of Chinese heritage. "Each video felt like a cultural exchange," said Zambian student Faith Mukwena.
The competition will continue to be held in the coming years, with hopes to draw more young voices, from China and beyond, into the global storytelling.
Guests and students take a group photo at the ceremony. (Photo: Pan Jiajun)
Reporter | Chen Siyuan
Photo | Pan Jiajun
Video | Pan Jiajun
Editor | Hu Nan, James, Shen He
