2nd SUSTech Global Language Day: Learning SUSTech's motto in 18 languages

The Center for Language Education (CLE) of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) hosted the 2nd SUSTech Global Language Day on February 24 at lunchtime in the open space between Lecture Hall 1 and the SUSTech Center Cafeteria.

This year's theme was the SUSTech motto "Virtue Truth Advance" in 18 languages, including Chinese, English, Spanish, French, Hungarian, Japanese, Arabic, Thai, Russian, Persian, Portuguese, Georgian, Italian, Latin, Malay, Mongolian, Indonesian and German. About 1,500 SUSTech members participated in this year's event.

The 2nd SUSTech Global Language Day focused on SUSTech's motto, “Virtue Truth Advance,” which reflects SUSTechers' commitment to excellence. The aim of the day was to encourage language learning, promote the diverse and inclusive culture on campus, and celebrate SUSTech's efforts to become a world-class university.

Participants enthusiastically learned in a multilingual environment, which strengthened their communication skills. By learning to pronounce the SUSTech motto in 18 languages and communicating with each other in those languages, they gained more knowledge about other cultures.

Anaëlle, the host of the French booth, who participated in the Global Language Day for the second year in a row, noted how fascinating and memorable it was for her to talk to the participants and teach them how to say the SUSTech motto in French. She enjoys the exchange between different cultures and communicating with people who speak other languages. She hopes this event can continue year after year, as it was a rewarding experience for her to meet many people interested in the French language.

Zihan XIA, one of the participants, appreciated the event very much because she was able to practice not only Cantonese and English, but also some lesser-known languages, such as Persian and Georgian. She also learned how similar languages are and how unique they are.

Zijin HUANG, a volunteer at the Persian booth, was amazed at the complexity of the language. It took him an hour to learn just three words. This event was significant for him because he not only got a taste of so many languages, but also learned some basic expressions and experienced cultural differences through interaction with people from other backgrounds.

The SUSTech Global Language Day was first held in 2021 and was well received by SUSTech members. The broad participation this year is again proving to be a success. The CLE will continue to organize this event to celebrate language learning and promote the diversity of the University's campus culture.