Justin Gong is a Chinese exchange student studying at the Facultad de Economía y Negocios of the Universidad de Chile, from Guanghua School of Management at Peking University in Beijing. He is the second student from this school to receive the Luksic Scholarship for Chile, and he sat down recently with us to share about his first experience in Chile and South America.

Why did you want to come to Chile? What attracted you to here?

“Chile” in Chinese is called “Zhili”, and is pronounced the same as “intelligent”, so basically, I came to Chile to be smarter (he laughs). Also, I came here to learn about the culture. The only thing I knew about Chile was how long and narrow it is on the map, and wine. And I wanted to know the real Chile. I also wanted to come here because I worked for several years in the wine industry. I love Chilean wine – it is high quality, but not as well-known as French wine, which I think is a pity. I write as an independent collaborator in a Chinese wine magazine, so I intend to visit some vineyards here and write an article to promote Chilean wine in China.

What are the differences you have noticed between Chile and China?

The way of life. Chileans are more relaxed and enjoy life more, while we Chinese, especially in large cities, always live in a hurry, super busy every day. We do not enjoy it as much!

What is the best thing you have done in Chile so far? And the best food you tasted?

I went to Torres del Paine. Amazing, it really shocked me! The other thing is that I can experience the four seasons in one day, incredible. The people are friendly here. I took zumba and salsa classes and, although I could not understand the meaning of the songs, I could understand the attitude, the feeling that they are really happy, on the inside.

As for the food, empanadas and hot dogs but, above all, the fruit, so sweet and juicy. So much variety!

Would you recommend your friends to come to Chile? Yes, I am planning to make a series of videos that show the different perspectives of Chile, that are very vivid. There are beautiful views, food, people, festivals and more.

What would you say to your Chilean counterparts who will study abroad in China?

China is a mysterious country for many. It is difficult to define it with just a few words. We have a history of more than 5,000 years, a large population, and big markets. China has 56 different ethnic groups, which creates a unique multicultural environment. You have the possibility to travel through different cities, each with its own characteristics: If you like history, go to Beijing, Xi’an or Nanjing. If you prefer the international and modern style, Shanghai and Shenzhen. Nature? Yunnan, the Himalayas and Tibet, the deserts of Xinjiang, the lakes in Qinghai and ocean in Hainan!

What are your thoughts about this exchange program?

This exchange program is incredible. It has provided me with a great opportunity to look closely at Chile, not only in theory, but also in practice. To meet people with different backgrounds, to listen to different business ideas, different perspectives, from teachers, professionals and colleagues. If I had not applied for the Luksic Scholarship, I would have missed all this.

What message would you say to your friends in China and your friends in Chile?

It is simple: to those in Guanghua: come to Chile. To my Chilean friends: go to China!

Any final thoughts?

There is an old Chinese saying that says something like this: “Reading 10,000 books is not equal to walking 10,000 miles” It means that studying hard is not enough. You have to explore the world.

Danilo Rocha Limoeiro is a 37 year-old Luksic Scholar from Brazil who graduated from MIT Political Science with a Ph.D on June 7^th, having been selected in 2016 as a Luksic Scholar in the program MIT Political Science Luksic Fellowship. Before starting his studies at MIT, he worked for seven years in Brazil’s federal government, and also earned a Master’s in Philosophy from the University of Oxford.

Recently we caught up with Danilo to talk about his experience as a Luksic Scholar at MIT and his plans after graduation.

Why did you decide to go to MIT to pursue your Ph.D?

I wanted to improve my technical and quantitative skills, so I chose MIT because their political science department is strong in these fields.

Describe life in Cambridge.

Life is Cambridge can be very hard sometimes. Being from central Brazil, a very dry region, I was used to sunny weather every day. So, adapting to New England’s weather was a challenge. Also, the pressure at MIT is enormous and we always had to manage a very heavy workload. Ph.D students in particular – because the program is very long, have to be patient and understand that the hard work will pay off in the end!

What was the impact of the Luksic Scholarship on your life?

Great impact! The Luksic Scholarship enabled me to come to one of the most amazing educational institutions in the world, and that certainly transformed not only my professional trajectory, but I also changed a lot as a person. I developed a thicker skin working on long-term projects under a lot of pressure. I think this is a great skill to have.

Tell us a little but about your thesis.

Sure. My thesis is entitled, “Gatekeepers of Prosperity: how the state and business block the path towards functioning market economies in developing countries.”

I tried to investigate why so many developing countries, especially in Latin America, have such a poor business environment. I wanted to know why the cost of doing business in poor countries is so high, and understand the politics driving up these costs. 

Now that you are getting your Ph.D what are your future plans? Are you going back to your hometown?

I did not pursue an academic career, as I thought, and decided to use the knowledge on statistics and machine learning I got at MIT to start my own business. So, now I’m living in São Paulo working on the startup I co-founded. Our main goal is to use new technologies, such as data analytics to decrease the cost of doing business in developing countries. We are starting with the huge challenge of improving tax compliance in Brazil. Currently Brazil has the most complex tax system in the world. It takes an average firm 2,000 hours to be tax compliant. We are addressing this issue with a platform that expedites tax law research and predicts patterns of tax law enforcement. 

Very impressive and interesting challenge! Do you have a message for future Luksic Scholars?

Don’t forget how highly privileged and lucky you are to be able to study in top schools, so pay it forward when you are done by trying to make the world a better place. Think about what is going to be your impact and your legacy to the world.

Ignacio Sánchez, a pediatrician, longtime faculty member and president of Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, received an honorary degree of doctor of science at Notre Dame’s 174th University Commencement ceremony on May 19.

“It was very touching,” said Sánchez. “I was impressed by the atmosphere and the conversations. The students’ speeches were full of deep and profound messages.”

Sánchez is one of four distinguished U.S. and international leaders who were honored with a degree, along with University of Notre Dame’s Executive Vice President John Affleck-Graves and the principal speaker, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and renowned speechwriter, Peggy Noonan.

“Known as a wise and engaged leader who takes the time to listen despite a schedule which finds him juggling weekly patient appointments with his many other duties, he is a tireless champion of inclusion for underprivileged students and those with special needs,” said Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins during commencement.

Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (PUC) was founded in 1888 and is considered one of the top universities in Latin America. To date, it has built collaborative research and student exchanges with nearly 280 international universities from over 40 countries.

Sánchez was appointed president of PUC in 2010 and reappointed to a second term in 2015 by Pope Francis. He specializes in the study of cystic fibrosis, asthma and other respiratory illnesses in children. Previously, he served as the university’s head of pediatrics and director and dean of the School of Medicine. Sánchez is the head of the Chilean chapter of Catholic universities, a part of the International Federation of Catholic Universities.

A look back

The partnership with PUC is at the center of Notre Dame’s strategy for Latin America. The history of the University in Chile extends back three quarters of a century when the Congregation of the Holy Cross established its first educational institution in Latin America: Saint George’s College in Santiago, Chile. Saint George’s is one of Chile’s most prestigious primary and secondary schools with more than 2,600 students in attendance.

Notre Dame has continued to develop programs in Chile along with collaborations with Chilean colleagues. In the 1970s, the Kellogg Institute for International Studies and the Center for Civil and Human Rights were instrumental in finding key partners who shared Notre Dame’s goals and mission. With a shared vision to be preeminent research universities committed to both global engagement and a Catholic mission, PUC became one such partner.

Pontifical Catholic University of Chile’s Casa Central campus (in downtown Santiago)

A strategic alliance

Sánchez has played an integral part in the collaboration between PUC and Notre Dame. A new era of this mutually beneficial relationship with Sánchez started nearly a decade ago when he first visited Notre Dame’s campus in South Bend. At the time, the University was exploring ways to expand its presence in Chile to enhance faculty and research capacity.

In 2013, Sánchez signed a memorandum of understanding with Father Jenkins, strengthening scholarly engagement between both institutions. The agreement established an exchange program, encouraging faculty, doctoral students and university representatives from Notre Dame to visit, work, study, and collaborate with PUC colleagues.

“This kind of deep relationship and shared mission is very important to both students and faculty,” said Steve Reifenberg, associate professor of the practice of international development and co-director of Integration Lab at the Keough School of Global Affairs, who has had more than three decades engaging with Chile.

“Ignacio Sánchez has been a great champion of encouraging his faculty to take advantage of opportunities to come here and our own faculty and staff have been welcomed there.”

Pictured: Steve Reifenberg, Anne García-Romero, Ignacio Sánchez and his wife, Dr. Salesa Barja, following the commencement ceremony

Supporting faculty research

The faculty exchange collaboration between PUC and Notre Dame has been supported by Chilean benefactor Andrónico Luksic and his family. The Luksic Family Collaboration Grant program encourages the Notre Dame community to find new ways to collaborate with colleagues from PUC on research, exchanges, and conferences in order to increase the flow of Notre Dame faculty and staff going to Santiago. The Luksic family also supports faculty and staff from PUC to come to Notre Dame.

Anne García-Romero, associate professor in the Department of Film, Television and Theatre, was a co-recipient of a Luksic grant with her Notre Dame colleague Anton Juan, and they co-taught a Devised Performance course last fall semester at PUC’s School of Theater. She said Chile has a rich theatre tradition and spending a semester at PUC provided a remarkable collaboration between Notre Dame and PUC students.

“Our course was an extraordinary exchange of methodologies, ideas, ways of working, and knowledge in the discipline of theatre,” said García-Romero. “This valuable experience gave us a new appreciation and a deeper understanding of the legacy of Chilean theatre.”

This experience has led to an ongoing faculty exchange between the Notre Dame’s film, television and theatre department and PUC. This semester, two PUC theater faculty met with Notre Dame theater students and professors during a campus visit. Next fall, two additional PUC theater faculty will spend a week at Notre Dame, lecturing in theater classes and sharing their theater research with the Notre Dame community. García-Romero and Juan are also collaborating with the PUC School of Communications faculty on a new project as well. In addition to developing interdisciplinary research initiatives, both universities have interest in developing undergraduate and graduate exchange programs in the fields of law, mathematics, chemistry, biochemistry, physics, and biology.

Since the program’s inception in 2013, Luksic grants have funded more than 60 projects at Notre Dame, spanning five colleges, the Law School, nineteen departments, and several institutes. The program has allowed Notre Dame to dramatically expand the breadth of research and collaborative missions in Chile.

Current snapshot

Collaborative faculty research continues to be a priority for both universities, as well as growing the study abroad opportunities for students. To date, more than 30 Notre Dame faculty members from various departments, including science, law, physics, chemistry, engineering, theology, and arts & letters have traveled to Santiago to conduct research or teach. With several faculty exchange programs in the works, PUC is looking to send more faculty to Notre Dame.

While faculty research has been a focus in recent years, the study abroad program in Santiago has been established for more than twenty-five years. Operating both spring and fall semesters, the study abroad program serves approximately fifty undergraduate students from Notre Dame each year. Sánchez said these numbers are impressive and he hopes to increase these types of opportunities for PUC students to study at Notre Dame.

In 1994, Notre Dame established a permanent office in Santiago to continue supporting students, as well as facilitating relationships and supporting faculty exchanges, shared research, internships and dual Ph.D. programs. The office has since moved to PUC’s San Joaquin campus and is known as the Santiago Global Center. The programs offered or supported at the Santiago Global Center through Notre Dame International are broad and cover undergraduate and graduate students as well as opportunities for faculty and staff.

The degree of Doctor of Science honoris causa is conferred on Ignacio Sanchez, rector of The Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

The Catholic mission

“I think in some ways, the relationship with the Catholic University of Chile has served as an inspiring model for what Notre Dame is trying to do around world,” said Reifenberg.

Both universities share a vision for not only increasing strategic scholarly engagement, but to do so with a shared Catholic mission. Reifenberg and Sánchez both believe it’s a model that is being recognized around the world, as two universities come together with complementary perspectives and strong catholic identities as a force for good.

“With our complementary missions as premiere Catholic universities, we have to think about the value that we bring to different parts of the world,” said Sánchez.

The University recognized this partnership and storied history during commencement with the highest honor possible: an honorary degree.

“Rooted in his devotion to his family and his Catholic faith, he lives out the Gospel Call as healer and teacher,” concluded Father Jenkins.

**Originally published on international.nd.edu **

In the past few days, the first edition of Chile Conference UK took place.

Valentina Rosas, Luksic Scholar, one of the creators and monitors of this conference, explains why this initiative was born:

-We are a group of Chilean graduate students that started the organization of this project eight months ago, with the idea of building a bridge for the analysis of public policies between Chile and the UK. This Conference aims to examine different red-tape areas of public policy bringing together people from the academia, policy-makers and students, and question what country we want to be in an academic environment that promotes respect and tolerance.
As students, we felt there was a general lack of places to think and debate about our country while we were studying abroad.

She also says that this group, as graduate students, cannot be disconnected from the public debate on the challenges that Chile is currently facing: a growing economy and a stable political scenario that nonetheless is sometimes blind to an aging population, high inequality, disaggregation that its cities are creating. 

That is why they began with this idea: a conference to bring together Chileans currently living and studying in the UK to think about the country Chile wants to be.

Chile Conference on Public policy took place on May 24th in London (LSE) starting with the Ambassador David Gallagher and Consuelo Saavedra. Then, on labor market, taxation system,  new criminal law and pension systems panels.

A panel was held in Oxford (Blavatnik School of Government) on the 25th, about the taxation system reform with the participation of Prof. Nicholas Barr, former Minister Rodrigo Valdés, Prof. Claudia Sanhueza (Universidad Mayor) and Pablo González from ILC investments (CChC) as representative of the private environment. Parallel panels on smart cities and poverty alleviation were also held.

Speakers were Anandi Mani Professor of Behavioural Economics and Public Policy at BSG; Alexandra Barrantes, Senior Social Policy Specialist in Development Pathways, Adriana Conconi, Executive Director at the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and Magdalena Rossetti, anthropologist from Universidad de Chile and currently, student of the Master of Public Administration at LSE.

At this panel, the multidimensional measurements of poverty as complement to income measurements, and behavioral science approaches to understand the effects and limitations that poverty produces in decision making were discussed

Again, in Valentina Rosas’ words: “With this round table, we are looking at new approaches that can enrich our protection system to enable us to deal with the next generation of social issues and their multicausality.”

In 2019, four new programs were launched, bringing the total current scholarship programs supported by the Luksic family to 18.

The four programs are “Columbia Executive Education for Croatia“, “Sciences Po Quiñenco Scholarship for Chile“, “Faculty Seminar at Sciences Po“, and “Chilean Immersion Program for China“, to be held in Croatia, France and Chile respectively.

These four programs promote the exchange of knowledge and intercultural understanding in an increasingly globalized world.

These new initiatives will allow the network to surpass 1,400 beneficiaries from Chile and the rest of the world who will have received an education at some of the most prestigious higher education institutions around the globe, supported by the Luksic family.

The Chile Conference on Public Policy is supported by Luksic Scholars and organized by a group of Chilean graduate students in The UK, among them Valentina Rosas, a current Luksic Scholar studying public policy in Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University.

The goal of the conference is to discover new problems in “red tape” policy areas, by asking what country do we want to be? This question will be tackled jointly with high-level speakers producing various outputs to disseminate ideas and proposals.

This meeting is the foundational milestone to promote Chilean students in the UK as the hub of future policy ideas and innovative-led solutions.

The event will be held on May 24 at the LSE School of Public Policy in London and on the 25th at the Blavatnik School of Government in Oxford, and will include the participation of Ambassador David Gallagher; former Minister Rodrigo Valdés, Chilean policymakers as Andrea Repetto, Antonio Bascuñán, and Augusto Iglesias, as well as important academics from the UK such as Nicholas Barr and Peter Ramsey.

Relevant themes such as the labor market and the fourth industrial revolution, impact investing, the taxation system, new criminal law, pensions systems and its challenges, smart cities and urban studies and the future challenges for social protection and poverty alleviation will all be addressed at this event.

You can find more information at www.chileconference.co

Three students selected from the Facultad de Economía y Negocios of the Universidad de Chile are spending a semester abroad in Beijing at Peking University, participating in an exchange program sponsored by the Luksic family.

In 2018, a new Luksic Scholars program was established: the Chile-China Undergraduate Exchange, between the Facultad de Economía y Negocios of the Universidad de Chile, Peking University and Fudán University, some of the top business schools regionally. This agreement allows both Chinese and Chilean undergraduate students to study abroad for a semester.

Juan Martínez, Alessandro Campos, and Camila Rebolledo (in the photo, along with their exchange partner from PKU, Gavin Wang) are three Chilean students of Commercial Engineering and Computer Engineering & Management Control from the Universidad de Chile who are currently at the Guanghua School of Management of Peking University. We caught up with them in Beijing to hear more about their experience.

What has most impacted these young Chileans is the multicultural environment in which they find themselves living at Guanghua, considered one of the most prestigious business schools in China, where the student body is made up of Chinese students and young people from all over the world.

“We share residences with both Chinese friends and expats. We have had to learn to overcome the language barrier, and we even communicate with signs,” says Camila. “But the personal enrichment of sharing with other young people from all over the world has been great.”

The students also emphasize that they have learned to navigate the peculiarities of Chinese culture and admire their customs. They claim that Beijing is a very safe city, and conclude that academically the biggest challenge has been so far the level of rigor in the classroom.

“We are happy and we still have elements that remind us of Chile… from the cherries and apples and the good wine that we find in the shops, to the Latin music that our Chinese friends listen to much more often than one would imagine,” they say. “It’s a great experience.”

Within the framework of the agreement between Banco de Chile, Universidad Católica de Chile, and Tsinghua University, the twelfth version of the CMIX Conducting Business in China program has just concluded.

On this occasion, 17 MBA students and two professors from the UC along with two executives from Banco de Chile took part in a two-week study tour in China. The trip, which included academic, business, and cultural elements, began with classes taught at the Tsinghua University in Beijing, which is considered one of the best academic institutions in Asia.

Also, the students visited Schwarzman College – a new residential college in the same university, cradle of future global leaders – where the Chileans met with Latin American counterparts, and attended a conference by Richard Brodhead and Xue Lan, former President of Duke University and Dean of Schwarzman College, respectively.

As usual, the agenda also included high-level company and site visits in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen to the Banco de Chile Beijing office, Bank of China and Citi, Foxconn, Huawei, Tencent, BYD, and more.

On March 27, 2019, a reunion of the CMIX-Chile program in Beijing was held for a group of Tsinghua MBA alumni Luksic Scholars who participated in the Chile MBA study tour sponsored by Banco de Chile in previous years.

The meeting, which took place in the representative office of Banco de Chile in Beijing and hosted by José Miguel Besnier, Beijing Chief Representative of the bank, marked an important step in linking the different generations of scholars.

The students, treated with empanadas and Chilean wines, showed their commitment to continue opening networks, both in their country of origin, and with Chile.

Without a doubt, it was a very positive meeting that promises to be repeated in future years to continue consolidating the network of Luksic Scholars and their connections around the world.

The rapid development of technology in general, the advances of artificial intelligence and the growing availability of data of any kind offer tremendous opportunities for companies and public organizations, but also challenges for the training of its professionals.

Finding wisdom in the data is essential, with data analytics becoming the perfect approach that allows combining organizational strategies with science of data.

In this context, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) joined forces with the Universidad de Chile to offer a new program in data analytics at the highest level to train professionals from Chile and the region.

As of May 2019, the Data Analytics Certificate (Diploma in Data Analytics) program will be taught in Santiago by the Universidad de Chile in conjunction with MIT professors, and will conclude with two weeks of courses in Cambridge, MA on campus at MIT Sloan.

The MIT Sloan-U de Chile joint certificate — the first program that MIT has offered with Latin American University — aims to prepare high-level professionals from the private and public sectors to make strategic decisions based on data (“data-driven decision making”).

For more information, click here, or apply here.