The following is issued on behalf of the Institute of Philanthropy

A launch ceremony for the “Palace Museum Dreamscapes” Charity Summer Camp 2025 was held at the Palace Museum in Beijing today (5 August). It marks the start of a five-day cultural exchange programme for primary and secondary school students from underprivileged schools in Hong Kong and the Mainland. The programme is designed to deepen students’ understanding of traditional Chinese culture as epitomised by the Forbidden City, strengthening social ties and promoting appreciation of Chinese culture more broadly. As in 2024, this year’s camp is sponsored exclusively by the Institute of Philanthropy (IoP) and jointly organised by the Palace Museum and The Forbidden City Cultural Heritage Conservation Foundation. The Hong Kong Palace Museum collaborated as co-organiser supporting the recruitment of Hong Kong students for the programme.

Attending today’s launch ceremony were Wang Xudong, Member, Party Leadership Group of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Director of the Palace Museum; Lester Huang, IoP Chairman and Trustee of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust; Lou Wei, Executive Deputy Director of the Palace Museum; and Li Xiaocheng, Chairman of The Forbidden City Cultural Heritage Conservation Foundation. They were joined by more than 100 primary and secondary school students from Hong Kong, Sichuan, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Guangxi, Fujian, Tibet and Xinjiang.

The five-day camp will see students and teachers visit the Palace Museum to learn about its history and culture, explore the Peking University, attend workshops on Intangible Cultural Heritage at the Chinese Traditional Culture Museum and visit the Olympic Games venues such as the National Stadium (Bird’s Nest) and the National Aquatics Center (Water Cube). It will enable the students to interact and forge friendships while learning about Mainland history.

Lester Huang, IoP Chairman and Trustee of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, said the Palace Museum in Beijing was not only a treasure of Chinese civilisation but also a valuable platform for young people to explore Chinese culture. The camp is an initiative under a five-year collaboration between IoP and the Palace Museum designed to promote Chinese culture and values and nurture arts-tech talent. Huang said he hoped young people would seize this opportunity to take part in activities and engagements to broaden their horizons and improve their understanding and cultural awareness.

Lou Wei, Executive Deputy Director of the Palace Museum, said that the mission of the Palace Museum is to promote traditional Chinese culture and to enhance young people’s cultural awareness by educating them about the history and wisdom of Chinese culture. The “Palace Museum Dreamscapes” charitable programme is designed to immerse young people from the Mainland in the history of the Palace Museum. This year marks the Palace Museum's centennial, and more than 130 students and teachers from different areas of the Mainland have been invited to join the programme. He added that the Palace Museum would continue to promote traditional Chinese culture by nurturing young people’s knowledge of Chinese history and fostering their cultural awareness so as to build national pride and confidence and advance national rejuvenation.

Established in 2023 as an independent “think-fund-do” tank for China, Asia and beyond through a seed grant from The Hong Kong Jockey Club and its Charities Trust, IoP aims to provide a platform that brings philanthropic stakeholders together to promote the betterment of societies. Under a five-year collaboration between IoP and the Palace Museum, the “Palace Museum Dreamscapes” Charity Summer Camp is a charitable project that has been run by the Palace Museum. Since 2011, the project offers educational experiences such as historical story-telling sessions, traditional craft workshops and exploration of cultural relics to enable young people from different backgrounds to learn about traditional Chinese culture. The camp is also designed to promote the development of arts-tech talent, as outlined in the National 14th Five-Year Plan to transform Hong Kong into an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange.

About The Institute of Philanthropy
The Institute of Philanthropy was established in September 2023 through a seed grant of HK$6.8 billion (US$870 million) from The Hong Kong Jockey Club and its Charities Trust. Established as an independent “think-fund-do” tank for China, Asia and beyond, IoP is dedicated to promoting philanthropic thought leadership and enhancing sector capabilities at local, regional and global levels in collaboration with fellow funders. It seeks to provide an Asia-based platform bringing global stakeholders together to promote the betterment of societies everywhere.