2025
05/16
On May 12, Dr. Charles Chen Yidan was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Literature (Education) by University College London (UCL). The degree was conferred at the UCL Institute of Education’s 2025 graduation ceremony, held at the Royal Festival Hall in London. On this occasion, Dr. Chen delivered a speech titled Legacies That Endure. Below is the full text of his remarks.
President and Provost, Esteemed Platform Party and Graduands,
Thank you for inviting me, it is a great honor to receive this honorary Degree from IOE, University College London.
It always amazes me when coming into a place with rich history, like UCL and IOE. One was built at the high time of industrial revolution and the other at the beginning of the Gilded Age.
UCL and IOE don’t simply live history, they created history. Both institutions pioneered in many fronts, fighters for freedom and equality. UCL was the first secular university in Britan, first in the admission of women as students. IOE spearheaded research in education. With bold and unorthodox moves at the time, they both built up their great legacy.
Standing here, I cannot help but thinking of the difficulties both institutions had suffered during wars and economic downturns, thinking of all the people who spent their prime time here and are forever proud of associating with both institutions, thinking of their achievements and losses, ups and downs, tears and laughter. Time flies, yet institutions endure, and the people’s legacy lasts.
It is renowned institutions like UCL and IOE that inspired me to devote my efforts towards education.
I used to puzzle on a fun fact, that the world’s oldest institutions are not commercial companies, but universities and libraries.
As a core founder of Tencent, I know a company can grow fast, mobilize large amounts of resources and accomplish wonderful things. But they often need to follow business rules and market principles. Companies compromise when necessary, divert to avoid painful loss.
Universities and libraries are quieter but firmer – similar to the old Chinese saying, the greatest are those like water; they benefit all and compete with none. Indeed, educational institutions endure because they trade in the only currency that transcends time: ideas that persist and benefit everyone.
Ideas are precious. The more you share ideas, the more powerful they become. Small ideas that persist can move mountains. It was not just some old Chinese metaphor, but my family story. My grandma believed in education. She has a small idea that if my father were properly educated, he could change his life. And she was absolutely right. The same idea remained in my father’s mind, that if I were better educated than he was, I could achieve something bigger. He was right too.
This very idea is my true north, that to enlighten the younger generation to think critically, speak kindly, and behave rationally. To following this true north, I established Wuhan College.
But this isn’t enough. Education should be celebrated globally, findings of pedagogical research should be promoted, and achievements in educational practice should be honored. That is why I founded the Yidan Prize.
I consider myself lucky to find this true north. It is hard to follow it consistently. But by doing so, one can find enormous and lasting happiness, to enjoy the fulfillment of life and inner peace.
Surely, there are times when the hardship is overwhelming, and we feel tired and small. Or situations change so fast that we feel confused and lost. It is all right to give a break and restore ourselves.
Rests and reflections can build up resilience. That is why the ideas originated in one’s childhood dreams and prime age ambitions can persist. With small breaks and restorations, your heart will temper the cold encounters and hardship into gems of your life experience.
Let me give you another story of my favorite Chinese poet who lived a thousand years ago in Song Dynasty. One night, he wrote a rhapsody to comfort his friend, who was saddened by their visit to an ancient war relic besides RedCliff of Yangzi River, where an epic battle once shaped the great tides of history, now just a fleeting splash in the eternal river of time.
The poet said,
“The water is running down to the sea day and night,
yet the Yangzi River never ceases to dry.
the moon phases wax and wane,
while the matter orbiting earth never sees loss or gain.
If you view everything as changing, then the universe shifts in a split second.
if you view everything as constant, the moment where you and I stand is eternally present.”
May we all enjoy this eternal present.
Thank you!
