Memorandum
To:
Dr. Linda Bennett, Associate Dean
College of Arts and Sciences
Through
Dr. Jerry Bartholomew
Chairman, Department of Earth Sciences
From:
Hsiang-te Kung
Department of Earth Sciences
Subject:
Report for Professional Development Assignments for Spring 2013
Date:
September 16, 2013
My one semester professional development leave in the Spring of 2013 was very fruitful and productive.
The one semester professional development leave provided me the opportunity to develop and to broaden
my proficiencies in teaching, research, and scholarly productivity in the areas of my interest and expertise:
Water Resources, Urban Impact on the Environment, and Geography of China.
I was invited to give lectures and to participate in water quality and environmental research projects during
the spring of 2013 by various institutions and Chinese Academy of Sciences in China. As a result of many
commitments during the spring semester for the CIUM and ASIT program, I had the opportunity to spend a
week field work and research in China. I became acquainted with several Chinese geographers with similar
areas of interest.
The following is my accomplishment during the Spring semester of 2013.
I. January to May, 2013:
1. Articles published in refereed journals:
F. Zhang, T. Tiyip, Z.D. Feng, H.T. Kung, V.C. Johnson, J.L. Ding, N. Tashpolat, M.
Sawut, and W. Gui “Spatio-Temporal Patterns of Land Use/Cover Changes over the
Past 20 Years in the Middle Reaches of the Tarim River, Xinjiang, China.” Land
Degradation & Development , 2013“ Published online in Wiley Online Library
(wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI:10.1002/Ise 2206.
Kan Rulian, Kong Ting, Kung Hsiang-te, and Mei Xue “Low Carbon Tourism and
Implementation Plan.” Humanity and Social Journals of China Three Gorges
University Publisher 2013, pp. 52 – 55.
Jikang Zhu and Hsiang-te Kung “A Comparative Study between the Modern Western
Philosophy and Republic of China (1912 – 1949) on Teaching of Pre-school
Children.”Journal of Zhejiang University.
http://www.journals.zju.edu.cn/soc/CN/column/column79.shtml.
2. Contract grants received :
Confucius
2013
Institute
Headquarters
$ 290,153.00
Various private and public school Chinese language
Programs through the UMRF
2012 to June 2013
$ 232,800.00
Various private and public school Chinese language
Programs through the UMRF
2013 to June 2014
$ 564,000.00
and
50%
HANBAN
PI
January
August
50%
PI
August
50%
PI
3. May 2013:
A. Establish an academic and research liaison with Chinese geographers to pursue proposed future research
projects in China.
B Discuss and prepare with Chinese geographers the potential joint research project(s) and/or proposal(s)
on environmental problems or issues:
(a) Water Resources Development and Watershed Management in the Upper Reaches of the
Yangtze River in Southwest China, A tentative research project proposed and prepared with Professor He,
Da-ming, Institute of Geography, Yunnan Province, Kunming, Yunnan, China.
(b) Wetland Ecosystem Study of Jiang-Han Plain in Hubei Province, A research project proposed
and prepared with Professor Cai, Shu-ming, Institute of Geodesy and Geophysics, Academic Sinica,
Wuhan, Hubei, China, and Dr. Wu Shengjun, Director of Three Gorges Ecological Research Center at the
Chinese Academy of Sciences in Chongqing.
(c) Effects of Three Gorge Project on Environment in Kai Xian, Chongqing, A research project
proposed and discussed with Dr. Wu Shengjun, Director of Three Gorges Ecological Research Center at the
Chinese Academy of Sciences in Chongqing.
4. Lectures in Various Universities in China
I was invited by the Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology,
Chinese Academy of Sciences, from May 20th to 25th and presented a lecture on
“Natural Hazards Mitigation of Tennessee compared with the potential impact of
China Three Gorges Dam on its ecosystem and environment.” I also conducted three
days field trip with Dr. Wu Shengjun and Dr. Yang Fumo in Kai Xian from May 21st to
24th and visited the Chongqing Three Gorges University on May 25th.
5. Others:
Presidents of the institutions I visited indicated that they would like to have contacts and exchange
programs with the University of Memphis.
III. Benefit to the Faculty Member, the College, and the University
Geography is concerned with the relationships of man and the environment that give character to place. The
similarities and differences of areal characteristics often attract investigations by geographers with specific
interests. A geographer's ability to identify, to inventory, to analyze, and to assess the potential
environmental problems contributes profoundly to the understanding of physical and cultural environments.
I have a special interest and concentration in physical geography, particularly in environmental problems,
water and groundwater resources, and computer-aided geographic information systems (GIS). In addition, I
have seven years of experience as an environmental planner with the Knoxville/Knox County Planning
Commission and more than thirty years of experience as a faculty member in the Department of Geography
and Planning and Earth Sciences with the responsibilities for environmental analysis and impact study for
development, data base management, and water quality management. I believe that the spring semester
PDA and time spent in China was fruitful and productive, based on the aforementioned evidence.
The faculty professional development assignment program used by me as an endeavor in the department to
develop contacts between geographers in China and faculty in the Department of Earth Sciences at the
University of Memphis. The results of the professional development assignment will update and will
supplement the teaching materials on China in the department and will attract potential research funds from
outside the University as well as recruit more qualified graduate students from China to the department and
to the University.
I believe that my cultural background and my professional experience in geography and planning (water
resources, site analysis, China, and impact on the urban environment), had great impact on the Chinese
institutions at which I lectured. I can foresee a greater measure of cooperation with the Chinese
geographers in developing joint research projects with scholars at the University of Memphis. It is possible
that there could develop additional exchange programs between other Chinese institutions and our
University as both sides perceive the value of personal and professional contact between two cultures and
the exchange of ideas, information, and expertise.
Again, thank you for granting me the opportunity on this professional development assignment in the
Spring semester of 2013 and thanks for your continuous support of my research and scholarly endeavors.
An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action University