Chan Yuen Him, Jonathan

Chan Yuen Him, Jonathan

BSc (Hons) Environment and Sustainable Development, 2016
MSc in Environmental Management and Engineering, 2019
Assistant Technical Officer, PolyU CEE

2021 marks the start of the 10^th year of my journey in CEE. I must say there are countless blessings and opportunities given to me throughout the years, and I am so grateful for the professors and mentors who have guided me through the different challenges in my study and career; the classmates whom I cannot survive without through the assignments, projects and exams; and the colleagues who are so supportive such that every task which seems to be so overwhelming at the beginning, could be worked out smoothly every time at the end.

I would never have thought that I would be staying in CEE for so long when I was still an undergraduate, until I started my internship at SITA Waste Services Limited in the WENT Landfill as a Laboratory Assistant. I got a chance to learn about the mechanisms of how the waste and leachate treatment infrastructure work, as well as the laboratory analysis procedures for multiple sample parameters, in the largest operating landfill in Hong Kong. I have developed interest and passions towards laboratory analysis since then, and most importantly I have learnt to be calmer and more cautious, not only in laboratory analysis, but also in communications with colleagues.

After graduation, I immediately joined the research team of Dr. LEE Po-Heng, Henry as a research assistant. I am so thankful for his continuous guidance and support since I was working on my final year project under his supervision. During the two and a half years of work in this research team, I have my horizon greatly widened in the wastewater treatment industry through conducting research with the bench-scale reactors in the laboratory and even the pilot-scale reactors sited in Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works (SCISTW) and Shatin Sewage Treatment Works (STSTW). Running reactors in research is never just science and engineering stuff. After laboratory analysis, I have to present the data and illustrate how these data can help optimize wastewater treatment processes to the big bosses, not only to those in our department, but to the colleagues from the Drainage Services Department (DSD) and Environmental Protection Department (EPD) as well. Those were fruitful experiences. Before every presentation I was expecting bosses with strong criticisms, but at the end the bosses were all very nice and willing to patiently give advice on how to further improve the laboratory analysis and presentation of data, as well as the way to use the research findings in resolving real-world issues.

During my master’s studies in CEE under the programme of MSc in Environmental Management and Engineering, I have the opportunity to investigate the feasibility of using green wall to treat greywater under the supervision of Professor Onyx WAI and continue to work in the Water and Waste Laboratories.

After my master’s studies, I am now working as an Assistant Technical Officer in the Water and Waste Laboratories. I realize that working as a technical officer is completely different from being a student or a research assistant. There are a lot more responsibilities to shoulder, but I perceive them as learning opportunities and challenges to help me grow in my career. Apart from the routine duties of managing the laboratory and operating different laboratory instruments, I got some hands-on experience with the multimedia software, such as Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro, in the post-production of the personal portraits of the academic staff and the videos of the laboratory sessions in the light of the suspension of the face-to face teaching activities over the last two years. I still remembered my only question raised at the end of the interview for this job was that whether I could be provided with any on-the-job training in the aspect of multimedia and graphic design. Surprisingly I got plenty of opportunities doing on what I like in my work.

Once again, I would like to express my deep gratitude to CEE over the last decade, for not only in building my strong foundation in the field of environmental engineering, but offering me unlimited learning opportunities for my growth.