Myles Ng, who studied in Cebu, the Philippines, shares deep connections with Hong Kong. "My father pursued his master's and doctoral degrees here, and my elder brother, who has lived in Hong Kong for years, has already obtained permanent residency. When my grandfather was diagnosed with multiple types of cancer, he came to Hong Kong for treatment. The medical standards here are simply higher, and it extended his life by another five years. Our family has long regarded Hong Kong as a second home," he explains.
He describes Cebu as a very small city, "The school I attended had only about 300 students from primary through secondary level, and the entire community was quite close-knit. But my dream since childhood has been to become a social entrepreneur and make a difference in society. Staying in Cebu might not have allowed me to realize that dream, so at 17, I decided to come to Hong Kong to seek new opportunities."
Myles' Chinese name was not adopted after he arrived in Hong Kong. "It was given by my great-grandfather, who was a Fujianese cinnamon trader. When the Second Sino-Japanese War broke out in the 1930s, his business plummeted, so he relocated to the Philippines to continue his trade. By that count, I am a third-generation overseas Chinese. Personally, I feel more like a 100% native-born Filipino," he shares. "My English surname is ‘Ng’, which is the Hokkien pronunciation of the Chinese character ‘Wong’, that's how I got my Chinese surname. My parents still speak Hokkien, but I don't understand it at all, I only speak English and Bisaya (the main language of Cebu)."
Although his elder brother is an alumnus of Chung Chi College at CUHK, Myles chose not to follow in his footsteps, opting instead for Morningside College. He explains that he was seeking a community that would challenge his way of thinking, "Growing up in the Philippines, where over 90% of the population is Catholic, and living within an overseas Chinese circle, I was exposed to a relatively homogenous culture. But I knew the world holds diverse religions and cultures. At Morningside College, students from Hong Kong, the Mainland, and overseas each make up about one-third of the community, this diversity offered me the chance to connect with people from vastly different backgrounds. I didn't want my university life to revolve solely around studying, eating, and having fun; I wanted to train myself through participating in various activities and taking on leadership roles."
True to his word, after joining Morningside College, Myles immersed himself actively in college life. He successively served as Director of Morningside Music Community, President of the International Student Association, Captain of the College Basketball Team, and President of MC Rangers, etc. "I deeply understand that to become an impactful social entrepreneur, academic qualifications alone are not enough. It also needs critical thinking and diverse experiences to help me go further," he reflects.
When Myles first joined CUHK, he did go through an adaptation period. "I thought my SAT scores were quite good, and I had always topped my class in mathematics back in the Philippines. But when I arrived in Hong Kong, I realized that students here were far more advanced in mathematics. As an Economics major, I struggled with calculus, while my classmates had already learned it in secondary school. Academically, I found it a bit challenging to keep up," he recalls. Fortunately, friendship helped bridge many gaps. "The first friend I made at CUHK was my roommate, who happened to be the first student from Vietnam at CUHK. Not only was he proficient in calculus, but he was also an Olympiad math champion. He was also the first atheist I had ever met in person, which was quite a shock to me as a devout Catholic. Later, I became close friends with a classmate from Brunei, whose roommate was a Korean raised in Mongolia. I also connected with a Singaporean-Hong Konger. From this group of friends with such diverse cultural backgrounds, I learned so much and grew significantly."
What truly propelled Myles onto the path of social entrepreneurship was a service-learning trip to Morocco organized by Morningside College in 2019. "Actually it was a Final Year Project, which most students would take in their third or fourth year. But when I saw the opportunity to go abroad for an exchange, I couldn't wait and signed up during my first year. During the trip, we visited six NGOs, and the one that left the deepest impression on me was called Verdaterre, a social enterprise founded by a group of science enthusiasts," Myles recalls. "They collect food waste from hotels and restaurants and transform it into nutrient-rich compost for local farmers, addressing the issue of poor soil quality in North Africa. What impressed me most was that Verdaterre reinvests most of its profits back to support the farmers. That was the moment I realized that running a business can also mean helping others. I wanted to do the same.”
However, there is always a gap between theory and practice, and the pandemic unexpectedly became his turning point. "During COVID, many in-person classes were cancelled, and being alone in a foreign land made me feel incredibly lonely. So, I decided to volunteer with an NGO, which also turned out to be the best way to learn about Hong Kong's social enterprises," Myles explains. "In the summer of 2020, I joined an NGO dedicated to supporting foreign domestic workers. Every Sunday, I helped them scan documents like passports and employment contracts. I spent about five hours each Sunday chatting with them. After a few months of consistent interaction, I gradually heard many of their stories about coming to Hong Kong and learned about the challenges they face every month, including financial struggles and mental health issues. I really wanted to help them find solutions. Driven by this desire to make a difference, I teamed up with several like-minded friends in 2021 to co-found HelpBridge," Myles shares. "We successfully applied for funding from CUHK's InnoPort and the Cyberport Creative Micro Fund (CCMF) and embarked on our entrepreneurial journey."
Initially, HelpBridge hired programmers and spent six months developing a mobile app where foreign domestic workers could ask questions and receive AI-powered answers. Myles describes it as "very cool and impressive", yet not practical at all. "Many domestic workers did download the app, but after installing it, they asked, 'What can I actually do with this?'" he reflects. "That made me rethink what they truly need. What they really need is knowledge, because knowledge can change their destiny. But they can't afford expensive university tuition. So I decided to take the app offline and instead develop eight affordable, paid courses covering accounting, marketing, information technology, digital marketing, business planning, and more. All tailored specifically to the Philippine market. My hope is that after completing their work as domestic helpers, they can apply the knowledge to start their own businesses and achieve their dreams."
This model has been running for over two years and has successfully supported more than 1,000 domestic workers. Among them, 10 have returned to the Philippines to launch their own businesses, some opened bakeries, others convenience stores. "One of my students worked in Hong Kong for 39 years, she arrived before 1997," Myles shares. "As they grow older, they don't want to return to the Philippines and simply wait for retirement doing nothing. They still want to prove they can be productive. I stay in touch with all my students, and our relationship has evolved from teacher-student to friendship. Hearing their stories confirms that I'm doing something impactful that I'm truly making a difference. But the road ahead is still long. There are two million Filipino migrant workers globally, and 99% of companies in the Philippines are SMEs with fewer than 20 employees, meaning small and medium enterprises are the backbone of the entire Philippine economy. Hong Kong is just the starting point. My ultimate goal is to help more domestic workers worldwide gain the skills to return home, start businesses, and contribute to their country's economic growth."
Published on CU Alumni Magazine Issue 125 by Alumni Affairs Office 2026
Read online: CU Alumni Magazine Issue 125 (Chinese Version Only)
PDF: http://www.alumni.cuhk.edu.hk/magazine/202603/pdf/CUAM_202603.pdf
ISSUU: http://www.alumni.cuhk.edu.hk/magazine/issuu/