[Ben Nolan/ Senior teacher of Minxin School, Academic director of Minxin Summer School]

My first experience in Nansha was coming to the Minxin School campus. So from the outside, the first impression is like, wow this school looks really cool and then once get inside, you realize that there's so many facilities. They're top class and everything is brand new and technology is integrated a lot.  

On space camp, you are going to be presented with a very big problem. Our planet is no longer safe for us to live on. Where we gonna go, and what we gonna do.  

My name is Ben. I'm from a small town called Kilrush in County Clare in Ireland. I've been living here in Nansha for about a year now. I currently work here at Minxin School. I'm a middle school science and high school biology teacher. I study the biochemistry in the University of Galway in Ireland.

My first position in China was in Bao'an district in Shenzhen.  

I was a science teacher in a primary school and that was in. Right now I'm working at Minxin Summer School where I'm working as an academic director.

Gravity works by pulling things...

In this lesson, they are starting to get their jobs, and different roles they will have, as a part of the project. So they can see how their science and engineering that they learn about, such as space exploration and the designing of rockets.

Moving from just lecture style learning to more interactive activities and hands-on learning, we put as many experiments and student-led activities as possible into the courses, and it allows students to explore their interests and explore science subjects in a different fashion, where they're not just listening but they're actively taking part in the learning process.  

[Austin Deng / Consultant of Minxin summer school]

Student called Ben ‘Mr. Know-everything’, this nickname is given by his students. He is very knowledgeable.

He is a very nice person, really considerate and willing to help you with everything. He is also got an international vision.

[Huang Yueheng / Teaching assistant of Minxin summer school/ Former student of Ben Nolan]

Ben is lovely. He pays attention to every student in a gentle and quiet way, including those who are shy. He teaches students in a simple way, and make it easier to understand.

Ben:

Here in Nansha, I like to pass my time outdoor quite a lot. The nature aspect of Nansha is really special and unique, that even though we have all the facilities that we could need and all the conveniences of modern life, it's still so easy to get access to nature.

I use rental bikes all the time, I use them so often. I’m interested in nature, and especially I like to go kayaking, hiking and cycling. And it's very convenient to do all of these activities here in Nansha, because even though it's rapidly developing and there's lots of big mall and activities to do, there’s also lots of nature around, especially for water-based activities.  

Chinese food is quite different in Ireland, Irish style of Chinese food, so getting to try real authentic Chinese food was a really cool experience. Bullfrog hot pot is good. Yeah, so there's a lot of different dishes that I've tried over the years living here. Hot pot is one of my favorites.

Recently I've had some friends visited from Ireland, because now people from Ireland can enter visa-free into China.

They get to see the real China. I got to take them to try some of my favorite dishes. And they got to see all of the infrastructure. And I quite enjoyed seeing their reaction to how big everything was, and all the technology, and how convenient life is here in China and in Nansha.  

My mom is going to come and visit in October, during the National Day holiday. She'll come for one week. I'm going to take her on a trip to see around the Greater Bay Area.  

Austin:

Ben enjoys his life in Nansha. Last week, he even invited his friends from the UK to travel to Nansha and Guangzhou. None of his friends had heard of Nansha before. After learning about the development here, they all fell in love with this place. I heard that he would bring his family here in October. I'm happy to see him enjoying the life here. Nansha is attractive, making these international talents stay and enjoy their work and life here.

Ben:

When I first came here to China, and I didn't know how long I was going to stay originally. I thought maybe a year maybe two years, who knows. Now five years later I'm still here because I really enjoy my life here in China, there's so many great opportunities, especially in education. I feel it's very forward thinking and there's lots of integration of technology and things, so I find being a teacher in China is a really cool experience and a very rewarding experience.

About Nansha’s policies:

-Build the first international talent zone in China

Nansha International Talent Port has a one-stop government service centre for Nansha talents, which provides 495 services including applications for foreign visas, residence permits, work permits, qualification verification, accommodation, professional qualifications, involving a total of 28 departments

-In terms of entry, exit and residence, Nansha free trade zone has implemented favorable policies for international talents. The zone accepts and issues visa documents for international applicants, and directly approves and issues work permits for them.

- International talents can apply for a work permit and a residence permit through a ‘one-stop’ service counter.