[Academic News]The 7th UK-China Humanities Alliance for Higher Education Academic Forum Held at Wuhan University

From November 10 to 11, the 7th UK-China Humanities Alliance for Higher Education Academic Forum took place at Wuhan University. Over 100 experts and scholars from more than 40 Chinese and foreign universities engaged in dialogues and exchanges around the theme of "Shared Vision: Humanities in Retrospect and Prospect".

In his address, President of the Wuhan University Zhang Pingwen expressed that in the seven years since the establishment of the UK-China Humanities Alliance for Higher Education, it has deepened educational cooperation and promoted people-to-people connectivity through cross-cultural, global dialogues. The Alliance has demonstrated its commitment to promoting mutual learning between Chinese and British culture, fostering deepening relations between the two countries. Wuhan University looks forward to contributing to the Alliance's further development through open collaboration with other member universities.

Nick Thomas, Minister of Culture and Education at the British Embassy in China, emphasized the significance of higher education as a crucial channel for friendly exchanges between the people of China and the UK. He highlighted the forum as an important opportunity for experts and scholars from different cultural backgrounds to contribute to the further development of global education and academia. The forum explored new dimensions for the in-depth development of humanities disciplines.

Yang Bin, Chairman of the Alliance and Vice President of Tsinghua University, pointed out that Tsinghua University, as one of the founders of the Alliance, has been actively promoting its development. The Alliance has grown into a high-level international platform for cross-cultural academic collaboration and publishing. Tsinghua University will continue to support its academic activities and cross-cultural exchanges, contributing to its further development.

During the keynote speech session of the forum, ten speakers delivered keynote speeches. Professor Guo Qiyong from the School of Philosophy and School of Chinese Classics at Wuhan University, vice president of the Chinese Society for the History of Philosophy, presented a speech titled "Addressing Modern Problems and Crises with Confucian Wisdom”, exploring the creative transformation of Chinese philosophical wisdom, especially Confucian wisdom, to address modern crises faced by humanity.

Professor Michel A. Szonyi, Frank Wu Wen-hsiung Professor of Chinese History and former director of the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies of Harvard University, used the diary of a farmer in Shaanxi as a starting point to discuss the significant impact of historical changes on social development.

Professor Cui Zhanfeng, Professiorial Fellow of Hertford College at the University of Oxford, Donald Pollock Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Oxford, talked about China-UK collaboration in Scientific Research. Using examples of solving research challenges through Sino-British cooperation, he elaborated on the crucial role of international collaboration in global problem-solving.

Professor Justin Dillon, Professor of Science and Environmental Education at University College London, President of the UK National Association for Environmental Education, delivered a speech titled "Towards an Educational Response to the Climate and Environment Emergency — from Subject Silos to Whole Institutional Responses". Drawing on practical educational experiences, he proposed a series of transformative measures to enhance educational change.

Professor Sun Xiaochun, Dean and Professor at the School of Humanities, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Executive Committee Member of the International Union of Philosophy and History of Science and Technology, explored the humanistic spirit and rich scientific thinking in Chinese traditional culture from five aspects.

Professor Vincent P. Pecora, Professor at the University of Utah and Distinguished Professor at Institute for World Languages and Cultures (IWLC) of Tsinghua University, delivered a speech titled "John Bunyan Comes to China".

Professor Dora Vargha, Professor at the University of Exeter and Humboldt University of Berlin, presented a speech titled "Medical Humanities, Disease Management and Avenues for Collaboration”. The speech aimed to outline pathways for global health policy formulation, critical participation in science and technology, and collaboration in public discourse.

Professor Lin Shaoyang, Distinguished Professor at the Department of History, University of Macau, focused on the first East Asian war in the early 16th-century global context of early globalization. He emphasized the global significance of this war.

Professor Matthew Reynolds, Professor of English and Comparative Literature at University of Oxford, Director of the Center for the Studies of Comparative Literature and Translation at University of Oxford, discussed the theme of "Literature, World History, and Cross-Cultural Communication". He elucidated the characteristics of "Jane Eyre" as a "world work" and its insightful implications for promoting Sino-Western cultural exchange and academic innovation.

Professor Yang Hua, Director of Centre for Studies of Traditional Chinese Culture of Wuhan University, delivered a speech titled "Wuhan University's Humanities and Academic Development in the Context of Sino-British Cultural Exchange (1928-1949)".

The forum featured five parallel sessions and included a doctoral student forum. Scholars from China, the UK, and the US engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as "Literature, World History, and Intercultural Dialogue and Exchange", "The Wisdom of Living in Harmony with Nature", "Overcoming Diseases and Pursuing a Healthy Life", and "The Impact of Science and Technology on Humanities, Cultures and Life-worlds”.

During the forum, the executive council meeting and the executive council education development roundtable of the UKCHA were successfully held.

The forum was organized by the UKCHA and hosted by Wuhan University. It served as a high-level international academic event for the 130th anniversary of Wuhan University. The UKCHA, initiated in 2016 by 12 core universities from China and the UK, currently has 17 member universities. The Alliance is committed to promoting exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and British higher education institutions, facilitating people-to-people exchanges between China and the UK. As one of the founding universities, Wuhan University has actively participated in alliance activities and undertaken related responsibilities to contribute to the development and cooperation between Chinese and British universities.