Dear All,
Welcome to the CUDC Newsletter!
All the latest relevant information about CUDC is included in the bulletin below.
CHINA-UK GLOBAL EDUCATION SUMMIT 2018
From the 19th to the 23rd of March 2018, China UK Development Centre has co-hosted along with St. John’s College, University of Cambridge an international conference: The 2018 China-UK Global Education Summit.
The aim of the event was to provide a platform to share ideas on potential collaboration initiatives between educational institutions from China and the UK, e.g. more than 50 delegates from over 20 Chinese and UK universities, education authorities and institutions, etc. These institutions were able to discuss new opportunities for educational and research collaboration through invited speeches, panel sessions, and various networking opportunities.
We had the honour and privilege to be welcomed by Professor Christopher Dobson, Master of St. John’s College; Mr. Jianhui Xia, Counselor of Education Section at the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the UK; Dr. Zheng Jiang, Director of China UK Development Centre. Several keynote speeches were provided by Professor Nicola Clayton (FRS), Mr. Boshu Liang and Vice Presidents from Chinese universities.
Welcome and keynote speeches
Following the morning speeches, Counselor Jianhui Xia and Dr. Zheng Jiang, along with Dr. Matthias Dörrzapf, Director of International Programmes at St. John’s College and Professor Daguang Wu, Vice President of Xiamen University unveiled and witnessed the opening of 2018 China-UK Global Education Summit. The morning was concluded with a beautiful group photo of the Summit delegates.
PANEL AND NETWORKING SESSIONS
During the 3 panel sessions and a series of networking opportunities, our delegates had the precious occasion to share their projects and policies and to have a closer insight of the two different University Systems. 10 Chinese universities presented their latest developments and exciting opportunities for collaborations. Among the UK delegates we enjoyed the speeches and statements from Dr. Matthias Dörrzapf, Director of International Programmes at St. John’s College; to Professor Nicola Clayton, Fellow of the Royal Society and Professor of Comparative Cognition at the University of Cambridge; to Professor Colleen McLaughlin, Director of Educational Innovation at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge; to Dr. Marie Janson, Development Director at Clare Hall, University of Cambridge and to Dr. Boping Yuan, Fellow and Director of Studies in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at Churchill College, University of Cambridge.
We witnessed a series of exciting and thought-provoking speeches and panel discussions. Our guests shared ideas on Potential International Research Cooperation, Exchange Programmes Cooperation, on Student opportunities, on Training programmes for Academics and Professionals and International Development of Institutions of Higher Education.
Furthermore, they all had the chance to pursue this exchange of thoughts and ideas in a more informal and entertaining context during two Gala Dinners at Sidney Sussex College Hall on the 20th of March and at St. John’s College Hall on the following day.
Formal Dinners
MEMORANDUM OF MEETING SIGNING CEREMONY
During the last part of the Summit, we have witnessed the Memorandum of Meeting Signing Ceremony. The representatives from CUDC, St. John’s College and from the numerous Chinese Universities who attended the event signed these agreements, expressing a convergence of will and indicating an intended common line of action.
Selected photos of signing ceremony between St. John’s College and Chinese universities
The Summit was then concluded with closing remarks from Dr. Zheng Jiang. We were proud to announce that our next 2019 Summit would be co-hosted with Clare Hall, Cambridge. Vice President Stephen Bourne of Clare Hall attended the closing ceremony and extended a warm welcome to all delegates to come back again in 2019. A MoU was also signed by Dr. Zheng Jiang on behalf of CUDC and Vice President Stephen Bourne on behalf of Clare Hall for continuous collaborations between the two organisations in various programmes.
A FEW CONCLUDING REMARKS
It has been an intense two-days conference filled with plenty of interesting speeches and stimulating discussions.
We have faith that our British and Chinese delegates can go back to their institutions with a positive feedback and that this is just a first step in order to further cooperation initiatives and to make the world a better place through dialogue and mutual understanding.
We hope to welcome back everyone next year and to see an even greater attendance at our next Summit.