The three sub-forums of the Forum for Future Development of the Confucius Institute at the World Chinese Language Conference were held successfully at the China National Convention Center in Beijing on December 8, 2023. A total of 27 experts and scholars from 15 countries discussed the development and future of Confucius Institutes by delivering speeches on three topics, including Strengthening Connectivity to Promote Coordinated Development of Confucius Institutes, Digital Development and Resource Sharing of Confucius Institutes, and Enhancing Characteristic Development to Increase Influence of the Confucius Institute Brand.
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Sub-forum A
Strengthening Connectivity to Promote Coordinated Development of Confucius Institutes
Sub-forum A was hosted by James Heimowitz, the senior consultant for Confucius Institute global development, and Liu Hong, president of the Dalian University of Foreign Languages. Acharawan Topark-Ngarm, assistant to the president of Khon Kaen University; Rehab Mahmoud, director of the Confucius Institute at Cairo University; Timothy O’Brien, director of the Chinese and Regenerative Medicine Confucius Institute at National University of Ireland Galway; Wang Mingyi, president of Sichuan Normal University; Taras Ivchenko, director of the Confucius Institute at Russian State University for the Humanities; Luis Antonio Paulino, director of the Confucius Institute at São Paulo State University in Brazil; Jessica Zhang-Pène, director of the Confucius Institute at Pau, France; and Shi Ge, director of Chinese as a Foreign Language Education Editorial Department, People’s Education Press, among others, delivered speeches on the topic Strengthening Connectivity to Promote Coordinated Development of Confucius Institutes. They shared their achievements and experiences in establishing and developing Confucius Institute alliances, deepening cooperation between Chinese and overseas universities, and promoting the development of various Confucius Institutes through coordination.
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Sub-forum B
Digital Development and Resource Sharing of Confucius Institutes
Sub-forum B was hosted by Gu Hongliang, vice president of East China Normal University, and Patricio Conejero Ortiz, vice president of international affairs of the University of Buenos Aires and director of the Confucius Institute at the university. Liu Yingjia, deputy director of division of digitalization and innovation at the Chinese International Education Foundation (CIEF); Su Sen, vice president of Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications; Chen Zhong, deputy director of the Confucius Institute at University of Macau; Pitipong Yodmongkol, vice president of Chiang Mai University in Thailand; Liu Jie, editor-in-chief of Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press; Bettina Marta Rosa Mottura, director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Milan in Italy; Kan Qian, director of the Online Confucius Institute at The Open University in the U.K. among others, delivered speeches on the topic of Digital Development and Resource Sharing of Confucius Institutes; they presented their achievements in areas such as the digital development of Confucius Institutes in the new era, developing online courses and localized digital resources, and sharing educational resources. Souvanhsombath Wangyee (Laos) and Kaziro Grace Mukisa (Uganda), as representatives of international students from Beijing Language and Culture University, shared their experiences and insights on using the AI system for international Chinese language education.
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Sub-forum C
Enhancing Characteristic Development to Increase Influence of the Confucius Institute Brand
Sub-forum C was hosted by Jia Wenjian, vice president of Beijing Foreign Studies University, and Stephen Kiama Gitahi, vice chancellor of the University of Nairobi and director of the Confucius Institute at the university. Zhang Yang, director of division of fundraising and public relations of the Chinese International Education Foundation; Tozik Anatoli, director of the Republican Confucius Institute of Sinology at Belarusian State University; Xu Yan-Lackner, director of the Confucius Institute in in Nürnberg-Erlangen, Germany; Kozhobekov Kudaiberdi, rector of Osh State University in Kyrgyzstan; Vicente Andreu, director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Valencia in Spain; Gor Sargsyan, director of the Confucius Institute at Brusov State University in Armenia; Zhang Weiliang, director of the Victoria Business Confucius Institute in Australia; Francisco José Quaresma de Figueiredo, director of Confucius Institute for Chinese Medicine at the Federal University of Goias in Brazil; Xie Yonghua, president of Nanjing Vocational University of Industry Technology, among others, delivered speeches on the topic Enhancing Characteristic Development to Increase Influence of the Confucius Institute Brand. The speakers s introduced the development of featured courses and activities at their Confucius Institutes, the progress of the new media matrix, and cases and experiences in developing Confucius Institutes with characteristics of “Chinese +” and “+ Chinese”. Together, they discussed how to address the challenges they faced in creating the brand image for the Confucius Institute and enhancing its brand influence.
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During the forum, experts and scholars actively shared their insights to contribute wisdom to the future development of the Confucius Institute.
