On March 3, 2017, Ca’Foscari Unviersity of Venice President Michele Bugliesi, Vice President of International Relations Tiziana Lippiello and International Relations Director Zhu Yi visited Peking University (PKU). They were welcomed by PKU representatives including Vice President Li Yansong, Department Head of the Department of Chinese Language and Literature Chen Xiaoming, Deputy Department Head of the Department of Chinese Language and Literature Du Xiaoqin, Professor of the Department of Chinese Language and Literature Song Yayun, Office of International Relations Deputy Director Zheng Ruqing, Office of International Relations Officer Pang Yaran, in the Linhuxuan West Hall.
The meeting was focused on making a friendly relationship and developing cooperative programs between the two universities. Vice President Li started the meeting by mentioning the conference in October which included several sectors of Sinology was successfully held, and he reminisced that a lot of Italians had a profound level of Chinese language. PKU strongly wishes to continue and extend more advanced relationships with Italian universities in several areas. He said that PKU has established friendly relationships with over than 300 universities worldwide, including several Italian universities such as University of Venice, University of Florence and University of Bologna.
The Cafoscari University of Venice President specifically emphasized that he wishes to extend relationships with foreign universities in such sectors that the university excels on, including environmental sciences, history, Asian studies, economics, and earth sciences. He mentioned that for the University of Venice, China plays an important role in advanced research and partnerships. Vice President Li mentioned that PKU provides comprehensive education to students in a variety of scholarly fields, and the schools cooperate with each other to develop diverse projects and programs. Mr. Li wished to keep in contact with the University of Venice, introduce some of the PKU oriented programs to the University of Venice, so that the two universities can cooperate in designing fruitful programs.
Professor Chen Xiaoming mentioned that PKU and the University of Venice have already made cooperative agreements in the past, and they have discussed two programs to be scheduled, which include continue opening a Conference in October in Italy, establishing student exchange programs through funding from the central and local governments in China. The meeting further touched on the “One Belt, One Road” project at the educational level. Vice President Li shared his experience when he met with Turkmenistan’s Minister of Education, where he discussed future cooperation on central Asian studies in China. All professors attending the meeting acknowledged that promoting the idea of the “One Belt, One Road” project to a broader level is essential, and wished Sinology and Chinese culture to be spread a global scale.
The meeting ended with exchanging gifts from both universities. PKU and Ca’Foscari University of Venice seeks to build a stronger bond including cooperative actions in various academic fields.
Author & Photographer: Lee Jae Young
