The Eighth World Forum on China Studies, a biennial event for the worldwide community of China studies to share research achievements and boost academic ties, opened in Shanghai on Sept. 10.

Themed "China and the World: Progressing Together over 70 Years," the event is held to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China to better depict the ties between China and the world, receiving over 300 sinologists from 35 countries and regions.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the forum, Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee called for contributions to mutual learning and benefit between China and the world.

Huang said efforts should be made to continuously promote understanding and build consensus to contribute wisdom and strength to the mutual learning and win-win relationship between China and the world.

Huang Kunming (L3), a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, takes a photo with four scholars who were awarded for their outstanding contributions to China studies, including Nicholas Platt (L2), Hamashita Takeshi (R2), Kristofer Schipper (R1), as well as Tu Weiming (L1), at the opening ceremony of the Eighth World Forum on China Studies held in Shanghai on Sept. 10, 2019. (Photo: Information Office of the Shanghai Municipal Government)

"The conference provides international scholars who focus on China studies with a platform to share their insights and explore the ways China is connected with the rest of the world and understand the meaning of its development path," Huang said.

During the forum, four scholars were awarded for their outstanding contributions to China studies, including Nicholas Platt, president emeritus of the Asia Society in the United States, Hamashita Takeshi, head of the research department of Japan's largest Asian studies library The Toyo Bunko, Kristofer Schipper, a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, as well as Tu Weiming, chair professor of humanities and founding director of the Institute for Advanced Humanistic Studies at Peking University.

Nicholas Platt, president emeritus of the Asia Society, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the Eighth World Forum on China Studies held in Shanghai on Sept. 10, 2019. (Photo: China.org.cn)

Speaking during his acceptance speech, Nicholas Platt said he was deeply honored to accept this award and called for more people-to-people exchanges to find the common interests of and mutual benefits for the two sides.

"In choosing me, the Academy is including a diplomatic practitioner and private sector manager among honorees from the academic world. This is welcome recognition that those who actually work day to day managing a relationship can contribute alongside those who study and analyze it from above."

This year's forum features an opening ceremony and plenary meeting, a forum on the Belt and Road reflecting upon hot topics of China studies at home and abroad, a forum of young sinologists that focuses on long-term, sustainable people-to-people and cultural exchanges and six thematic roundtables covering the areas of politics, economy, culture, society, ecology and international relations.

The two-day event was jointly organized by the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences and the information office of the Shanghai municipal government, and is dedicated to reflecting upon global challenges while fostering an informed understanding between China and the rest of the world.