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City meeting explores China Studies in the global context
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When Serbian scholar Sanja Arezina seeks relief from the pressures of everyday life, she often turns to China. Reading and writing about the country, she said, feels like entering a better world.
Her research took her to China’s major cities, where she observed not only the dynamics of politics and economics, but also the deeper patterns of culture and society.
For her, China Studies is more than an academic pursuit. It is, in her words, “a way to reduce misunderstandings about China and build bridges between people.”
For Macedonian researcher Igor Radev, the path into the field began not with economics or politics but with literature.
“I have long appreciated Classical Chinese poetry,” he explained in a book “The Story about China and Me.”
He noted that his first fascination was with figures such as Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet and politician from the State of Chu during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC). By comparing Qu with legendary Greek poet Homer, he discovered a striking cultural difference.
“In Europe, the poet often appears as an outside observer of events,” Radev said. “But in China, the poet was also a statesman and public figure, deeply involved in shaping history.”
He said it revealed to him the unique way in which Chinese civilization combined cultural and political life.
The journeys of Arezina and Radev are part of a wider story about the growing global interest in China studies, or zhongguoxue (中国学).
Once dominated by European sinology focused on classical texts, and later by American academic programs on modern China, the discipline is now increasingly international and diverse.
Chinese scholars have also played a greater role in recent decades, adding their own reflections on how China is studied both inside and outside the country.
The field has sometimes been divided by terminology, with references to hanxue (汉学), overseas China studies, or local China studies.
Professor Shen Guilong, president of the Institute of China Studies, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, suggested that a broader concept is needed. He advocated “world China studies,” an approach that unifies historical and contemporary research, integrates Chinese and foreign perspectives, and emphasizes dialogue among civilizations.
“China studies should not be seen as the study of a distant object,” Shen explained. “It should be a bridge for mutual understanding, where scholars from all backgrounds contribute together.”
The vision will be at the center of the World Conference on China Studies, which opens today in Shanghai.
Co-hosted by the State Council Information Office and the Shanghai government, and supported by leading universities and research institutions, the forum is expected to gather more than 500 experts from around the world.
The theme about the historical and contemporary China in the global context aims to explore both the continuity of Chinese civilization and its present-day transformation.
Sub-forums will address topics such as civilizational continuity and innovation, the lessons of Chinese modernization, and the construction of a global knowledge system for China studies.
Another focus will be the role of young scholars in carrying the field forward.
“Many senior experts in China studies are well into their later years,” Shen noted. “We must foster a new generation of young scholars who can carry forward this research with fresh perspectives and global vision.”
An important initiative is the Visiting Program for Young Sinologists, launched in 2014 and hosted in Shanghai since 2016.
Over 150 young researchers from nearly 70 countries and regions have taken part in its three-week program of lectures, mentorship and fieldwork.
Participants spend time in Shanghai and other provinces, meeting established Chinese scholars, conducting research, and visiting both cutting-edge innovation hubs and rural communities.
The experience, Shen said, allows them to see a “real, diverse and three-dimensional” China.
For Arezina, the program deepened her understanding and confirmed her commitment to the field. For Radev, it provided the chance to explore firsthand the cultural heritage he had previously known only through books.
Both have since returned to their home countries with stronger voices in academic and public discussions on China, embodying their role as bridges between civilizations.
Shanghai, as the host city, provides an appropriate backdrop. Long a crossroads of East and West, it represents the coexistence of historical tradition and contemporary dynamism, said Shen.
For international visitors, the city offers not only skyscrapers and financial centers but also historic districts, temples, and cultural landmarks.
Shanghai captures the unity of historical and contemporary China, a living illustration of the themes the conference seeks to address, he added.
The conference also aims to produce practical outcomes, including the release of a world China studies development initiative and a recommended bibliography for scholars.
Exhibitions will highlight the cultural and social transformations of China in a global context. The event positions itself as a platform for dialogue at a time when international understanding is both fragile and urgently needed.
Shen emphasized that China studies must not remain static. It must evolve to address the challenges of the present era.
One of the greatest challenges, for instance, comes from the digital world. While new technologies provide powerful tools for research and global communication, they also bring risks of distortion, oversimplification and misinformation.
The task for scholars, Shen pointed out, is to ensure that China studies adapts to this reality, using the opportunities of the digital age responsibly while preserving the depth, accuracy, and balance that the field requires.
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