December 2023

At the dinner celebrating the conclusion of the 8th Global China Dialogue and the 10th Anniversary of the Global China Academy, new GCA fellowships were awarded. This was followed by messages and videos from absent GCA Fellows. The sessions were chaired by

• Professor Elena Semino (埃琳娜 · 塞米诺) FAcSS, FRSA, GCD Organizing Committee member, Director of the ESRC Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science, Lancaster University (left in photo) 
• Presentation of certificates, reading greeting messages & watching videos from absent GCA Fellows and GCD 8 speakers, Professor Tony McEnery 托尼·麦肯尼教授 FAcSS FRSA FGCA and Chair of Global China Academy Council, Council Member of the Academy of Social Sciences, Distinguished Professor of English Language and Linguistics at Lancaster University (right in photo)

Representative of GCA Fellows, Professor Robin Cohen (罗宾·科恩) FGCA, Emeritus Professor and former Director of the International Migration Institute, University of Oxford, delivered greetings.

He emphasizes the academic community’s role in addressing global challenges such as wars, violence, and ecological imbalance. He praises historical contributions like Ancient Chinese wisdom and the European Enlightenment, while cautioning against past arrogance and imperialism. Advocating for ‘planetary universalism’ or a ‘New Enlightenment,’ Cohen calls for dialogue, pluralism, and tolerance, inspired by the ideas of reciprocity and transculturality that the GCA promotes. He concludes with a toast to the success of building a global society based on these principles.

Dr Frances Wood (吴芳思), a Trustee of the Global China Academy Board of Trustees and former Curator of Chinese Collections at the British Library, presented certificates to GCA Fellows and Associate Fellows.

GCA Fellows: 

• Professor HOU Shiyuan (郝时远), Academician and former Associate President and former Director of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (Absent, in China).
• Professor Nora Ann Colton (诺拉·安·科尔顿), Director of the UCL Global Business School for Health (GBSH) (Absent, in Manila).
• Professor LI Linxue (李麟学), Dean of the College of Arts and Media at Tongji University, China

GCA Aassociate Fellows:

• Professor QIAN Yufang (钱毓芳), Director of Institute of Corpus and Discourse Studies, School of Foreign Studies, Zhejiang Gongshang University, China; Editor of the Journal of Corpus Approaches to Chinese Social Sciences

• Dr Gavin Brookes (加文·布鲁克斯), Reader in Linguistics and UKRI Future Leader Fellow with an interest in corpus linguistics, discourse analysis and health communication, Lancaster University, UK, Executive Editor of the Journal of Corpus Approaches to Chinese Social Sciences

• Professor WANG Xin (王鑫), Head of Department of Communication, College of Arts and Media, Tongji University, China; Executive Editor of the Journal of China in Global and Comparative Perspectives (Chinese Edition, absent, in China)

Professor Xiangqun Chang (常向群) FRSA, FGCA, President of the Global China Academy, presented certificates to GCA Institutional Fellows:

• The UCL Global Business School for Health (GBSH）

• The ESRC Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science at Lancaster University, UK

• The College of Arts and Media at Tongji University, China

• The Institute of Linguistics, Sun Yat-sen University, China (absent, in China)

Afterwards, Professor Tony McEnery (托尼·麦肯内里), FAcSS, FRSA, FGCA and Chair of the Global China Academy Council and Council Member of the Academy of Social Sciences, as well as Distinguished Professor of English Language and Linguistics at Lancaster University, chaired the final session. This session featured the demonstration of greeting messages, and videos were played from some absent GCA Fellows.

The messages are: 

• Congratulations on the opening of the 8th Global China Dialogue. The Dialogue is most urgent at the current stage of world history. — Professor KOMAI Hiroshi（駒井 洋) FGCA, a Japanese sociologist and Professor Emeritus at the University of Tsukuba and Shigakukan University, Japan. 
• The Global China Academy is a highly influential and prestigious international institution that promotes a very fruitful and intense dialogue between social scientists from China and various countries. Over the last ten years, the number of academic events, journals and other publications by Global Century Press has been very high. As a Life Fellow of the GCA, I am truly honoured to participate in the scientific life of this esteemed institution. I hope we will establish more and more cooperation in sociology, especially regarding what my Chinese colleagues and I call the Post-Western theory, to develop more dialogic and non-hegemonic social sciences. This aims to open new academic spaces and produce hybridizations between localized knowledge in China and Europe. It is a significant challenge for the future of social sciences. Happy Birthday to the GCA; wishing it great success and a very bright future! — Professor Laurence Roulleau-Berger (罗兰), FGCA, Emeritus Research Director at the National Centre for Scientific Research (NCSR).

The speakers and transcripts of video messages are: 

• Professor XIE Lizhong (谢立中) FGCA and Chinese President of Global China Academy, Distinguished Chair Professor and former head of Department of Sociology of Peking University, China

Good evening, everyone: I’m delighted to extend my congratulations on the successful conclusion of the 8th Global China Dialogue. This year also marks a significant milestone—the 10th anniversary of the Global China Academy’s establishment. Congratulations to all involved in this remarkable journey.  Over the past decade, thanks to your concern, support, and active participation, the Global China Academy has successfully organized many activities. Additionally, Global Century Press has published a wide range of uncensored works on China, significantly contributing to the promotion of scholarly exchange in China studies worldwide. Looking ahead, I sincerely hope the Global China Academy will continue to receive your unwavering support, enabling it to grow and excel even further. 

• Professor Carsten Herrmann-Pillath (何梦笔) FGCA and Vice President of Global China Academy, Permanent Fellow at the Max Weber Centre for Advanced Cultural and Social Studies, Erfurt University, Germany

Ten years at Global China Academy, my heartfelt congratulations. What a decade: Trumpism, COVID-19, all these geopolitical tensions rising and creating an increasing distance between China and the so-called West. I think this is really a worrying trend, and an institution like the Global China Academy has a task to contribute to reversing this trend.

When I was a student, there was a China scholar who was famous, or I would say even infamous, for his neologism when dealing with China. One of his favorite neologisms was ‘impansionism.’ He argued that China was never, and will never be, a political power that pursues expansion in global terms like in the past, and some would say even today. Western countries define ‘impansionism’ as being just attractive to the world, just attracting people, capital, all that without doing anything. That’s deep, as you know, in the Taoist principle, the principle of non-action, Wu Wei. And I’m afraid that in the past decade, somehow, China also lost part of this wisdom.

I strongly believe, and that’s what I’ve experienced in my career of almost 40 years now dealing with China, that China is incredibly attractive and has always been incredibly attractive.  That was also the topic in my video message last year. An institution like the Global China Academy can contribute exactly to this, making China attractive to the world. This does not mean to embellish China, but simply opening up, telling the truth, and also entering critical discourse. Actually, to a large degree, what is often called liberal values is the key to openness. And also, I think a key to non-action. China does not need to be afraid of any flies entering an open window. That’s what Mr. Weggel argued. It is true, about thousands of years of history of Chinese civilization. I wish Global China Academy the best for the next decade, that it will contribute to communicating Chinese thinking, Chinese debates, Chinese ideas to the world, and entering a multilateral intellectual dialogue. Thank you. 

• Professor Shigeto Sonoda (園田 茂人) FGCA and Vice-President of Global China Academy, Professor of comparative sociology and Asian studies at the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, University of Tokyo, Japan

Hello, my name is Sonoda Shigeto, a Professor of Sociology and Asian Studies at the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia at the University of Tokyo. Congratulations on the 10th anniversary of the Global China Academy. As you know, a variety of opinion polls reveal that people’s ideas and evaluations regarding the rise of China differ significantly from one country to another, even among Asian countries. Thus, I think it’s quite necessary for intellectuals to promote dialogue, especially intellectual dialogues between people in China and those in the global community. I hope that the Global China Academy will continue promoting these intellectual dialogues. Thank you. 

• Professor Peter van der Veer (彼得·范德维尔) FGCA, Emeritus Professor and former Director of the Study of Religious Diversity at the Max Planck Institute, Germany.

Dear colleagues at the Global China Academy, I’m terribly sorry I cannot be present at the event today, as I’m currently in China serving as a visiting faculty member at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou. I’m very pleased to be back in China. I have not been here for more than three years, and it’s really important to reestablish contacts after the Covid period, especially when academic exchange has become threatened. I believe that the Global China Academy can play an important role in this effort of reestablishing contact. I wish you much success. 

• Professor Prasenjit Duara (杜赞奇) FGCA, Distinguished Professor of East Asian Studies, Duke University, USA 

Good day, everybody. My name is Prasenjit Duara, and my Chinese name is DU Zanqi. I am the Oscar Tang Professor at Duke University. I was a student of China and global history. As a Fellow of the Global China Academy, I’m delighted to congratulate the Academy on conducting the 8th Global China Dialogue. In a period of increasing tensions around the world, which is making life so difficult for many millions of people, it is, I believe, imperative that as scholars, we maintain open dialogue in various areas of life between the major powers.

As someone originally from India, I also believe China and India should open more lines of dialogue and exchange. We need to create a global civil society that is invested in dialogue for peace. And now, have a productive conference and my best wishes to all of you. Goodbye now. 

• Professor GU Yueguo (顾曰国) FGCA, Emeritus Research Professor of Linguistics in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), Former Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Beijing Foreign Studies University, China.

Hello there, I’m Gu Yueguo, an absent fellow greeting everybody from Beijing, PRC, because I have immersed myself in two national projects on gerontic discourse which I must complete. I miss everybody, and the 10th GCA anniversary dinner in particular. Have a good time in London. 

• Professor HOU Shiyuan (郝时远) FGCA, Academician and former Associate President and former Director of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Hello to all the experts, I am Hao Shuyuan from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. First of all, I would like to express my heartfelt congratulations on the 10th anniversary of the Global China Academy’s series of important academic achievements. At the same time, I am also very pleased to have received academic honors. I would like to specially thank Professor Xiangqun Chang and the experts who recommended me to join the academic team of the Global China Academy. Here, I can only simply express a wish and convey my own desire. That is to say, receiving academic honours is in fact also taking on an academic responsibility.

In the future, I am willing to engage in academic exchanges and cooperation with all my colleagues at the Global China Academy and jointly make our own efforts to fulfill this academic responsibility. Thank you all. 

• Professor BING Zheng 邴正教授 FGCA, former Executive Vice-President of Jilin University; former Vice-President of the Chinese Sociological Association, China.

On this joyous occasion of the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Global China Academy, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks and sincere congratulations to the Global China Academy and Professor Chang Xiangqun.

Since its establishment, the Global China Academy has actively organized scholars from China and the UK, strengthening academic and cultural exchanges and promoting academic communication and publication activities. It has played a very important role in organizing academic events and connecting scholars, building a bridge between Chinese and British scholars. Through this bridge, many Chinese and British scholars have enhanced their understanding, exchanged academic ideas, tightened their connections, and fostered friendships through mutual exchanges and visits.

Therefore, I wholeheartedly wish the Global China Academy to attract more talented individuals, gather more academic strength, jointly promote Sino-British friendship, and advance academic research around globalization, leading to more academic exchanges and scholarly achievements. 

• Click here to visit the 10th GCA Dinner session Part I – Presenting cirtificates to new Fellows
•  Click here to visit the 10th GCA Dinner session Part II – Playing multimedia messages from absent fellows and speakers. 
• Click here to visit the 10th GCA Reception session – Launch GCA and GCP two new websites.
• Click here to visit the 8th GCD webpage. 

The Global China Academy (GCA) proudly celebrated its 10th anniversary in conjunction with the conclusion of the 8th Global China Dialogue. This significant milestone was marked by a series of events held at prestigious venues, including the British Academy and UK Parliament, on December 8, 2023.

This year’s celebration was not just a reflection on the past decade’s achievements but also a forward-looking gathering that set the stage for future intellectual exchange and collaboration. The event brought together scholars, experts, and thought leaders from around the world, facilitating insightful discussions on global health governance and related themes.

Highlights of the Anniversary Celebrations:

• The evening commenced with a reception celebrating the launch of new websites for the Global China Academy and Global Century Press. This digital expansion represents GCA’s commitment to accessible and global knowledge dissemination.
• The dinner was a blend of celebration, recognition, and intellectual discourse. Notable speeches were delivered by key figures, including Professor Martin Albrow, Professor Tony McEnery and Professor Robin Cohen, reflecting on GCA’s journey and its pivotal role in fostering global dialogue and building global society.
• The event also recognized the contributions of various scholars to the field of China studies and global exchange. Certificates were awarded to GCA Fellows, Associate Fellows institutional Fellows, acknowledging their significant academic achievements and contributions.
• The celebration included virtual contributions from GCA Fellows and speakers who couldn’t attend in person, highlighting the Academy’s widespread influence and connections.

Over the past decade, the Global China Academy has established itself as a leading institution in promoting scholarly research and dialogue on China and its global interactions. Its conferences, publications, and academic collaborations have significantly contributed to the understanding of China’s role in the world.

As the Academy steps into its second decade, it continues to uphold its mission of fostering intellectual exchanges, promoting diverse perspectives, and contributing to global understanding and cooperation.

The ‘Photo Report’ below contains about 1,500 words and 70 photos, and includes links for viewing or downloading related speech notes and greeting texts or video transcriptions.

Photo report: Reception and Dinner to Celebrate the Conclusion of GCD8 and the GCA’s 10th Anniversary, 19:00-22:30, 8 December 2023 at the House of Lords, the UK Parliament  

Reception: 19:00-19:30 Drinks and networking

Reception: 19:30-19:50 Launch of two new websites for GCA and GCP

Chair: Professor Maria Jaschok 叶玛丽教授, Life Fellow of Global China Academy, Senior Research Associate of the Contemporary China Studies Programme in the Oxford School of Global and Area Studies, University of Oxford

Brief introduction to the two websites, by Professor Xiangqun Chang 常向群教授 FRSA FGCA and President of Global China Academy; Honorary Professor of University College London (2015-20); Distinguished Professor of Nankai University of China

Participants at the launch of the new websites

Dinner: celebrating the conclusion of the 8th Global China Dialogue and the 10th Anniversary of Global China Academy

Dinner: 20:10-20:25 (after starter) Speeches

Chair: Professor Elena Semino 埃琳娜·塞米诺教授 FAcSS FRSA, GCD Organizing Committee member, Director of the ESRC Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science, Lancaster University (left in photo)

Speakers:

• Professor Martin Albrow 马丁阿尔布劳教授, FAcSS, Founding and Past Honorary President of Global China Academy; Former President of the British Sociological Association (left in photo). Click to download speech notes in dual languages.
• Professor Tony McEnery 托尼麦肯尼教授, FAcSS FRSA FGCA and Chair of Global China Academy Council, Council Member of the Academy of Social Sciences, Distinguished Professor of English Language and Linguistics at Lancaster University (second left in photo). Click to download speech notes in dual languages.
• Dr QIAN Zhenhua 钱振华博士, Co-Chair of Global China Academy Council; Shanghai International Corporation Association of SMEs, China (second right in photo). Click to download speech notes in dual languages.
• Professor Robin Cohen 罗宾科恩教授, Life Fellow of Global China Academy; Emeritus Professor and Former Director of the International Migration Institute, University of Oxford (right in photo). Click to download speech notes in dual languages.

Dinner: 21:15-21:25 (after main course) Presentation of certificates

Chair: Presentation of certificates, Professor Tony McEnery 托尼·麦肯尼教授 (right in photo)

Presentation of certificates to GCA Individual Fellows 

Presenter: Dr Frances Wood 吴芳思博士, Trustee of Global China Academy; former Curator of Chinese Collections at the British Library

GCA Fellows 院士 Recipients:

• Professor HOU Shiyuan 郝时远教授, Academician and former Associate President and former Director of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (absent, in China)
• Professor Nora Ann Colton 诺拉科尔顿教授, Director of the UCL Global Business School for Health (GBSH) (absent, in Manila)
• Professor LI Linxue 李麟学教授, Dean of the College of Arts and Media at Tongji University, China (left)

GCA Associate Fellows 准院士 Recipients:

• Professor QIAN Yufang 钱毓芳教授, Director of Institute of Corpus and Discourse Studies, School of Foreign Studies, Zhejiang Gongshang University, China; Editor of the Journal of Corpus Approaches to Chinese Social Sciences (centre)
• Dr Gavin Brookes 加文布鲁克斯博士, Reader in Linguistics and UKRI Future Leader Fellow with an interest in corpus linguistics, discourse analysis and health communication, Lancaster University, UK, Executive Editor of the Journal of Corpus Approaches to Chinese Social Sciences (right)
• Professor WANG Xin 王鑫教授, Head of Department of Communication, College of Arts and Media, Director of Research Centre for Chinese Discourse and Global Communication at Tongji University (absent, in China)

Presentation of certificates to GCA Institutional Fellows 

Presenter: Professor Xiangqun Chang 常向群教授

GCA Institutional Fellows Recipients 院士单位:

• The UCL Global Business School for Health (GBSH), UK. Recipient: Professor Simcha Jong 辛查钟教授, GBSH representative (left)
• The ESRC Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science at Lancaster University, UK. Recipient: Professor Elena Semino 埃琳娜塞米诺教授, CASS representative (centre)
• The College of Arts and Media (CAM) at Tongji University, China. Recipient: Professor LI Linxue 李麟学教授, CAM representative (right)

Presentation of certificate to GCA Council member:

Presenter: Professor Tony McEnery 托尼·麦肯尼教授, Chair of Global China Academy Council

Recipient: Dr QIAN Zhenhua 钱振华博士, Co-Chair of Global China Academy Council

Dinner: 21:15-21:25 (after dessert) Greeting messages and videos

Chair: Professor Tony McEnery 托尼·麦肯尼教授, reading greeting messages and watching videos from absent GCA Fellows and GCD8 speakers (left)

Greeting messages were received from Professor KOMAI Hiroshi 駒井 洋教授 FGCA, a Japanese sociologist and Professor Emeritus at the University of Tsukuba and Shigakukan University, Japan; Professor Laurence Roulleau-Berger 罗兰教授, Life Fellow of Global China Academy, Emeritus Research Director at National Centre for Scientific Research (NCSR).

Videos with English and Chinese dual language subtitles:

Videos from absent GCA Fellows: Professor XIE Lizhong 谢立中教授, Founding Fellow and Chinese President of Global China Academy, Distinguished Chair Professor and former head of Department of Sociology of Peking University, China (top left); Professor Carsten Herrmann-Pillath 何梦笔教授, Founding Fellow and Vice-President of Global China Academy (European engagement), Permanent Fellow at the Max Weber Centre for Advanced Cultural and Social Studies, Erfurt University, Germany (top second left); Professor Shigeto Sonoda 園田茂人教授, Founding Fellow and Vice-President of Global China Academy (Asian engagement), Professor of Comparative Sociology and Asian Studies at the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, University of Tokyo, Japan (top second right); Professor BING Zheng 邴正教授, Life Fellow of Global China Academy, former Executive Vice-President of Jilin University, former Vice-President of the Chinese Sociological Association, China (top right); Professor Prasenjit Duara 杜赞奇教授, Life Fellow of Global China Academy, Distinguished Professor of East Asian Studies, Duke University, USA (centre left); Professor Peter van der Veer 彼得·范德维尔教授, Life Fellow of Global China Academy, Emeritus Professor and former Director of the Study of Religious Diversity at the Max Planck Institute, Germany (centre second left); Professor GU Yueguo 顾曰国教授, Life Fellow of Global China Academy, Emeritus Research Professor of Linguistics in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), Former Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Beijing Foreign Studies University, China (centre right); Professor HOU Shiyuan 郝时远教授, Fellow of Global China Academy (2023), Academician and former Associate President and former Director of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (bottom left)

Videos from absent invited speakers:

Professor Lawrence Gostin 劳伦斯·戈斯汀教授, Founding O’Neill Chair in Global Health Law, Georgetown University

Professor Andrew Bastawrous 安德鲁·巴斯塔罗斯教授 OBE, International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Co-Founder & CEO – Peek Vision

Click here to view all the above texts or transcriptions.

Afterwards, Professor Martin Albrow and Dr Frances Wood expressed their heartfelt appreciation to Professor Xiangqun Chang for her dedication and hard work in ensuring the success of the 8th Global China Dialogue and the 10th Anniversary of the Global China Academy. As the event came to a close, participants gathered in groups, exchanging warm greetings and farewells and taking photos to capture the occasion.

The Global China Dialogue Organising Committee is pleased to share feedback from a participant, which underscores the impactful nature of our events and the wide-reaching benefits they offer to attendees from diverse professional backgrounds.

‘I wish to send my most heartfelt thanks to Professor Chang for the wonderful and most successful event yesterday. Although my expertise is in family law and not the health sector, I feel I have benefited so much by attending the event, listening to all the talks and the research and insight from the various speakers. They were all fantastic and their hard work behind the research is outstanding and so much appreciated.

I especially would like to thank Professor Chang for inviting my friend Qing Miao and me to the dinner at the House of Lords. It was not planned by us, but we were both delighted and felt privileged to have been there. The presentation of the certificates and the various speakers sending their messages and greetings from the UK and abroad were extremely moving and uplifting. It was a real encouragement that the good work which has been started must continue and the gain will in time benefit us all.

I wish the GCA every success in all you do and once again thank you so much for the opportunity to be included in the attendance yesterday.’ — Brenda Wong Robinson, Associate at Buckles Solicitors LLP

More information is available on the GCD8 website: https://globalchinaacademy.org/global-china-dialogue-8.

• Click here to visit Photo Highlights: Global China Dialogue VIII (2023), New Website Launches for Global China Academy and Global Century Press, and 10th Anniversary of Global China Academy
• Click here to visit Photo highlights: Reception including Drinks and Networking, and Launch of Two New Websites for Global China Academy and Global Century Press.
• Click here to visit Photo Highlights: Dinner to Celebrate the Conclusion of the 8th Global China Dialogue and the 10th Anniversary of the Global China Academy (Part I), Including Speeches, Presentation of Certificates.
• Clich here to visit Photo Highlights: Dinner to Celebrate the Conclusion of the 8th Global China Dialogue and the 10th Anniversary of the Global China Academy (Part II) Including Reading Messages and Playimng Video Greetings, and Videos from Absent Speakers of GCD8.
• Click here to visit the GCD 8 website for more.

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 revealed many weaknesses in our healthcare systems and structures across the world and showed that health is a challenge that requires global governance and cooperation. Other issues such as climate change, the global prevalence of noncommunicable diseases, inadequate access to healthcare services and the lack of health workers globally also show that the need for global cooperation to deal with transnational challenges has never been greater.

The 8th Global China Dialogue explored the challenges and opportunities for global health governance, especially in the Chinese context, given China’s ageing population, continued economic growth and desire to reimagine healthcare management and governance. The Healthy China 2030 strategy emphasizes the need to develop the health sector in China. China has also instituted significant regulatory reforms in the health sector, while considering healthcare in the new global governance framework.

The GCD8 was co-organized by the Global China Academy in collaboration with the UCL Global Business School for Health, the ESRC Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science at Lancaster University, UK, and the College of Arts and Media at Tongji University, China. It received support and sponsorship from numerous universities, institutions and companies. 

The GCD8 and associated events, held on December 8, 2023, at the prestigious British Academy and UK Parliament, brought together scholars and experts from the UK, China, and France for an enlightening hybrid offline and online conference. Delving into the complexities of global health governance, the dialogue consisted of four insightful panels:

• Global Health and System Integration
• The Challenges of Global Health Governance
• Communicating to Improve Global Health
• Health Governance in the Digital Space

The ‘Photo Report’ below contains about 2,100 words and 130 photos, and includes links for viewing or downloading almost all the speech notes or PowerPoint presentations from the GCD8.

Photo report: The 8th Global China Dialogue — Governance for Global Health and the Global China Academy’s 10th Anniversary

Friday, 08:30-17:00, 8 December 2023 at the British Academy, followed by a Celebration Reception and Dinner at the House of Lords 

Opening session

Greetings from political and academic figures

Chair: Professor Tony McEnery 托尼·麦肯尼教授 FAcSS FRSA FGCA and Chair of Global China Academy Council, Distinguished Professor of English Language and Linguistics at Lancaster University; Council Member, Academy of Social Sciences (right in panel)

Speakers (from left to right):

• Minister Wang Qi 王起of the Chinese Embassy to the UK said that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on global public health and socio-economic development. Only by joining hands to build a global community of health for all can we effectively maintain and promote the safety and sustainable development of human life and health.
• Professor Ibrahim Abubakar 易卜拉欣阿布巴卡尔, Pro-Provost (Health) and Dean of Faculty of Population Health Sciences at UCL, emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in addressing major global health challenges, such as the climate crisis, infectious diseases and health inequalities. He underscored the necessity of collaborative efforts, data-driven policies and equitable access to healthcare to improve health outcomes worldwide.
• Professor LI Linxue 李麟学, Dean of the College of Arts and Media and Distinguished Professor of the School of Architecture and Urban Planning at Tongji University, stated that the health sector is increasingly becoming a focal point of attention for the entire society. In the fields of urban planning and urban environmental design, healthy cities, communities and architecture, there is vast potential for development in emerging technologies such as big data, intelligence, simulation and green low-carbon construction.
• Professor Martin Albrow 马丁阿尔布劳, the Founding and Past Honorary President of the Global China Academy, provided some insights into the GCA’s history and announced the 10th anniversary of the Global China Academy, including a reception and celebration dinner.

The photos below illustrate keynote speeches, panel discussions and closing remarks at the Global China Dialogue, as well as the Reception and Dinner. Additionally, there are images from the Q&A sessions and networking opportunities during breaks. It is hoped that this combination of images and text will promote dynamic dialogue for interested readers, regardless of whether or not they participated in GCD8.

Keynotes speeches

‘Global Governance and Health: Navigating the Complex Landscape’. Professor Nora Colton 诺拉·科尔顿教授视频, Director of UCL Global Business School for Health [online greeting]. Her presentation was delivered by Professor Colton’s colleague Professor Kabir Sheikh卡比尔·谢赫教授代读, UCL GBSH). Click to download the following items: greetings, speech notes and PowerPoint presentation.

 ‘The Development of Healthy China in the Digital Era’, Professor HUANG Gang 黄钢教授, Founding President of Shanghai Health Medical College, Distinguished Chair Professor of Medical School of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China [online]. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation in English and Chinese.

Group photo at the end of the Opening session.

Panel I: Global Health and System Integration

Chair:  Professor Jolene Skordis 乔琳·斯科迪斯教授, Institute of Global Health, University College London

Plenary speakers (from left to right):

• ‘Mixed Health Systems in Asia and the Challenge of Governance’, Professor Kabir Sheikh 卡比尔谢赫教授, Global Business School for Health, former Policy Adviser for the World Health Organization (WHO). Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Interconnectedness and Competition in the Global Health System’, Professor Gerry Bloom 格里布鲁姆教授, Research Fellow and Co-Convenor of the Health and Nutrition Research Cluster, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex. Click to download the speech notes and PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Integration and Innovation: The Logic and Practice of China’s Active Health Strategy in the Era of Population Ageing’, Professor HOU Shengtian 侯胜田教授, Professor of School of Management, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine; Director of the Health Industry Research Centre of the National Institute of Chinese Medicine Development and Strategy, China [online]. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation (in Chinese and English).
• ‘Integration and Cooperation: The Empirical Solution of Global Health Development’, Dr Peter Jeng 郑荣昌博士, CEO and Founder of China Britain Healthcare Consulting, UK; Deputy Secretary General of EU–China Commission, Belgium [online]. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.

Panel II: The Challenges of Global Health Governance

Chair: Ms Suzanne Wait 苏珊娜·维特女士, Managing Director of Health Policy Partnership and a Health Executive in Residence at GBSH, UCL

Plenary speakers (from left to right):

• ‘Building the Tools of Global Health Governance: The Case of Coronavirus’, Dr Joël Ruet 周瑞博士 , CNRS researcher at i3, Ecole Polytechnique; Senior Adviser Technology for Change and President of The Bridge Tank (G20 Think Tank Member), France
• ‘The Problems Faced by Medical Aesthetics: Challenges in Global Health Governance’, Dr LIAO Nong 廖农医师, Chief Physician of the Department of Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, China. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Challenge from an Ageing Society: The Urgency and Strategy of China’s Health Industry Development’, Professor YIN Weihai 殷卫海教授, Professor and Deputy Dean of the School of Biomedical Engineering at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China [online] Click to download the PowerPoint presentation in English and Chinese.
• ‘Utilising Multi-disciplinary Research to Promote Global Health System Preparedness: Early Evidence from China’, Dr Yuxi Zhang 张予曦博士, Assistant Professor in Health Policy and Systems, Global Business School for Health, University College London, UK. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.

Panel III: Communicating to Improve Global Health

Chair: Professor Paul Baker 保罗·贝克教授, Department of Linguistics and English Language, Lancaster University

Plenary speakers (from left to right)

• ‘Understanding and Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy’, Professor Elena Semino 埃琳娜塞米诺教授 FAcSS FRSA, Director of the ESRC Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science, Lancaster University, UK. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Public Communication about Dementia: Identifying and Challenging Stigma’, Dr Gavin Brookes 加文布鲁克斯博士, Reader in Linguistics and UKRI Future Leader Fellow with an interest in corpus linguistics, discourse analysis and health communication, Lancaster University; and Dr Emma Putland 艾玛·普特兰博士, Senior Research Associate, Lancaster University, UK. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Evolution of Traditional Chinese Medicine Discourse in British Newspapers: A Corpus-Based Diachronic Study’, Professor QIAN Yufang 钱毓芳教授, Director of Institute of Corpus and Discourse Studies, School of Foreign Studies, Zhejiang Gongshang University, China. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Making Global and Local: Viruses as a Media’, Professor WANG Xin 王鑫教授, Head of Department of Communication, College of Arts and Media, Tongji University, China [online]. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Supporting Health Engagement and Co-creation’, Dr Marzena Nieroda 马泽纳涅罗达博士, Lecturer in Marketing and Commercialization for Healthcare at UCL Global Business School for Health (GBSH), University College London, UK. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.

Panel IV: Health Governance in the Digital Space

Chair: Dr Kim Yahya 金·叶海亚博士, a biomedical scientist who has worked in a variety of settings from academia to biotech companies in the UK

Plenary speakers (from left to right)

• ‘Capitalising on the Health Data Gold Mine: Using Federated Learning to Engage China in the Global Health Data Space’, Professor Simcha Jong 辛查钟教授, Professor of Management and Healthcare Innovation, Director DBA Health programme, UCL Global Business School for Health, UK. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘The Evolution of Health Governance in the Digital Health Space’, Professor Adam Dubis 亚当杜比斯教授, Deputy Director of Research and Programme Lead for MSc Digital Health and Entrepreneurship at UCL’s Global Business School for Health, University College London, UK. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘Hainan Free Trade Port: Challenges and Opportunities for Health’, by Professor NING Yi 宁毅教授, Professor and Dean of School of Public Health, Hainan Medical University, China [online]. Click to download the PowerPoint presentation.
• ‘A New Culture of Governance for an Inclusive Digital Future’, Dr Dimitrios Kalogeropoulos 迪米特里奥斯卡洛格罗普洛斯博士, Health Executive in Residence at GBSH, UCL, and CEO of Global Health and Digital Innovation Foundation, UK. Click to download the speech notes and PowerPoint presentation.

Closing session

Chair: Professor Xiangqun Chang 常向群教授, FRSA FGCA and President of Global China Academy; Honorary Professor of University College London (2015-20); Distinguished Professor of Nankai University of China; UK (right)

Closing remarks:

• ‘An Off-the-Cuff Summary of the Dialogue’s Main Themes’, Professor Tony McEnery 托尼麦肯尼教授, FAcSS FRSA FGCA and Chair of Global China Academy Council; Council Member of Academy of Social Sciences; Distinguished Professor of English Language and Linguistics at Lancaster University. He highlighted the interdisciplinary and engaging discussions that had occurred throughout the day, touching on various aspects of health, governance, trust and the role of traditional and modern medicine. The Dialogue emphasized the importance of listening, valuing diverse perspectives and the enriching nature of such exchanges. It also hinted at future discussions on AI and ethics, emphasizing the critical intersection of healthcare, decision-making and ethical considerations in the deployment of AI technologies. The day was summarized as insightful, stimulating a broadened perspective on health and governance, underscored by the foundational role of trust in scientific and medical expertise.
• ‘Upholding the Spirit of Open Cooperation, Building a Healthy Global Society for Mankind’, Mr FAN Daqi 范大祺副院长, Deputy Director and Chief Translator/Editor of the Academy of Contemporary China and World (ACCWS), China [pre-recorded video]. Fan Daqi’s closing speech was delivered in Chinese. He focused on the imperative of open cooperation and building a global health community. He discussed the impact of the pandemic, the importance of addressing global health governance and the need for dialogue and cooperation beyond geographical and systemic differences. Fan emphasized the role of think tanks, universities and research institutions in knowledge sharing and collaborative research to enhance global health governance. He advocated for a common health community, emphasizing sovereign equality, equity and the consideration of vulnerable groups’ rights and well-being. Fan also highlighted China’s contributions to global health governance and called for increased international cooperation to build a community with a shared future for mankind. Click to download the speech notes in Chinese and English.

Q & A sessions

Networking during registration, tea/coffee breaks and lunch

That evening, a Reception and Dinner were hosted at the House of Lords in the UK Parliament. Click here to view and download the related speech notes. 

We have a large collection of photos from the 8th Global China Dialogue (GCD 8), and we’ve selected essential shots for publication on our photo report webpage. We encourage readers to explore the site to view many more photos that capture the essence of the event. This photo review showcases participants and highlights from the opening session, panel discussions, and networking breaks. It also includes the reception that marked the launch of new websites for the Global China Academy and the Global Century Press. Additionally, featured is the dinner celebrating the conclusion of the 8th Global China Dialogue and the 10th anniversary of the Global China Academy.

We are excited to share the profound insights and discussions presented by our esteemed speakers. Their expertise and contributions made this dialogue a landmark event in advancing the discourse on global health governance.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the organisers, supporters, sponsors, chairs, speakers, participants and volunteers who made this event a grand success. Your active engagement and insightful contributions are invaluable to the ongoing conversation on global health.

Don’t miss out on the enriching content from the 8th Global China Dialogue. Visit the GCD 8 website now to explore the photo reviews, speeches, presentations, and more!

• Click here to visit Photo Highlights: Global China Dialogue VIII (2023), New Website Launches for Global China Academy and Global Century Press, and 10th Anniversary of Global China Academy.
• Click here to visit Photo Highlights: Registration and Opening Session, including Greetings, Special Address, Keynote Speeches, and Announcement of Events Relating to GCA’s 10th Anniversary.
• Click here to visit Photo highlights: Panel I — Global Health and System Integration.
• Click here to visit Photo highlights: Panel II — The Challenges of Global Health Governance.
• Click here to visit Photo highlights: Panel III — Communicating to Improve Global Health.
• Click here to visit Photo highlights: Panel IV — Health Governance in the Digital Space and Closing Session.
• Clich here to visit the GCD 8 Website.