A UK-based independent worldwide fellowship
The GCA Fellows Awarding Ceremony took place during the Closing Session of the 9th Global China Dialogue on 29th November. The session was chaired by Professor WANG Xin, Associate Fellow of the Global China Academy, Head of the Department of Communication at the College of Arts and Media, and Director of the Research Centre for Chinese Discourse and Global Communication at Tongji University. The Fellowship Awards Presentation was followed by a brief introduction to the Global China Academy (GCA) and its Fellowship system by Professor Xiangqun Chang FRSA FGCA, President of the Global China Academy, UK.
All Fellows, Associate Fellows, and representatives of Institutional Fellows in China were invited onstage to witness the conferral of honours upon the 2024 Fellows. Among those present as witnesses were existing Fellows (listed in alphabetical order): BING Zheng, Xiangqun Chang, GU Yueguo, HAO Shiyuan, LI Linxue, Tony McEnery, XIE Lizhong, ZHANG Xiaodong, and ZHU Guanglei, as well as Associate Fellows Gavin Brookes, QIAN Yufang, and WANG Xin. Representatives of Institutional Fellows also attended from the College of Arts and Media, Tongji University (China); the Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science, Lancaster University (UK); Global Century Press (UK); and the Institute of Linguistics, Sun Yat-sen University (China).
Professor HAO Shiyuan FGCA, Academician and former Assistant President of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), presented Fellowship awards to the newly elected GCA Fellows, Associate Fellows and Institutional Fellow based in China, including Hong Kong.
GCA Fellows:
Professor LI Yang (left), recipient of GCA Fellowship. He is Academician of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and Academician of the International Eurasian Academy of Sciences, as well as a former Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Professor Shuhua Zhou (right), recipient of GCA Fellowship. He is Chair Professor at City University of Hong Kong and a Fellow of the International Communication Association (ICA); former President of the Chinese Communication Association (CCA, 2017-2019) and Vice Chair of the Asia-Pacific Communication Alliance (ACPC, 2018-2025).
Associate Fellow and representative of Institutional Fellow (right):
Professor LI Boyi (left), recipient of GCA Associate Fellowship. He is Secretary of the GCA Chinese Council, is a Professor of Management at the School of Business Administration, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics. He was formerly a Fellow in the Information Systems and Innovation Group at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).
Professor QIAN Yufang (right) attended as a representative to receive the certificate for the GCA Institutional Fellowship, which she led. She is an Associate Fellow of the Global China Academy and a Professor at the School of Foreign Languages, Zhejiang Gongshang University. She is also the Director of the Institute of Corpus Linguistics and Discourse Studies (ICLDS), which has been recognized as an Institutional Fellow.
The photo below shows the ICLDS team joining her to receive the honour.
Professor XIE Lizhong FGCA, Chinese President of the Global China Academy, former Head of the Department of Sociology at Peking University, and former Vice-President of the China Sociological Association (CSA), presented Fellowship awards to the newly elected GCA Fellows, Associate Fellows, and Institutional Fellows based overseas.
Professor Madeline Carr, recipient of GCA Fellowship, is Professor of Global Politics and Cybersecurity at University College London, as well as Co-Director of the interdisciplinary Centre for Doctoral Training in Cybersecurity and Deputy Director of the REPHRAIN Protecting Citizens Online research hub.
Mr Ian Stafford, recipient of GCA Fellowship, is founder of the UK’s first internet sports magazine, Sportsvibe, and The Sporting Club. He is a multiple award-winning British sportswriter, journalist, and broadcaster, has published 23 books, with his works widely circulated not only in the UK but also in countries like the USA, Canada, Australia, and South Africa.
Mr. Ed Holroyd-Pearce (right), recipient of the GCA Associate Fellowship, is the co-founder and president of Virtual Internships in the UK. He has a rich background in the intersections of education, technology, entrepreneurship, and Asia.
Mr. Ian Stafford attended as a representative to receive the certificate for the GCA Institutional Fellowship on behalf of The Sporting Club, which he founded.
All the existing and newly awarded GCA Fellows, Associate Fellows, and representatives of Institutional Fellows gathered on the stage to celebrate their achievements and witness the formal conferral of honours, reinforcing the spirit of academic excellence and collaboration.
Awarding Fellowships on significant occasions helps showcase the remarkable achievements and academic authority of the recipients, enhances the influence and reputation of the academic institution, inspires future scholars to pursue excellence, and fosters broader societal appreciation and support for academic research.
Afterwards, a dinner was held at the Kingswell Hotel Tongji to celebrate the 9th Global China Dialogue, recognize the newly awarded GCA Fellowships, and provide an opportunity for absent speakers to share their views on the theme of GCD9: Global Governance for AI.
The newly awarded GCA Fellow, Ian Stafford, chaired the entire dinner session. We appreciated the professional chairship of this multiple award-winning British sportswriter, journalist, broadcaster, and event host. Kai Liang, Event Officer at Global China Academy and Director of Business Development at MEL Science, UK, served as the interpreter, demonstrating exceptional clarity and fluency in facilitating communication. Their contributions ensured a smooth and enjoyable evening for all attendees. The event fostered a lively and engaging atmosphere, strengthening connections among participants.
The newly awarded GCA Fellow, Professor LI Yang (top), expressed that it is a lifelong honour to become a GCA Fellow. From a social scientific perspective, he reviewed global development historically in three stages and discussed its evolving trends. His insights enriched the evening, adding a thought-provoking dimension to the celebration.
The GCA Life Fellow, Professor ZHU Guanglei (bottom), expressed his happiness at seeing the growing number of GCA Fellowships and the steady development of GCA. He encouraged academics from universities to contribute by utilizing GCA’s platform to advocate for their research, promote scholarly exchange, and facilitate the implementation of research findings for the betterment of society.
Professor CHEN Qiwei (left), Director of the Yangtze River Delta Fintech Research Institute at East China Normal University, leads a high-level think tank and a specialized platform integrating industry, academia, and research in the field of fintech. He is also the founder of the Asian Business School and Zhengjing Academy, as well as Asia Business Group and Asia Business Capital. Instead of briefly presenting his work, Empowering the Integration of Finance and the Real Economy in the AI Era, he left the PPT with us and shared his experiences across different fields, from academia to business and vice versa, both domestically and globally.
Dr Yuan Cheng (right), Trustee of the Board of Trustees, Global China Academy, is the Chair of Russell Reynolds Associates Greater China. She received her DPhil in Sociology from the University of Oxford. As a leadership advisor, she guides clients on senior-level leadership advisory assignments across industries and geographies, overseeing Russell Reynolds Associates’ operations in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong. Two days before GCD9, she contracted a viral infection and lost her voice. Given the circumstances, the GCD9 Organising Committee decided to play her previously recorded video at the event, as its content remained highly meaningful and relevant to a diverse audience. In her speech, she emphasized that we are living in an extraordinary era marked by unprecedented environmental and geopolitical challenges. She stressed the urgent need for globally minded leaders who prioritize international collaboration and cross-cultural communication.
As with previous Global China Dialogue forums (GCDs) and other events worldwide, there have always been various reasons preventing invited speakers from attending, and GCD9 was no exception. To ensure that participants could still benefit from their insights, we decided to retain the titles and abstracts of absent speakers’ talks in our Programme Handbook, play their short video messages during dinner, and post their speech notes online. This approach aimed to maximize the value of the GCD9 experience for all attendees. We took these steps not only to acknowledge the valuable contributions of absent speakers but also to utilize our platform to disseminate their work and amplify its impact.
Professor Patrick Baert (top left), Professor of Social Theory at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Selwyn College, Cambridge, UK: ‘There is already a considerable amount of interdisciplinary research available on the impact of artificial intelligence on various aspects of society, from education to work. Personally, I am interested in some of the broader, more philosophical issues related to AI, particularly those concerning agency and authorship. For many centuries, across different cultures, we have been accustomed to the notion of a fixed subject—a human creator who is responsible for artistic, scientific, or literary works, and we have generally believed that the human agent behind these products could be clearly identified. However, this has not always been the case. In the past, human agency was often considered insignificant because religious or divine creative forces were seen as overriding everything else. For instance, the name of a painter was once regarded as unimportant, as their work was believed to be intimately connected with the sacred. Yet for centuries, we have operated under the assumption that we can reliably trace a human subject behind creative products. While some poststructuralist philosophers have questioned this notion, in practical terms, the idea of human authorship has remained largely unchallenged—until now. With the rapid advancements in AI, we are no longer able to identify a fixed subject in the way we once did. AI-generated art, AI-assisted scientific discoveries, and AI-supported writing all demonstrate how quickly our deep-seated assumptions about authorship and agency are being questioned. This shift has enormous implications—not only legal but also broader societal ramifications, fundamentally altering our understanding of creativity, ownership, and human identity in the age of artificial intelligence.’
Professor LIU Shaojie (top right), former Director of the Center for Sociological Theory and Methodology at Renmin University of China; Chair Professor at the School of Social and Political Sciences at Anhui University, China: ‘The advancements in intelligence, digitization, and networked technologies have profoundly impacted human society, particularly in China, leading to complex social transformations. From a sociological perspective, one of the key topics for current study should be the differentiation and conflict of representations in an intelligent society. The study of representations has a long intellectual tradition. Over two hundred years ago, Schopenhauer stated that “the world is our representation,” emphasizing individual representations shaped by will. Over a hundred years ago, Durkheim, from the perspective of social integration and solidarity, argued for the importance of collective representations. More recently, Mark Zuckerberg, from the perspective of digitization, artificial intelligence, and networking, has argued that digital representations can create an entirely new world—the Metaverse. These developments are widely acknowledged as profound and deeply impactful, marking significant transformations in our understanding of representation. I believe that representations directly govern human social behaviour. In the era of AI and digital technologies, representations have become exceedingly complex. Not only have individual, collective, and societal representations developed intricate interrelations, but other forms of representations—such as corporate, market, group, organizational, community, and governmental representations—are also interwoven, leading to numerous contradictions and complex conflicts. Since representations shape social behaviour, especially at the grassroots level, their governing role should not be underestimated. Their impact on social order, social integration, and stability presents highly complex challenges. Therefore, I believe that sociology should engage in deeper research in this field, integrating theoretical insights with contemporary transformations. I am confident that such research will yield valuable results and contribute to our understanding of these ongoing societal shifts. This is my humble reflection.’
Professor Martin Lockett (bottom left), professor in the Department of International Business and Management, former Dean of the Faculty of Business at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China: ‘AI is, of course, a hot topic with significant implications for business. However, it is also at what Gartner refers to as the “peak of inflated expectations” in its hype cycle model. A year or two ago, the Metaverse was widely discussed, but today, interest has significantly quieted down. We must take a realistic approach to AI, recognizing both its capabilities and limitations while identifying the best opportunities to create maximum benefits for business and society. For example, AI can help bridge language barriers, facilitate the transfer of expertise across disciplines, and, most importantly, when combined with human expertise, assist in identifying key issues, developing creative opportunities, analyzing trends, and enhancing communication clarity. This holds great potential for international business, as it enables clearer and more precise interactions. In my field of education, AI can provide personalized support for students, simulate real-world international business environments, and offer faster and more extensive feedback. However, we must also work together to address the key challenges AI presents, such as intellectual property rights, legal responsibility, and the ethical use of AI, ensuring transparency for users and maintaining high-quality data and training. Addressing these challenges requires a combination of creative thinking, personal responsibility, and cross-border collaboration. In conclusion, I am confident that you will explore these issues in greater depth during the conference.’
Professor YU Guoming (bottom right), Director of the Academic Committee of the School of Journalism and Communication and leads the Communication Innovation and Future Media Laboratory at Beijing Normal University, China: ‘I want to take this opportunity to share a simple yet fundamental perspective: any communication process, including international communication, must focus on four key communication nodes to be truly effective. The first key node is information accessibility—ensuring that information reaches the intended audience. This is essentially about channel alignment. In today’s complex media landscape, people rely on diverse channels to access information. If we want to convey a specific idea, viewpoint, or message to an audience, it must be aligned with the channels they use. Only by matching our communication channels with those of our audience can we ensure that our message reaches them. Once information reaches the audience, the second key issue is engagement—ensuring that people want to continue reading or watching. This is about relationship alignment. The content must resonate emotionally, align with the audience’s interests, and connect with their social relationships, personal benefits, or emotional experiences. Only when there is such a connection can the message hold their attention and create psychological resonance. This is similar to the concept of “trigger points” in advertising, where content must be designed to capture and sustain interest. After securing engagement, the third challenge is content decoding—ensuring that the audience understands the message. Communication is essentially an encoding and decoding process. When we create content, we encode it with meaning, while the audience deciphers it through their knowledge, information, and cultural background. If these backgrounds are not sufficiently considered during encoding, the audience may misinterpret the message, leading to cultural discounting or cognitive bias. Thus, cultural alignment is crucial to ensure that the audience can accurately reconstruct the intended meaning. Finally, even if people receive, engage with, and understand the content, there remains the fourth and ultimate challenge: value alignment. Effective communication must align with the practical, real-world concerns of society. When a message resonates with people’s values and is validated through their lived experiences, it becomes truly meaningful and useful. This is the only way communication can achieve its full impact—guiding beliefs, influencing practices, and driving meaningful action. In conclusion, for any communication process to be effective, it must successfully address these four alignment challenges: channel alignment (ensuring accessibility), relationship alignment (sustaining engagement), cultural alignment (ensuring comprehension), and value alignment (driving real-world impact). Only by addressing these four key nodes can we achieve deep and effective communication. Therefore, these factors should be carefully considered in both communication strategy and execution.’
The GCA Fellows Awarding Ceremony was held on 29th November as part of the Closing Session of the 9th Global China Dialogue (GCD9), celebrating the achievements of newly appointed GCA Fellows, Associate Fellows, and Institutional Fellows. The event was chaired by Professor WANG Xin, with Professor Xiangqun Chang providing an overview of the GCA Fellowship system. Professors HAO Shiyuan and XIE Lizhong presented Fellowship awards to distinguished scholars from China, Hong Kong, and overseas, including Professor LI Yang (CASS), Professor Shuhua Zhou (City University of Hong Kong), Professor Madeline Carr (UCL), and sports journalist Ian Stafford.
A celebratory dinner at Kingswell Hotel Tongji, chaired by Ian Stafford with Kai Liang as interpreter, provided an opportunity for further engagement. Professor LI Yang reflected on global historical development, while Professor ZHU Guanglei highlighted the steady expansion of GCA Fellowships. Professor CHEN Qiwei shared insights into his fintech research and his interdisciplinary experiences bridging academia and business.
Several scholars delivered pre-recorded speeches, including Dr. Yuan Cheng on global leadership, Professor Patrick Baert (Cambridge) on AI’s impact on authorship, Professor LIU Shaojie on digital representations in AI-driven societies, and Professor Martin Lockett on AI in business and education. Professor YU Guoming emphasized the importance of four key communication nodes: channel, relationship, cultural, and value alignment.
The event reinforced GCA’s role in fostering academic excellence, promoting global collaboration, and advancing discussions on AI governance.
