A drone show is put on during the Understanding China Conference in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, on December 2, 2023. Photo: Courtesy of the Understanding China Conference

The year 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the Understanding China Conference. As part of the landmark conference, a thematic forum on the Global Civilization Initiative (GCI) and Global Inter-Civilizational Exchanges and Mutual Learning was held on Saturday.

The 2023 Understanding China Conference (Guangzhou) was held in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province from Friday to Sunday. Initiated in 2013, the conference has become an important international platform for exchanges between China and the rest of the world. 

Themed "China's New Endeavors amid Unprecedented Global Changes - Expanding the Convergence of Interests and Building A Community of Shared Future," officials, experts, entrepreneurs, foreign envoys, and representatives of international organizations and multinational companies have engaged in discussions and exchanged ideas on some of the most pressing global topics, such as global security and development issues.

Zheng Bijian, founding chairman of the China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy, noted in his speech, "It has been 10 years since the founding of the Understanding China Conference. In the last 10 years, we have witnessed the rapid development of China and experienced the changes in the world."

Many experts have reached the consensus that there is an "understanding deficit" between different countries and different civilizations, which is not conducive to mutual trust. If through the decade-long efforts, the world can gain a better understanding of China and the Communist Party of China, and if China can better understand the world and unprecedented global changes therein, then the conference has achieved its goals, Zheng stressed.

An expert gives a speech at the Understanding China Conference in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, on December 2, 2023. Photo: Courtesy of the Understanding China Conference

Firsthand experience

Neil Bush, the founder and chair of the George H.W. Bush Foundation for US-China Relations, was invited as a guest speaker of the thematic forum. On global inter-civilizational exchanges and mutual learning, he told the Global Times that more, broader, deeper people-to-people exchanges are the key, especially for China and the US. 

"When you're present with other people, when you learn about them by firsthand experience of being with them, then you inevitably develop respect and inevitably develop avenues for cooperation. We need more exchanges," Bush said. 

He pointed to Governor Gavin Newsom of the US state of California, who recently visited China, and the mechanism for sub-national exchanges such as the China-US Sister Cities Conference and noted that these were all positive signals of deepening cultural exchanges and mutual understanding between the US and China.

"I recently hosted a Sichuan delegation in Houston and then they went to Austin and New York. It is very constructive to have those kinds of exchanges," he said. 

Katherine McMahon, Acting Deputy Director of the National Museum of Australia, recently visited Beijing to facilitate an art exhibition. "It was wonderful to see all the friends from many institutions across China. That is a testament to me [of] how the power of cultures came to bring people together."

Looking back at past collaborations between museums and art institutions in Australia and China, McMahon noted that the initiatives taken by both sides could be seen as vivid examples of promoting global inter-civilizational exchanges and mutual learning. 

"These exchanges show the power of cultural institutions to foster understanding of each other's peoples and cultures. When we take the story of who we are to other people and other nations and invite them to learn [about] our experience, I think there is no greater opportunity to learn and form the appreciation of the life and culture of others," she noted. 

Looking toward future

"China stands as an ancient civilization. The Chinese civilization probably is the only one that has never been disrupted in its continuity in the world. I think that gives it the strength and the ability to understand and embrace other civilizations or cultures in the world," said Vikram Channa, vice president of Production and Development of Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific, while commenting on the China-proposed GCI.

The GCI can bridge the gaps between different civilizations. Platforms like the Understanding China Conference open up opportunities for dialogue which lead to better mutual understanding and learning, he said. 

As Discovery is a leading producer of documentaries in the world, Channa suggested that documentaries could be an effective tool to help the world understand China. "No matter where the young people live, they all have equal access to documentaries that can share the truth instead of the biased stories," Channa said, adding that he hoped that more documentaries from China's storytelling perspectives could reach a wider audience, especially the youth. 

"The world will be inherited by the young generation," Channa said optimistically about the future, and how documentaries could be a great channel to better tell the stories of China and promote understanding among different cultures.   

Li Fang, deputy editor-in-chief of the People's Daily Overseas Edition, pointed out at the thematic forum that the GCI, the Global Development Initiative (GDI), and the Global Security Initiative (GSI), taken together, demonstrate the distinctive inclusiveness and peaceful nature of Chinese civilization. The GCI encourages people to draw wisdom from each other's ancient civilizations and jointly promote common peace, kindness, harmony, and integrity, and seek true knowledge through the essence of civilization.

China has been making continuous efforts to advocate joint inter-civilizational dialogue, oppose discrimination against particular civilizations, and endeavor to safeguard the diversity of world civilizations.

To quote a Chinese saying, "Long as the journey is, we will reach our destination if we stay the course; difficult as the task is, we will get the job done if we keep working at it." The journey to promote understanding between different civilizations and for the world to reach a consensus fully on every issue may have many ups and downs. With China's efforts to build bridges like the Understanding China Conference to initiate dialogues, we should be confident that a bright future awaits us ahead.