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Speakers advocate 'harmony' as key to global prosperity
By Zhou Kun and Yang Cheng (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-11-07 08:32 Grand event This high-level event, with the backing of the Ministry of Education, under the auspices of the Beijing Municipal Government, is the sixth annual Beijing Forum and will run until Nov 8. It has been co-sponsored by Peking University, the Beijing Municipal Commission of Education and The Korean Foundation for Advanced Studies. This prestigious academic gathering has taken as its 2009 theme: "The Harmony of Civilization and Prosperity for All - Looking Beyond the Crisis to a Harmonious Future". In total, this year's event has attracted more than 300 leading academics and renowned thinkers from more than 40 countries and regions. The 2009 theme is of particular significance given that many delegates believe the current financial crisis is far from over. A total of five panel sessions, three special panels and one interview will be staged as part of this year's forum. The five panel sessions will consider the central theme from an economic, political, cultural, historical and educational perspective. A number of sub-themes will also be examined, including "Financial Crisis: Challenges and Responses," "The Global Financial Crisis: International Impacts and Responses," "Eastern Wisdom as a Resource in Solving the Global Crisis," "Historical Reflections and Contemporary Challenges," and "Higher Education under the Financial Crisis: Strategies and Development." In addition, the forum will work with Harvard University, Stanford University and the University of California at Berkeley to jointly stage three special panels on high-level academic subjects. The themes under discussion include "The Ideal of Higher Education and Prospects Beyond the Current Crisis", "Grassroots Mobilization in 20th Century China: A Rural-Urban Comparison", and "The World in Crisis: Financial Pressures from Abroad, Impacts Inside and China's Responses." As a highlight of the forum, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, a world-renowned Islamic philosopher, and Tu Weiming, professor of Harvard University and director of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities at Peking University, held an Islamic-Confucian Dialogue entitled "Responses to the Human Condition in the 21st Century" yesterday. The dialogue was not only an encounter between two philosophical masters, but also an interchange between two different civilizations. The encounter took place at the Peking University campus and will be open to faculty and students alike. The forum is particularly proud of having the participation of four leading domestic and global, including Kenneth J. Arrow, Nobel Prize Laureate in Economics, professor emeritus of Stanford University, member of the American National Academy of Sciences, fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; Seyyed Hossein Nasr, professor of Islamic Studies, George Washington University and president of the Foundation for Traditional Studies; Peter J. Katzenstein, president of the American Political Science Association, professor of Cornell University and Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and Zhou Qiren, dean of the National School of Development and Director of the China Center for Economic Research, Peking University. All four made keynote presentations during the event yesterday.
The forum has also attracted the participation of some 30 presidents and vice-presidents from Cornell University, UC Berkeley, Waseda University, the University of Sydney and a number of other world famous universities. Each panel session will feature outstanding scholars whose knowledge and experience will be highlighted during the three days of discussion. Initiated in 2004 and held annually ever since, the Beijing Forum is now one of the most influential academic conferences in the international community of humanities and social sciences. It is devoted to promote the study of humanities and social sciences in the Asia-Pacific region and to boost global academic exchange and social advancement. (For more biz stories, please visit Industries)
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