Intl forum on river-based civilizations attracts foreign and Chinese scholars, officials

An international forum on river-based civilizations opened at the Yuelai International Convention Center in Chongqing on Wednesday.

The 2025 Yangtze River Civilization Forum, themed "Bridging Rivers and Seas, Sharing Wisdom of Civilizations", has drawn leading scholars and officials from China, the United Kingdom, France, Brazil, Egypt, and Pakistan. Discussions focus on protecting the Yangtze River's cultural heritage and deepening exchanges among the world's major river civilizations.

"As a Mesopotamian scholar looking at the Yangtze civilization, I see a lot of parallels and opportunities for research and collaborations, and I want to connect with scholars working on the Yangtze civilization, and hopefully, sort of create contacts that may lead to long-term research collaborations," Magnus Widell, a professor of Assyriology at the University of Liverpool's Department of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology in the UK, said at the forum.

Alongside the main forum, a rich program of events is underway, including the Longgupo Site Seminar, the World Great Rivers Concert, an exhibition of Yangtze Basin intangible cultural heritage, and a "From Dunhuang to Dazu" special display.

Co-hosted by the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the forum has become the only province-level academic platform of its kind along the Yangtze. Since 2023, it has attracted more than 200 experts, producing policy proposals and research now compiled into an anthology of 75 papers.