The 1st New Buds Salon (新芽沙龙), co-hosted by Peking University’s Institute of Area Studies (PKUIAS), the Yenching Academy of PKU and PKU’s School of International Studies, was held at the Second Gymnasium of PKU on December 16, 2018. The director of PKUIAS, Qian Chengdan; deputy directors of PKUIAS, Zhai Kun and Wang Suolao; and associate dean of Yenching Academy, David Moser, attended the event. Students from more than 10 countries, including the US, the UK, Egypt and Uzbekistan, gave presentations and had intensive discussions. Almost one hundred students from home and abroad attended the salon.
Prof. Qian Chengdan said in his welcoming speech that the New Buds Salon is a platform for young students and scholars to express their opinions and exchange ideas. Exchanging opinions is crucial in conducting area studies. The One Belt & One Road Initiative (BRI) is not an unfamiliar topic, but what is the BRI, what it means to people in different countries and what influence and effect has it had on the world, are all questions worthy of in-depth consideration.
David Moser expressed his welcome upon the arrival of all participants. He pointed out that the event is the opening session of the New Buds Salon. In the future, the salon is expected to be held four to five times every semester. The BRI is evolving through changing names, changing scope, and changing progress. Deng Xiaoping’s model was to cross the river by feeling for the stones, and currently the Chinese government is doing the same with regard to the BRI. He pointed out that holding this salon is a good practice for young scholars to prepare for their future academic career.
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the first proposal of the BRI. Over the past five years, some measures of the initiative have taken root, and this has helped to re-invigorate the prosperity of the regions and countries along the ancient Silk Road. Ankur Shah, from the UK, participated in an overland expedition through 16 countries over the past four years, experiencing and witnessing today’s Silk Road firsthand. In his speech, he proposed how to better communicate the BRI from three aspects – introducing stricter criteria, providing accurate grassroots information and improving transparency. Focusing on the word “OBORPHOBIA,” which he coined, Donasius Pathera, an official from Malawi, analyzed why OBOR (One Belt & One Road) is misunderstood and leads to fears in some regions and countries. Pathera attributed the main reasons to the lack of sufficiently detailed information about OBOR in English that is easy to understand by readers from diverse backgrounds, and a dearth of offices or centers where OBOR information can be obtained. He said that OBOR is a great project that can improve socio-economic structures of many countries, especially in developing nations. Considering the importance of the project, there is need to have conferences and dialogues with people of different academic backgrounds, he said.
Nancy Abdelghany, from Egypt, opined that the BRI is a way for prosperity. China has become the biggest investor in the Suez Canal Area Development Project, which was launched in 2014, and the combination of Chinese capital, technology, market, enterprises, talents, and rich experience in development, in combination with African abundant resources, large population, and huge market potential will create conditions for another miracle of development.
Other speakers gave their speeches from angles ranging from local media reports and analysis of economic data to field investigation. Applying interdisciplinary analytical approaches, they discussed the implementation of the initiative in different countries, shared their research and provided suggestions regarding problems, such as how to eliminate communication obstacles in order to better promote and implement its policies.
The presentations were followed by a discussion between the speakers and the audience. Given their personal experience and academic studies, the students had a productive academic exchange with the speakers.
David Moser pointed out in his closing remarks that China should promote the BRI in a clearer way, strengthen its soft power, avoid negative media reports and make its official voice available to more audiences, allowing more people to understand the implementation and influence of the BRI.
At the end of the salon, all speakers were awarded with certificates for their participation.
【Background】
The New Buds Salon is one of the academic activities held by PKUIAS. It serves as a platform for young scholars and students to conduct academic exchanges and inspire them to share ideas and in-depth thinking on area studies.
