Students, researchers and business people enjoy country showcase

A large number of participants took part in a variety of activities during the China Week at the University of Göttingen from July 6 to July 9. Workshops, lectures and discussions as well as a broad cultural programme showcased China as a place to study, conduct research and do business. High-ranking officials from universities, research institutions and business were among the Chinese and German speakers and guests. The country is the most densely populated in the world and currently has the third-largest economy. Under the heading “China: Sciences and Scholarship, Economics and Culture – Together on the Knowledge Road,” the broad programme received plenty of press – both locally and nationally as well as in the Chinese media.

“The China Week was a great success. Scientists and economic representatives from both countries were able to make many new contacts. Informative events allowed the wide variety of visitors to learn more about each other. It’s a good foundation for expanding cooperation in science, economics and culture,” says University Vice President Prof. Dr. Hiltraud Casper-Hehne. Each day of China Week had a specific focus including the official opening of the university’s interdisciplinary Centre for Modern East Asian Studies (CeMEAS), the eastern Chinese metropolis of Nanjing with a population of 6 million, the country’s university landscape and its economy. The Göttingen China Week proved to be a fitting end to the German-Chinese Year of Science, Scholarship and Education 2009/2010, which was initiated by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research. With 130 high-level scientific and economic representatives from China, the Göttingen China Week had a bigger Chinese delegation than any other German China Week in the past year.

During the opening July 6, Wu Hongbo, China’s ambassador to Germany, spoke at the auditorium on Wilhelmsplatz. Following a presentation on the thriving German-Chinese cooperation at the University of Göttingen, the university’s CeMEAS was officially opened – the centre represents a new orientation for East Asian studies in Göttingen.

The second day of China Week focused on the Nanjing University. The university there is one of the top five in China and has enjoyed a partnership with the University of Göttingen for more than 25 years. Both the city and the university were highlighted during presentations at the Pauliner Church and on the university campus.

Studying and research throughout China were the theme of the third day of China Week. Workshops addressed German-Chinese cooperation in geosciences, law, physics and computer sciences while funding sources such as the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the German Research Foundation, the Federal Ministry for Education and Research and the German Academic Exchange Service presented their Chinese activities. A special workshop led by Prof. Dr. Axel Schneider, board member designate of the CeMEAS, illuminated the role of modern China in the context of current scientific studies.

The “Day of Economics and Commerce” with high-ranking experts on Friday, July 9, proved to be an additional highlight as well as the final event of the China Week. China’s former ambassador to Germany Ma Canrong discussed China’s economic relationship with Germany before the state secretary from Lower Saxony’s Economics, Work and Transport Ministry held a talk on “Germany, Lower Saxony and China”. Dr. Jörg Mull, Chief Financial Officer of the Volkswagen Group China and a board member of the German Chamber of Commerce in China, Dr. Bernd Blumenberg, president of the Chinese-German BASF-YPC joint venture, and Trudbert Merkel, senior fund manager with Deka Investmentbank, all presented their view of Germany’s role in China’s economy.

The various events and speakers of the China Week can be seen on the official schedule, which is still available at www.uni-goettingen.de/chinawoche2010.