2009 China-Europe Cultural Forum

The 2009 China-Europe Cultural Forum jointly sponsored by the CPAFFC， the Research Centre of Overseas Sinology under the Beijing Foreign Studies University， the Information Office of the Shandong Provincial People’s Government， the Liaoning Song and Dance Ensemble， the Nuremberg Municipal Government of Germany， the Confucius Institute at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg， the Confucius Institute at the Roland Eotvos University， Hungary and the Confucius Institute at the University of Vienna， was held in Hungary， Austria and Germany from May 27 to June 9.A Chinese city cultural delegation led by CPAFFC Vice President Jing Dunquan took part in the main activities of the Forum and paid a goodwill visit to the three countries.

The China-Europe Cultural Forum consists of three seminars and a series of activities publicizing Chinese culture including the performance of Chinese folk music by the Liaoning Song and Dance Ensemble， the exhibition of Confucius culture co-organized by the CPAFFC and the Information Office of the Shandong Provincial People’ Government， the photo exhibition on the exchanges between China and Europe mounted at the University of Bonn by the Research Centre for Overseas Sinology under the Beijing Foreign Studies University， as well as the European youth “Chinese Bridge”—Chinese Proficiency speech contest， Chinese traditional skills and art competition and Chinese film show co-organized by the CPAFFC and the Confucius Institutes in the three countries.

In Hungary On May 28， the Seminar on the History and Current Situation of the China-East Europe Cultural Exchanges was held at the Confucius Institute of the Roland Eotvos University in Budapest. In his speech at the opening ceremony， CPAFFC Vice President Jing Dunquan reviewed the cultural and educational cooperation and exchanges with Eastern European countries carried out by the CPAFFC in recent years， gave a brief account of CPAFFC’s organizational structure and its scope of work and expressed his expectation for the exchanges between the youth of China and East Europe. More than 100 people including officials of the Education Section of the Chinese Embassy in Hungary， officials of the Hungarian Ministry of Education and Culture， the dean of the Confucius Institute of the Roland Eotvos University， as well as scholars and representatives from the cultural circles attended the opening ceremony of the seminar. After the opening ceremony， scholars from China， East Europe， Japan and Hungary had discussions on such topics as “Theory and Methods of Sinology Research and China’Image”， “The History of Sinology in East Europe”， “Propagation of Sinology and Cultural Exchanges in East Europe” and “The History of China-Hungary Relations”.In the evening the Chinese folk music group gave the first performance during its visit to East Europe in Roland Eotvos University.

In AustriaOn May 29， the delegation took part in the activities in celebration of the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival held by the Confucius Institute at the University of Vienna in Austria. More than 200 friendship-with-China personages and representatives of the cultural and educational circles from Hungary， the Czech Republic and Austria cruised on the Danube and tasted zongzi (pyramid-shaped dumpling made of glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves and eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar year) to commemorate ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan. The Chinese community in Vienna performed the lion dance to welcome the guests. Officials of the Cultural Section of the Chinese Embassy in Austria， officials of the Austrian Ministry of Education and Mr. Richard Trappl， dean of the Confucius Institute， spoke before the activities. They reviewed the sound development of the cooperation and exchanges between China and Europe in the educational and cultural fields， and briefed the guests on the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival and Chinese poet Qu Yuan. The Chinese folk music group played famous Chinese traditional music.

In Germany The year 2009 marks the centenary of the start of Sinology study in Germany， and is also the year that China has for the first time presented itself as guest of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair， the world’s largest book fair. On June 3， the Seminar in Commemoration of the Centenary of Sinology Study in Germany was held in Bonn， Germany. More than 80 people including Chinese and German sinologists and representatives from the political， cultural and educational circles attended the seminar at which such topics as “Sinology in Germany in One Hundred Years: Personages and Works”， “Present Exchanges between Youth of China and Germany”， “City’s Role in Disseminating Chinese and European Cultures” and “Chinese Culture Craze Brought by Enthusiasm in Learning Chinese Language” were discussed.

On the morning of June 5， the “China-Europe Seminar on Urban Development and Cultural Protection” was held at the Nuremberg Town Planning Institute (NTPI). Three experts on protection of historical building and architectural design from the NTPI respectively gave speeches entitled“The Laws， Regulations and Policies on the Protection of German Cultural Heritage and Implementation Procedures”， “Renovation of the Old City of Nuremberg After World War II”， and “Protection and Reconstruction of the Site of the Headquarters of the Schutzstaffel in Nuremberg”. Members of the delegation from Foshan， Hebei， Shandong， Guizhou and Jiangsu introduced in their speeches and treatises cultural protection and urban development in their respective cities and provinces， and in particular the vigorous efforts and achievements China had made in the protection of cultural heritages. Accompanied by the German experts， the delegation visited the main cultural heritage sites in the old city of Nuremberg while listening to the explanation given by them， and through the visit they knew more directly about the Nuremberg’s capability of restoration and renovation of its old city.

On the evening of June 5 in the City Hall， Dr. Klemens Gsell， the first deputy mayor of Nuremberg， gave a warm speech at the welcoming ceremony in honour of the delegation. He talked about the development of the relations between his city and China in recent years. CPAFFC Vice President Jing Dunquan spoke of the achievements scored in recent years in China-Germany cooperation in the cultural and educational fields， particularly of cultural exchanges carried out by the CPAFFC in cooperation with Nuremberg and the Confucius Institute. Yang Huiqun， Chinese consul general in Munich; Dr. Peter Schonlein， former mayor of Nuremberg; Dr. Yan Xu-Lackner， dean of the Confucius Institute at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg， city council members and governmental officials of Nuremberg and Erlangen， professors and scholars from the local universities and cultural institutions and personages friendly to China， among more than 60 people， attended the welcoming ceremony.

Before the welcoming ceremony， the Chinese and German guests visited the exhibition of Confucius culture which introduces Confucius’ life story and the founding， impartation and evolution of Confucianism.

After the welcoming ceremony， the folk music group gave a 2-hour performance in the hall on the second floor of the City Hall. The grand European-style classic architecture and melodious sweet Chinese classic music enhanced each other’ charm and brought out the best in each other. Over 400 celebrities and music lovers from the city and its surrounding areas watched the performance.

During its stay in Germany， the delegation visited the National Germanic Museum in Nuremberg. Dr. Peter Schonlein， former mayor of Nuremberg， and Dr. Andrea Langer， deputy curator of the museum， briefed the delegation on the history of the museum and its collections.

The China-Europe Cultural Forum was set up to serve as a platform for exchanges between China and various European countries， and by integrating Chinese and European resources in city government and cultural， educational and academic fields， to promote nongovernmental exchanges and cooperation between China and Europe from the cultural and youth perspective， so as to enhance mutual understanding， deepen friendship and promote sound development of long-term friendly relations between the two sides.