(Yicai) Oct. 15 -- The field of China Studies should treat Chinese civilization as a living, interconnected whole, and view the country’s economic, political and social development within a broader historical and cultural context, according to Chinese and foreign academics attending the second World Conference on China Studies.

“I never expected this conference to attract so many participants and to feature such a wealth of historical materials,” Timothy Baycroft, a professor at East China Normal University, told Yicai at the event, which kicked off in Shanghai yesterday and has attracted over 500 guests from more than 50 countries and regions.

“This is my first time at the conference and I am finding it both refreshing and fascinating,” he said as he carefully examined an exhibition about exchanges between Chinese and Western civilizations.

Baycroft, who teaches European history, described China Studies as a ‘vast ocean,’ that he still knows little about. In the West, people’s understanding of China is still quite vague, which is why being able to study and experience China firsthand is so interesting, he added.

Cooperation between Russia and China in higher education is developing rapidly and is no longer about just going to China to learn the Chinese language, Innokentii Aktamov, a Russian sinologist at the Siberian branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Yicai in fluent Chinese.

“We’ve now entered a more demanding second phase, which requires scholars to come to China to explore all aspects of the country’s development,” said Aktamov, who was attending the convention for the first time. “Many young Russians are now very interested in China. A lot of them use WeChat and follow China’s latest trends online,” he added.

Tran Thi Thuy, deputy director of the Institute of Chinese Studies at the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, specializes in China’s cultural industries. The country’s recent cultural hits, such as the role-playing game Black Myth: Wukong and animated blockbuster Nezha, have made a strong impression on her.

“Both China and Vietnam are paying a lot of attention as to how to integrate traditional culture and values into modern life,” she said. “We are watching closely how China has managed to bring its cultural heritage not just back to life, but how it has made it hugely popular.”

Editor: Kim Taylor