2020 Taihe Civilizations Forum launched online, sets eye on opening up a bright new era

The 2020 Taihe Civilizations Forum was launched online by the Taihe Institute on Sunday. The forum gathered top scholars from internationally recognized organizations and universities from China and abroad to discuss issues related to the harmonious and sustainable development of human society.

With the theme of “Science and Culture, Future Ethics, and Common Values”, the six-day forum will hold four sub-sessions on international relations, advanced technology, education and culture, and youth dialogue.

During the opening ceremony, Rashid Alimov, the Distinguished Fellow of the Taihe Institute and the Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (2016-2018), stated that a new chance has appeared to reunite the community of nations around a common goal – that of jointly overcoming the coronavirus crisis. Humanity needs to draw the right conclusions from the lessons of history, to act together; to mobilize the potential for cooperation in the fields of health, education, food and biosafety, he concluded.

Wu Hailong, the Lead Research Fellow in International Relations of the Taihe Institute and President of the China Public Diplomacy Association, pointed out that some nationalistic and xenophobic individuals in the U.S. are agitating for confrontation with China, an economic, social and political decoupling and a new ‘Cold War’, adding that “the people of either country, or indeed the global community, want this.”

Echoing Wu, Stephen Orlins, the President of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations explained that demonizing China, expelling state-run media, expanding the entity list without explanation, denying Chinese visas without explanation, closing the Houston Consulate, and the possible banning of WeChat and Tiktok, are actions that hurt both China and the U.S. “No matter what my government says and does, there are still many Americans that believe that constructive China-U.S. relations have brought peace, prosperity and stability to Asia for the last four decades,” he said.

The Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Vladimir Norov. (Photo provided by Taihe Civilizations Forum)

The Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Vladimir Norov stressed the importance to continue nurturing and cherishing young talents in order to improve their professional level, adding that the leaders of the Asian countries attach great importance to working with young people to guide their energies into creative directions through accessible and high-quality education.

With regard to tackling the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Distinguished Fellow of the Taihe Institute and the Secretary-General of UNESCO (2009-2017) Irina Bokova noted that this pandemic shows clearly that stronger scientific cooperation and more connected science are in urgent need. “We need science that is more deeply integrated into policy-making. Science flourishes through dialogue, through the interaction of peoples and cultures, and through the meeting of minds. We need ethical science as well.”

Rovshan Muradov, the Founding Secretary-General of the Nizami Ganjavi International Center, pointed out that “Reinforcing our commitment to multilateralism, we need to look jointly for global solutions not only to the pandemic but also to other serious challenges like climate change, inequality, international terrorism, organized crime, etc. As we confront these challenges, we do need cooperation through shared universal platforms. The UN as the world’s largest international organization is best placed to achieve this goal.”

In the following six days, guests will share views and opinions on the three themes of “The China-U.S. relationship and its impact on the world”, “Maintaining global biosecurity through emerging scientific, technological and innovative mechanisms”, and “Constructing the spectrum of vocational ability of future talents”.