Chinese civilization is thousands of years old, and has always emphasized ideas such as “universal prosperity for the whole world”, and “harmony and coexistence.”

To further explore and spread these concepts around the world, the 2020 “Chinese Characters and Me” Speech Contest for International Students, hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and organized by People’s Daily Online, will kick off online in September and end offline in November.

The 2019 “Chinese Characters and Me” Speech Contest for International Students (Photo/People's Daily Online)

The entire competition consists of preliminary rounds, quarter-finals and finals under the theme of “harmony and coexistence.” The first two parts will be held online in the form of the answering of questions and short videos. Ten winners will be selected for the finals, which will feature speech contests and talent shows to be held offline in November.

Finally, various awards will be announced after scoring and assessment is carried out by judges.

International students in China, foreigners working in China, and non-native Chinese speakers are eligible to take part in the contest.

Eligible candidates:

International students in China, including ethnic Chinese who are at least third-generation immigrants;

Foreigners working in China whose native language and parents’ is not Chinese;

Non-native Chinese speakers.

Schedule:

Preliminary rounds: contestants will answer questions online, and the top 30 will become participation award winners and enter the semi-finals.

Quarter-finals: winners of the preliminary rounds will provide one-minute speech videos. The contest organizing committee will make and upload short videos based on these submissions on the People’s Daily Online website, organize online voting and select 10 winners for the finals after online voting and scoring by judges.

Finals: the finalists will take part in speech contests and talent shows. Finally, various awards will be announced after scoring and assessment carried out by judges.

Content of the contest:

The contest consists of online answering of questions and short videos, and speeches at the offline finals.

The online sections will be judged by the contest organizing committee.

During the offline finals, the finalists will deliver a seven-minute original speech under the theme of “harmony and coexistence” about their stories with Chinese characters. Judges will give direct scores for the competitors.

The content of the contest includes Chinese language expression ability, cross-cultural communication ability, knowledge of Chinese history and culture, and a Chinese culture talent show.