The year of 2014 marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of Overseas Confucius Institutes. In honor of the great achievements in the past ten years, a variety of events have been held at Confucius Institutes throughout the world, which received attention from top Chinese leaders. With the 10th anniversary and the first Confucius Institute Day approaching, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang respectively expressed warm congratulations and sincere greetings to all the teachers and students from Overseas Confucius Institutes worldwide.
At the time coinciding with its first anniversary, the Confucius Institute, jointly run by Jiangnan University and University of California, Davis, organized a series of celebrations. In UC Davis, the institute hosted Davis Chinese Film Festival in celebration of the Global Confucius Institute Day, attracting 700 to 800 participants from surrounding communities and gaining enthusiastic response. On the other side of the world in JU, various activities came off, among which were academic lectures about Chinese food culture. Professor Xiao Xiangdong and Professor Zhao Jianjun, both from School of Humanities, were invited to give lectures respectively entitled “Rambling through Chinese Food Culture” and “Discussing Medieval Diet Aesthetics” from academic and cultural perspectives. Besides, a “Traditional Culture on the Tip of Tongue” speech contest was also held, appealing to both domestic and overseas students. After the preliminary round, a total of eight students entered a warm-atmosphere final. Through the contest, students had a deeper understanding of Chinese food culture. During the speech contest, a lot of other activities were carried out, including international students’ talent show, quiz contest about Chinese food culture, as well as food tasting. The success in hosting celebrations in both JU and UC Davis not only expanded popularity of the Confucius Institute but also spread the long-history Chinese food culture.
As the world’s first Confucius Institute focusing on food culture, the Confucius Institute between UC Davis and JU was approved by NOCFL in 2012 and officially started in September, 2013. Since its foundation, the institute has been active in organizing activities related to Chinese food culture, including wine technology seminars, Chinese food culture curriculum, and community activities concerning Chinese traditional food and festival culture. Throughout the year, it constantly optimizes of the organization framework and operation mode, and holds various of activities.
Talents Show by International Students
Prof.Professor Xiao Xiangdong Professor Zhao Jianjun gives a lecture entitled “Rambling through Chinese Food Culture”
Professor Zhao Jianjun gives a lecture entitled “Discussing Medieval Diet Aesthetics”
Mogolian Contestant
The “Traditional Culture on the Tip of Tongue” Speech Contest
