The 3rd International Academic Symposium on Asian Regional Studies and Local Culture was held in Beijing

On October 20, the third International Academic Symposium on Asian Local Studies and Local Culture, themed “Protecting Cultural Heritage and Promoting Civilizational Exchanges,” was recently held at Beijing Union University.

The event brought together scholars and experts from various countries, highlighting the rich cultural diversity across Asia. Lei Xingshan, the president of Beijing Union University, noted, “As one of the cradles of world civilization, Asia nurtures a wide range of regional cultures. The study of local cultures and local studies in different countries and regions has enriched our understanding of Asia’s cultural diversity and provided valuable insights and experiences for global cultural exchange and cooperation.”

In recent years, research in local studies across Asian countries has flourished, yielding significant academic成果. Such studies are crucial for the economic development and cultural construction of various nations and regions.

Kang Seung-woo, president of the Korean Local Studies Forum, expressed hope for increased collaboration between South Korea and China in the field of local studies, highlighting the rich outcomes generated by his forum dedicated to this discipline.

Local studies serve as a bridge linking theory to practice, history to the future, and local perspectives to global contexts, forming the basis for civilizational exchange and mutual learning. Wuenqi, secretary of the CPC Leading Group and chairman of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Social Sciences Federation, emphasized the importance of integrating tradition with innovation, connecting local specifics with broader implications, and blending academic research with cultural tourism to provide spiritual and cultural support for local socio-economic development.

During the symposium, scholars engaged in discussions on various topics related to theoretical and methodological approaches in local studies, local culture protection and development, and the conservation and transmission of cultural heritage. They proposed new insights, including theoretical frameworks for local knowledge production and sustainable cultural heritage, analyses of local studies in the context of urban development from an East Asian perspective, and explorations of urban and regional development through place philosophy. Additionally, there was a cooperation signing ceremony between the China Local Studies Joint Conference and the Korean Regional Studies Forum.

The symposium was guided by Beijing Union University and co-hosted by its Beijing Studies Research Base, the Seoul Studies Institute of the Seoul Metropolitan University, the International Exchange and Cooperation Office of Beijing Union University, and the China Local Studies Research Joint Conference. The first two symposia in this series took place in Beijing in 2019 and in Iksan, South Korea, in 2022.