BNU Philosophy Summer School

Chinese Thought and Modern China

July 10-20, 2015

School of Philosophy, Beijing Normal University

Aims:

In order to understand a nation and its people, one needs to be fully immersed in its particular culture and understand its values and mindset. China, for the last five thousand years, has developed as a profound civilization characterized by a rich diversity of philosophical thought, a humanistic spirit and moral values. Chinese culture embraces wholeheartedly the ideas of benevolence (ren仁), and “taking the people as the root” (minben民本), which together shape Chinese understandings of sovereignty, difference, justice, integrity, harmony and consensus. These ideas have been crystallized into the mindset and behavior of Chinese people over countless generations. At the same time, these universal values are crucial for China’s capacity to cope with various challenges, such as problem of the environmental crisis, wars, and disparity between the rich and the poor. In order to enable young people all around the world to get in touch with Chinese culture, understand its contemporary situation and foster exchange and communication in and out China, the School of Philosophy of Beijing Normal University will hold a BNU Philosophy Summer School. The 2015 session will be entitled ‘Chinese Thought and Modern China’. Several world famous philosophers have confirmed their participation in the summer school and have developed thought-provoking lectures, carefully designed to meet the expectations of young and curious students from every corner of the world. We believe our summer school will leave a profound impression on all the participants and deliver promising results for us all.

Sponsor:

Beijing Normal University grew out of the Faculty of Education of Capital Metropolitan University established in 1902，which initiated teacher training in Chinese higher education. At BNU there are 22 colleges or schools and 36 research centers/institutes, over 22,000 fulltime students including 8,900 undergraduate students，11,300 postgraduate students and 1,800 international students. The University has 16 national key disciplines，including Education，Psychology，History，Ecology and Geography, which were ranked number one in China according to the 2013 official ranking by the Ministry of Education. Beijing Normal University always attaches importance to international exchange and cooperation. At present, the university has established cooperative ties with some 300 universities and international organizations.

BNU is a top-ranked Chinese university, and the School of Philosophy is renowned for its great work in areas of Confucianism, Daosim, Yijing studies, Buddhism, the philosophy of science and technology, ethics, aesthetics, logic and cognitive science, analytic philosophy and religious studies. The School has been collaborating successfully with world famous universities and publishes Frontiers of Philosophy in China, an English journal with global reputation. Every year the School invites many foreign scholars to attend numerous international conferences on the BNU campus, and sends large numbers of teachers and students abroad for international conferences, further training and academic exchange.

Timetable:

Introduction of Speakers:

James Miller: Professor of Chinese Studies in School of Religion, Queen’s University