In the evening of December 10, the Confucius Institute at Bangor University (the CI at Bangor), co-sponsored by China University of Political Science and Law (CUPL) and Bangor University, successfully held its ninth board meeting. Due to COVID-19, the meeting was held in a mixed-mode - a combination of virtual and on-site meeting. Iwan Davies, Vice-Chancellor or Principal of Bangor University, Andrew Edwards, PVC of Bangor University and Head of the College Arts, Humanities and Business, as well as CUPL President Ma Huaide, and Vice Presidents Feng Shiyong and Shi Jianzhong, attended the meeting. Ivan Davies presided over the meeting.
In his speech, Ivan Davies spoke highly of the positive impact of the CI at Bangor on Chinese language education in the UK. He also mentioned Bangor University's internationalization strategy for developing multicultural and interdisciplinary studies, and introduced the recent important academic achievements of Bangor University. He said that he looked forward to further cooperation between Bangor University and CUPL in more areas, especially in environmental law, climate change law, and energy law. Besides, he introduced two new British directors to the Board.
On behalf of CUPL, President Ma Huaide expressed his sincere gratitude and greetings to President Davies and all the board directors for their long-term care, support, and assistance to the CI at Bangor. He pointed out that since its establishment, the CI at Bangor had made remarkable achievements in advancing Chinese language teaching, promoting Chinese culture, and deepening academic cooperation between China and the UK. During COVID-19, the CI at Bangor carried out various activities successfully under the premise of ensuring the safety and health of faculty and students. It successfully held the British Chinese Language Teaching Society Conference, organized the free-of-charge summer camp for CUPL students, and actively carried out online teaching programs. CUPL advanced the development of the CI at Bangor by recording online courses and sending Chinese professors and volunteers. President Ma Huaide said that the two universities had signed a new cooperation agreement to continue running the CI at Bangor well with support from new platforms and projects. The new agreement would also strengthen the academic cooperation between the two universities and promote cultural exchanges between the two countries.
The board of directors then deliberated on agenda items and approved the memorandum submitted by the previous board of directors. Lina Davitt and Fu Yao, British and Chinese Co-Directors of the CI at Bangor, made a joint presentation on the 2020-2021 work review and the 2021-2022 programme of work of the CI at Bangor. The board deliberated on and approved the report and held an in-depth discussion on cooperation between the two universities in the field of law. At last, Ivan Davies and Shi Jianzhong delivered closing remarks.
Martina Feilzer, Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Business, Peter Shapely, Dean of the School of History, Law and Social Sciences, and Sarah Jones-Morris, Head of International Recruitment of Bangor University, attended the meeting online. Kong Qingjiang, Dean of the School of International Law, Li Kunyan, former Chinese Co-Director of the CI at Bangor, and Li Dandan, Director of the Confucius Institute Office of CUPL, attended the meeting offline.
