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Cornell China Center Kāng nài ěr zhōngguó zhōngxīn

2021 Year in Review

The Cornell China Center (CCC) served as a bridge between Cornell University and China in 2021 by hosting nearly 40 events at our Beijing office for more than 1,600 students, alumni, and partners and welcoming an additional 100 guests. In the fall, our center relocated to a new site in Beijing’s Central Business District, where we are happy to be neighbors with the Yale Center Beijing.

We continued the rich tradition of research collaboration between Cornell and Chinese institutions, awarding six joint research grants for Cornell faculty collaborations with China in the spring, with another 12 awards planned in winter 2022 through our joint grant programs with Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Zhejiang University, and Cornell’s East Asia Program.

Supported Cornell’s work in and with China:

  • Facilitated and participated in the meetings for Vice Provost for International Affairs Wendy Wolford with counterparts at five strategic partner universities in China—Tsinghua University, Peking University, China Agricultural University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Zhejiang University—to discuss focused themes for international collaborations and opportunities for strengthening partnerships.
  • Supported Global Cornell’s Office of Global Learning as it concluded Cornell’s Study Away program and facilitated a smooth Chinese student reentry to the U.S.
  • Worked with Global Cornell and partners across campus to contribute to planning the new Global Hubs initiative.
  • Supported multiple Cornell colleges and units with China collaborations, including eCornell, Cornell Emerging Markets Institute, Cornell Institute for China Economic Research, Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, College of Architecture, Art, and Planning, and School of Continuing Education.
  • Provided space and staff support in Beijing for multiple successful events and activities by the SC Johnson College of Business and its Cornell-Tsinghua Finance MBA Program.
  • Connected with Cornell Clubs and alumni groups in China to build community.

Jump-started new initiatives:

  • Initiated a project funded by Cornell’s David M. Einhorn Center for Community Engagement to assess and increase Cornell’s Chinese student participation in community-engaged learning opportunities and expand engaged learning with community partners in China.
  • Developing new collaborative initiatives with other organizations on themes including carbon footprint reduction, sustainability, aging society, smart cities, and education.

Highlighted the excellence of Cornell in China:

  • Published over 50 posts on the center’s WeChat channel, with 70,000+ views.
  • Collaborated with the communication offices of Cornell’s colleges and major institutes, with input from Chinese alumni, to highlight Cornell’s excellence through WeChat channel.

The Cornell China Center thanks you for your attention and support.
We wish you a healthy, happy, and productive 2022!

Additional Highlights, 2021

  • January 8: The CCC hosted a visit from the director and staff of the U.S. Embassy in Beijing’s Public Engagement division and Beijing American Center.
  • March 27: The Cornell China Center’s Deans’ Dialogue Series #2 on Artificial Intelligence was broadcast live online. Cornell deans Greg Morrisett, (Cornell Tech) and Kavita Bala (Bower School of Computing and Information Sciences) had an insightful conversation with two leading scientists in computer science and AI—Zhang Yaqin and Zhang Hongjiang—on hot topics and key challenges in the field of AI, such as talent cultivation and capacity building, industry-university research co-operations, and data science education.AI Deans' Dialog
  • March 27: The CCC, the Cornell Club of Beijing, and the Cornell Club of Shenzhen jointly held a wine tasting event and brought Cornell's characteristic wine tasting course to Beijing for the first time.
  • April 10: The CCC invited Zhu Jia, Managing Director of Bain Capital Asia, Cornell University board member, and Chair of Cornell’s China Advisory Board, to share his career story and connect with students. This event provided an opportunity for Cornell students studying in China to connect. Jonathan Zhu seminar 4-17-21
  • April 17: The Cornell Club of Beijing held a seminar exploring directions forward for Sino-U.S. relations at CCC’s Beijing space. Panelists included Greg Gilligan, President of the American Chamber of Commerce in China; Paul Triolo, Eurasian Group; and Xin Shen, Director of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.Cornell Club of Beijing 4-17-21
  • April 27: The CCC hosted a visit by the leaders of the Beijing Central Business District Management Committee.
  • May 20: The CCC, Emerging Markets Institute, and eCornell jointly organized a webinar on “China: Exploring Green Economy,” focusing on China's goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the challenges and opportunities facing China's green technology, and international cooperation on the goals of the Paris Agreement. We developed a method and addressed related technical issues to make it possible to screen share eCornell webinars with attendees in China.
  • May 27: The CCC and Tencent Group held a “Tencent Open Day for Cornell” at the Tencent Beijing headquarters, as an example of a career exploration opportunity for students to learn and experience corporate culture, understand corporate development and talents needs, and talk with Cornell alumni working in a variety of Tencent departments.Tencent Open Day 5-27-21
  • May 29: The CCC and Wilson Sonsini Gucci & Rosati jointly organized a visit to their Beijing office to provide opportunities for Cornell students interested in the legal profession as an opportunity to experience the culture of a law firm. The event also attracted students from the University of Chicago and the Tsinghua University Law School. The event was hosted by lawyer Ouyang Dan, an alum of Cornell Law School and a partner of the Wilson Law Firm. Other Cornell Law alumni participated.Law Firm visit - Wilson 5-29-21
  • May 30: The CCC, Cornell Club of Beijing, and Cornell Chinese Students and Scholars Association jointly organized a Cornell Beijing Gathering and assembled 250+ alumni, current students, and freshmen to network and celebrate the end of the school year.Cornell Beijing Gathering 5-30-21
  • June 8: The CCC and the JD Group held a JD Group Open Day for Cornell. Students visited its headquarters and met representatives from different departments.
  • June 10: CCC director Ying Hua visited the Southeast University College of Architecture and Planning to discuss collaboration on cross-disciplinary research and education activities on design and urban topics.
  • June 11: Together with the International Cooperation Department of Peking University, the CCC celebrated with Cornell freshmen in the Study Away program at a Cornell-PKU Study Away Project Completion Ceremony, marking a successful end to the study of Cornell students at Peking University in fall 2020 and spring 2021.PKU Study Away 6-11-21
  • November 20–21: The CCC and Tsinghua University Future Lab co-organized a “2021 Space and Media International Workshop,” a cross-disciplinary workshop with scholars and student teams from 11 universities.
  • November 22: Cornell’s Emerging Markets Institute organized a PhD Research Day, cosponsored by the CCC, showcasing research by Cornell PhD students and scholars on China.
  • December 3: The CCC, Emerging Markets Institute, and eCornell jointly organized a webinar on “Does the Term ‘Emerging Markets’ Still Make Sense?” with the “godfather of emerging markets” Mark Mobius and faculty fellow and student researchers at EMI.