Peking University, Beijing, April 9, 2009: On the afternoon of April 6, 2009, Meeting for Beijing Forum 2008 Review & Beijing Forum 2009 Planning convened at Yingjie Exchange Center of Peking University. Prof. Zhou Qifeng, President of Peking University, and Mr. Jae-youl Kim, President of The Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies, attended and addressed the meeting. Also present were Wu Zhipan, Executive Vice-Chairman of Peking University Council, Zhang Guoyou, Vice-President of Peking University, Chi Huisheng, Vice-Chairman of Peking University Council, Li Yansong, Assistant President of Peking University, Yan Jun, Secretary-General of Beijing Forum and other members of the Beijing Forum Organizing Committee, together with guests from The Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies.

The meeting reviewed Beijing Forum 2008 held last year, and made the necessary plans for the upcoming Beijing Forum 2009 this November, discussed strategies of the forum for its future development, and finalized the theme of Beijing Forum 2009- “The Harmony of Civilizations and Prosperity for All --- Looking beyond the Crisis for a Harmonious Future.”

Meeting for Beijing Forum 2008 Review & Beijing Forum 2009 Planning

President Zhou Qifeng, in his address, highly evaluated the achievements of Beijing Forum over the past five years. He said, “Beijing Forum, having been held for five times so far, has had great impact on humanities and social sciences, won extensive attention around the world, and attained plentiful fruits in probing into the topic of how to achieve the harmony and common prosperity of human civilizations.” President Zhou expressed his firm confidence in a bright future of Beijing Forum, believing that, under the joint efforts of The Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies and Peking University, the forum will grow better and into a banner of “harmony”, a platform for intercultural dialogues and an academic brand name of the world. Besides, President Zhou highly praised the significance of the forum given the current economic crisis. He was convinced that, those scholars and experts, gathering in Beijing Forum from around the world with their longing for harmony and prosperity, will surely bring wisdom and courage to combat the crisis, as well as hope and confidence to realize common prosperity.

Zhou Qifeng, President of Peking University

President Jae-youl Kim fully recognized the efforts and attainments of Beijing Forum and also provided his suggestions on its further development. He said, Beijing Forum has laid solid groundwork for building itself into a high-profile academic forum in the world through five years’ endeavor, while in order to develop it into one of the most important cultural forums in the future, more abundant resources, more internationalized organizing work, more robust and professional team are needed, for which a new five-year plan is to be formulated. 

Jae-youl Kim, President of The Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies

Furthermore, Executive Vice-Chairman Wu Zhipan, Vice-President Zhang Guoyou and Vice-Chairman Chi Huisheng advanced a host of constructive proposals with regard to the preparation work of Beijing Forum 2009 as well as the long-term development of the forum.

Assistant President Li Yansong presided over the meeting, and Secretary-General Yan Jun made an all-around working report on the progress of Beijing Forum 2008. In the meanwhile, he also raised some issues with respect to the preparation work of Beijing Forum 2009.

The Fifth Beijing Forum --- Beijing Forum 2008 was held on Nov. 7-9, 2008 in Beijing, pooling 314 noted scholars and experts from around the world who had three-day discussions on the theme of “Harmony of Civilizations and Prosperity for All --- The Universal Value and Development Trend of Civilization.”

The Sixth Beijing Forum---Beijing Forum 2009 is scheduled to be held on Nov. 6-8, 2009 in Beijing.

Source: Beijing Forum Secretariat