North Campus, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, September 27th, 2021: The Confucius Institute Day of 2021, hosted by the International Chinese Education Foundation of China, was convened in Beijing. Deans of GDUFS’s overseas Confucius Institutes—Maria Guzkova of the Federal University of Ural in Russia, and Zhang Wenxiong and Naisako Takase of the University of Sapporo of Japan—were awarded with commemorative medals. The award represents a national appreciation for the work GDUFS in the field of international Chinese education.

The conference of the Confucius Institute Day of 2021

Maria Guzkova has been dean of the Confucius Institute co-launched by GDUFS and Federal University of Ural in Russia from the year 2011 till now. As the head of the International Department and the dean of the Confucius Institute in Federal University of Ural, Maria has actively promoted the Confucius Institute across campus; pushed the quantity of students in the Confucius Institute to increase steadily; taken in skilled native Chinese teachers in Russia; and devoted herself to boosting the reach of Confucius Institutes in the region of Ural along with the city of Yekaterinburg. During her tenure, she assisted the Federal University of Ural in managing to have held the International Academic Seminar with the theme “China：History and Today” eleven times, and the Confucius Institute in Federal University of Ural under her leadership was named a Global Advanced Confucius Institute in 2019.

Maria Guzkova

Zhang Wenxiong has been dean for the Confucius Institute co-launched by GDUFS and the University of Sapporo in Japan from the year 2006 until now. As the first foreign-side dean for the Confucius Institute in the University of Sapporo, Zhang led students in the institute to have access to Chinese world heritage and held many compelling lectures on Chinese culture, showing dedication in her mission to enhance the popularity of Chinese language education and Chinese culture. He also set up nearly 30 permanent courses associated with Chinese language and culture, powerfully contributing to the local people’s positive attitudes towards China and strengthened the influence of the Confucius Institute in the area of Hokkaido. As a result, Zhang Wenxionng was named a Global Advanced Dean of the Confucius Institute in 2019.

The establishment ceremony for the Confucius Institute at the University of Sapporo

Zhang Wenxiong instructed students at a Kung Fu class

Naisako Takase was vice-dean of the Confucius Institute co-launched by GDUFS and the University of Sapporo in Japan from the year 2008 to 2016. During her tenure, she enthusiastically pushed forward cooperation between the two partner universities and dedicated great efforts to the founding of a major in Chinese language on campus. The curriculum, which includes Chinese history, the Analects of Confucius, and an introduction to Chinese classics taught by Narisako Takase, earned consistent high praises from students, whose grasp of the Chinese language has also left a deep impression on students in all kinds of cultural activities. All of these have helped build a platform for International Chinese language education in the area of Hokkaido.

GDUFS and the Confucius Institute of the University of Sapporo in Japan jointly held a summer camp

So far, GDUFS has set up seven Confucius Institutes (including classes) worldwide: the Confucius Institute in the University of Sapporo in Japan; the Confucius Institute in the University of Ural in Russia; the Confucius Institute in Santa Maria Catholic University in Peru; the Confucius Institute in the University of Cape Verde; the Confucius Institute in Ain Shams University in Egypt; the Confucius Institute in the University of Artur in Portugal; and the Purple Myrtle Confucius Class in Australia. GDUFS is the university with the largest number of Confucius Institutes in Guangdong province and the first to establish Confucius Institutes. All deans of the Confucius Institute of GDUFS actively devote themselves to Sino-Foreign cultural interaction and have done their best for the development of international Chinese language education. In the future, GDUFS will continually push forward this project of Sino-Foreign exchange and do its best to maintain positive international relationships. GDUFS will also energetically put into practice the idea of a human community with shared future with the Confucius Institute as a longstanding cooperation platform.