The UK-China Humanities Alliance (UKCHA) brought together more than 100 scholars and participants from over 25 higher-education institutions across six countries for its tenth annual conference, hosted by SOAS University of London on November 3-4. Under the theme “Future Horizons: Area Studies and Global Connectivity in the Humanities,” the conference explored how area studies and humanistic inquiry can illuminate a world shaped by rapid technological change and connections across borders.
Held in the alliance’s tenth anniversary year, the conference combined academic debate with discussions about the next phase of UK–China humanities cooperation. UKCHA was established in Shanghai in December 2016 on the initiative of Tsinghua University, bringing Chinese and British institutions together to develop research, education and cultural exchange.
Guests and participants at the opening ceremony
Human values and a shared future
At the opening ceremony, UKCHA President Professor Yang Bin, Vice Chairman of Tsinghua University Council, emphasised the irreplaceable value of the humanities in a world undergoing rapid AI-driven change and marked by uncertainty.
SOAS Vice-Chancellor Professor Adam Habib reflected on the changing nature of area studies, arguing that humanities scholars should be more than record-keepers of the past: they should also help shape our shared future.
Professor Wu Xia, UKCHA Secretary-General and Head of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures at Tsinghua University, reviewed a decade of exchanges across the alliance. Looking ahead, Professor Wu outlined priorities for deeper collaboration in the creation of knowledge, joint research and programmes connecting students and early-career scholars across the UK and China.
Rethinking regions and connections
The academic programme comprised 12 thematic panels, a special roundtable on the Nobel Prize in Literature and a public dialogue. Discussions ranged from new methodologies in area studies to the social effects of generative AI, digital orientalism, cultural flows across regions and translation in world literature.
The Presidents’ Forum, “Rethinking Global Partnerships and Collaborative Education,” was co-moderated by Professor Graeme Earl, Dean of the College of Humanities at SOAS, and Professor Wu. It brought together senior university and faculty leaders from SOAS, Tsinghua University, UCL, Beijing Foreign Studies University, Shanghai International Studies University, Fudan University and Wuhan University.
Participants discussed equitable international academic partnerships and the limits of AI in interpreting cultural nuance. They also considered what students need to navigate a changing world, focusing on critical thinking, cross-cultural empathy and independent judgement.
Presidents’ Forum: Rethinking Global Partnerships and Collaborative Education
The next phase of cooperation
The UKCHA Executive Council met at SOAS on November 3 to review the alliance’s work and consider its future development. Representatives of Chinese and UK member institutions discussed its achievements, operational challenges and options for a sustainable model of cooperation.
The council approved the admission of Newcastle University and Beijing Language and Culture University as full members. It also approved Beijing Foreign Studies University as host of the 2027 annual conference in Beijing.
Priorities for 2027 include developing joint research projects and digital infrastructure, supporting youth forum activities and exploring arrangements for the alliance’s long-term sustainability.
The UKCHA Executive Council meeting at SOAS
UKCHA promotes interdisciplinary humanities research, education with an international outlook and cultural exchange between the UK and China through annual conferences, youth programmes and joint publications. Its work is guided by equality, mutual respect, openness, mutual benefit, transparency and accountability.
Alliance member institutions
The Chinese members are Tsinghua University, Peking University, Fudan University, Wuhan University, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Beijing Foreign Studies University, Shanghai International Studies University, Macau University of Science and Technology, and Beijing Language and Culture University.
The UK members are the University of Oxford China Centre; the Needham Research Institute, Cambridge; SOAS University of London; King’s College London; the University of Reading; the University of Manchester; the University of Warwick; the University of Exeter; University College London; Loughborough University; and Newcastle University.
Text and photographs: Yan Yong
Editors：Gillian, Li Han
