A centennial commemoration and symposium on discipline development for the Department of Economics at Tsinghua University was held on Aril 11 at the School of Economics and Management (SEM). Li Luming, president of Tsinghua University, and Yang Bin, vice chancellor of the University Council, attended the event.
The centennial commemoration and symposium on discipline development for the Department of Economics at Tsinghua University is held on April 11, 2026.
On behalf of the university, Li Luming extended congratulations to faculty, students and alumni of the economics discipline and expressed appreciation to colleagues on and off campus for their support. He noted that the Department of Economics was founded in 1926 in response to the national imperative of “saving the nation through economic development.” Over the past century, under the leadership of eminent scholars such as Chen Daisun, the department has remained committed to talent cultivation, attracted distinguished faculty, and advanced the academic frontier. It has produced leading economists including Wu Baosan, Yang Lien-sheng and Liu Guoguang, as well as a cohort of interdisciplinary, high-caliber professionals. The department has established a high-level, internationally aligned talent development system and has contributed extensively to national planning and reform research, applying scholarship to serve the economy and people’s livelihoods.
Looking ahead, Li said the economics discipline at Tsinghua should be guided by Xi Jinping’s Thought on Economy, carry forward its fine traditions, and strengthen its sense of mission to cultivate more top innovative talent. He called for seizing historical opportunities to develop hallmark concepts and original theories with Chinese and Tsinghua characteristics, better serving the development of an independent knowledge system. He also urged embracing the era of artificial intelligence, deepening interdisciplinary integration, and advancing Chinese economics to new heights to contribute more to national development and rejuvenation.
Bai Chong-En, dean of Tsinghua SEM, said that over the past century Tsinghua economists have kept pace with national priorities and the times, advancing Chinese economic research through both integrity and innovation. He hoped that the academic community would work together to build an independent knowledge system of Chinese economics, contribute to addressing major theoretical and practical issues facing China and the world, promote the continued development of the discipline, and enhance China’s international academic voice.
Participants viewed a documentary marking the department’s centennial, titled Walking Together.
Keynote speeches on the theme “Retrospect and Prospect: The Mission of Economics and the Development of an Independent Knowledge System in China” were delivered by distinguished scholars and practitioners. The speakers were Hong Yinxing, former Party secretary and distinguished professor of humanities and social sciences at Nanjing University; Liu Wei, former president of Renmin University of China; Gao Peiyong, a Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Member; Hong Yongmiao, dean of the School of Economics and Management at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences; Jiang Xiaojuan, professor at the University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, honorary president of the China Society of Industrial Economics, and former deputy-secretary general of the State Council; Li Xuesong, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and a member of the Party leadership group; Liang Yangchun, president of Management World magazine; Wu Xiaoqiu, former vice president of Renmin University of China, director of the National Academy of Financial Research, and a national first-class professor; Zhang Jun, dean of School of Economics at Fudan University; and Qian Yingyi, former dean of Tsinghua SEM and a Distinguished Professor of Arts and Social Sciences at Tsinghua University. Also in attendance were Chen Zhangwu, former Party secretary of Tsinghua SEM and Rong Ke, director of the Institute of Economics at the School of Social Sciences at Tsinghua University. The event was moderated by Ma Hong, chair of the Department of Economics.
Group photo of distinguished guests in attendance.
The symposium featured ten parallel sessions on political economy, institutions and development, macroeconomics, econometrics, public finance, finance and development, international trade, labor and development, the digital economy, and global imbalances and China’s financial strategy, with more than 100 experts and scholars engaged in discussions.
From SEM
Editor: Li Han
