2022

On Wednesday, October 26th at 17:00, the China Competence Center of the University of Würzburg (CCCUW) was officially opened in the large hall of the Graduate School at the Hubland North Campus!

Program

In the opening speech, the University's Vice President for International Affairs, Professor Doris Fischer, described the necessity of the China Competence Center in times of increasing tension in diplomatic relations with China. The importance of the Center for the University of Würzburg as a coordination platform for scientific cooperation was also emphasized in the welcoming address by the University's President, Professor Paul Pauli.

This was followed by the keynote speech by Ambassador (ret.) Dr. phil. Volker Stanzel on the topic of "50 years of German-Chinese diplomatic relations". As documented by the numerous media representatives present in their coverage (for the Bavarian Radio article click here; for the Mainpost article click here), Ambassador (ret.) Dr. Stanzel pleaded for "science as a conduit for change" in German-Chinese cooperation. Concrete basics of cooperation fundamentals were then discussed in a panel discussion with Dr. Stanzel, Professor Fischer, Professor Björn Alpermann and Professor Manuela Scheuermann.

Guest lecture

Volker Stanzel was Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to the People's Republic of China between 2004 and 2007 and Political Director of the German Foreign Office from 2007 to 2009. He is currently a Senior Distinguished Fellow of the 'Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik' and has been a Visiting Professor at the Hertie School of Governance since 2017.

Reference to further events

The CCCUW team is pleased that the inaugural event was able to generate so much interest, both within the university, in the city of Würzburg and beyond. It was especially impressive that the topic 'diplomatic relations and cooperation with China' could be illuminated so profoundly in such a short time. A central concern of the CCCUW is to promote the framework conditions for cooperation with China in the public discourse.

Therefore, we are pleased to welcome Dr. Nadine Godehard from the 'Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik' at the University of Würzburg on the 07th of December at 18:00. Dr. Godehard will give a lecture on 'German China Policy' and respond to questions from the audience. The CCCUW team is looking forward to your participation in the event. Registration is requested (by 01.12.2022 at chinacentre@uni-wuerzburg.de).

The event will end around 20:00.

On December 07th, Dr. Nadine Godehardt from the 'Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik' (German Institute for International and Security Affairs) gave a lecture on Germany's China policy. She went into particular depth on the Berlin Bubble and which personalities and institutions play an essential role in Germany's strategy formation on China.

As at the opening ceremony, the room at the Graduate School (Beatrice Edgell Weg 21) was filled to capacity. After the lecture, audience members were allowed to ask questions for about 45 minutes. Dr. Godehart's expertise in German politics came to the fore. With snacks and sparkling wine, visitors were able to enjoy the rest of the evening.

The CCCUW would like to thank Dr. Godehardt for this really fascinating lecture and the participants for the exciting questions!