Between November 18th and 20th, 2025, the 2nd International Symposium on Asia-Europe Development was convened at the Sun Yat-sen University Institute of Advanced Studies Hong Kong (IASHK) and the Centre for China Studies (CCS) of the Faculty of Arts, the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). Conducted in hybrid mode, the symposium assembled scholars from more than 20 leading universities and research institutes worldwide, fostering productive intellectual exchanges. Not only did the symposium offer an international platform for intellectual exchanges within the Greater Bay Area, but it also fostered international collaboration across Asia and Europe. The symposium was organized by CCS and co-organized by the Nanyang Centre for Public Administration (NCPA) at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Research Centre for Global and Regional Governance, Sun Yat-sen University Institute of Advanced Studies Hong Kong (SYSUIASHK).
Group photo of keynote speakers on the first day of the symposium
Professor Chen Li, Associate Director and Associate Professor of CCS, hosted the opening ceremony and gave a welcoming speech. He highlighted CCS’s commitment to advancing the education and research of contemporary China in a global context. Given that the global geopolitical landscape is experiencing radical transformations, this symposium, titled “China and Asian Connectivity in the Era of Global Geo-economic Fragmentation,” aims to foster dialogues and mutual understanding with multicultural and interdisciplinary insights. Prof. Li remarked that the cities of Hong Kong, Singapore, and Guangzhou are key to boosting Asia-Europe scholarly and commercial ties.
Professor Chen Li hosts the opening ceremony
Professor Xu Anlong, Director of IASHK, noted in his opening remarks that, against the backdrop of Hong Kong’s role as China’s “super-connector” to the world, Sun Yat-sen University aims to establish a top-ranked international intellectual platform upon the foundation of IASHK. The institute will focus on cutting-edge fields of biomedical sciences, applied mathematics, and interdisciplinary humanities and social sciences. Benefiting from Hong Kong’s accessible research resources and open environment for dialogue, IASHK can advance comparative policy studies with medical big data and research on the digital economy. Professor Xu extended an invitation to aspiring scholars worldwide who share this vision to join the Institute. In his final note, Professor Xu acknowledged the significance of this symposium in enhancing Asia–Europe connectivity.
Professor Anlong Xu delivers opening remarks
Professor Hong Liu, Associate Vice President of NTU and Dean (Research & Executive Education) of NCPA, gave the first keynote speech at the symposium. He first introduced NCPA’s mission to nurture the next generation of Asian public administration leaders and establish itself as a globally leading institution in the field. In the subsequent session, titled “Global Asia and New Geopolitics,” Professor Liu examined the trajectory of Asia’s rise and the features of Global Asia studies. He not only underscored the contributions of Global Asia studies to social science theories in enabling a transnational perspective but also analyzed the implications of new geopolitics for the future of Global Asia.
Professor Liu Hong presents his keynote speech
Other keynote speeches were delivered by prominent scholars as follows: Professor Jinghan Zeng (Department of Public and International Affairs, City University of Hong Kong), Professor Henry Yeung Wai-Chung (Choh-Ming Li Professor of Geography and Resource Management, CUHK), Professor Louis Pauly (Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and J. Stefan Dupré Distinguished Professor of Political Economy, University of Toronto), Professor Saori N. Katada (Department of Political Science and International Relations, University of Southern California), and Professor Chun Yang, (Associate Dean [Research], Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Hong Kong Baptist University).
The three-day symposium focuses on the theme of “China and Asian Connectivity in the Era of Global Geo-economic Fragmentation,” covering a variety of subjects from macro-level geopolitics to economic policy, the Belt and Road Initiative, techno-industrial competition, and monetary integration. Combining keynote speeches with thematic panels, the symposium has fostered in-depth analyses and commentary on Asian connectivity amid geopolitical shifts, the role of China, as well as competition and collaboration in the emerging industries of semiconductor and digital economy.
Participants discussing during the Q&A session
Group photos of all symposium participants on November 19 (above) and 20 (below), 2025