It was the first virtual dialogue between the Italian Ambassador in Beijing, Luca Ferrari, and the Board of Directors of the Association of Italian Academics in China (AAIIC) chaired by Professor Ivan Cardillo.
The central themes of the meeting, held by videoconference, were the opportunities to strengthen the collaboration between the AAIIC, the institutions and the other components of the Italian System. The purpose of the meeting was designing and implementing the future activities of the association, also considering environmental change issues. It has also been an opportunity to listen and reflect on the needs and perspectives of Italian academics in China in the face of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of the measures adopted.
“I felt it was my duty,” said Ambassador Ferrari, “to make the Embassy’s support felt for Italian academics in China at a complex time like this, which could not better remind us of the importance and value of research. It constitutes one of the most important sectors on which the bilateral Italian-Chinese relationship is built. I strongly believe in the vital role of AAIIC. It is the expression of an associative reality that represents one of the most significant, qualified and appreciated segments of the Italian community in China”.
AAIIC was founded in December 2015, upon a proposal of the Embassy and the consular network in China. Today it involves more than 150 members among Italian professors and researchers. It is active in more than 40 universities throughout China, and in prestigious national and international projects in numerous disciplines, from STEM to social sciences and the humanities. With a solid historical tradition of intergovernmental scientific cooperation, the collaboration between Italy and China is the result of more than eight hundred agreements and understandings between Chinese and Italian academic institutions.
