CHINA DAILY
Students from the Confucius Institute of Pisa demonstrate a tea ceremony at a party celebrating Chinese New Year in February.
Li Jing's face glows with enthusiasm as she talks about her years in Pisa from 2008 to 2012.
"When a professor from Pisa decided to go to China and check out the possibility of cooperation in 2006, he'd never even heard about Chongqing," she said. "Now this professor has become a colleague of mine and is a frequent traveler to the city."
Thanks to the Confucius Institute of Pisa, which opened its doors in 2008, China has become a popular topic in the Italian city famous for its leaning tower.
As the Chinese director of the institute, Li described the development of the institute and how it became a part of the local university.
The institute was jointly founded by Chongqing University and the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies of Pisa, a small, elite college that specializes in the applied sciences.
Although a leading academic and research center in Italy, Pisa had little understanding of China before 2008.
"The Sant'Anna School had no Chinese major, and few students or teachers could speak Chinese," Li said.
"At the early stage, students paid little attention to the Confucius Institute. They considered it an isolated institute, not really involved in the school. The institute had to give them a connection to China."
To make the connection, Li and her colleagues organized academic and cultural activities to enhance awareness of China. Since 2008, the Confucius Institute has hosted 66 events, attracting nearly 10,000 participants. One was an international forum in 2012 on China and Italy's participation in peacekeeping operations.
Andrea de Guttry, a peacekeeping expert with the United Nations and a professor of international law at Sant'Anna, hosted the event, and top researchers from Italy, China and across the globe attended.
These included senior captain Ye Feng, a military officer with the air-sea-land force of the Chinese embassy in Italy; Gianluigi Magri, vice-minister of Italy's Ministry of Defense; and Staffan De Mistura, vice-minister at Italy's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Li established the institute in Sant'Anna as a bridge and platform to enhance academic understanding and cooperation instead of just providing Chinese lessons.
"Italian faculties realized the institute was a platform to seek possible research partners in China."
She said she can sense the change. "I was invited to a dinner by the school president Maria Carrozza during my first few days in Pisa. Maria was polite but a bit guarded that night. Now, Maria has become a very good friend," she said.
"When I left Pisa, she hosted a big farewell party for me at her house and presented me with a medal to mark my contribution to the university."
Carrozza is Italy's education minister and a strong advocate of cooperation with China. She has visited Chongqing University and China on a number of occasions.
Long Li was an exchange faculty member from Chongqing University to Pisa from 2010 to 2012 and witnessed the progress that was made by the institute.
Just one example of this progress is that Sant'Anna may send students to Chongqing to understand the Chinese legal system.
Registrations at the institute, which offers classes in Chinese to students from colleges and high schools as well as on an individual basis, have increased from 519 in 2011 to 860 in 2013.
"More university students have enrolled in our class to learn Chinese and find a job," Long said.
"As the Chinese economy rises, many Italian students sensed the possibilities. They told me that mastering Chinese is a strong plus in the job market."
She added that an increasing number of university professors registered at the institute.
"The academic exchanges with China are increasing, professors are interested in knowing the language and want to know their academic counterparts."
Chongqing University has three Confucius Institutes: in Thailand, Italy and Australia.
Li Jing, deputy dean of Chongqing University's School of International Education, spoke of the orientation of the three institutes as "driven by the market needs" but also reflecting local conditions.
"The institutes overseas will develop based on local needs. It's a free market-driven, nonprofit organization," Li said.
The Thailand Confucius Institute is in southern Betong, where most residents are ethnic Chinese Thais. Chongqing University has positioned the institute to help people find their roots.
The Australian Confucius Institute focuses on research because its partner, La Trobe University, has a Chinese study center with a strong academic background.
STUDENTS SHARE CULTURAL EXPERIENCES
Foreign students in southwestern China had a chance to demonstrate the diverse cultures of their homelands at a festival at Chongqing University.
The event, hosted biennially since 2010, sees foreign students set up booths and invite fellow students, faculty members and the curious, to sample their cultural offerings.
"We aim to provide a platform for international students to demonstrate and promote their diverse cultures from their own countries and to mingle with Chinese students and international peers from other countries. The festival provides an opportunity for students to increase understanding," said Zhao Chengping, dean of the university's school of international education.
Food is a popular attraction, but the booths offer a range of cultural offerings.
At the end of last year, Chongqing had more than 5,000 international students from 125 countries, nearly halfof them on degree courses, according to Zhao Weiliang, deputy director of Chongqing Education Commission.
Chen Xian, who lives close to the university, went to the festival in November last year.
"It's cool to see so many countries' cultures on your doorstep," she said.
Jiang Yan, deputy dean of the college's school of international education, said many international students did not know Chongqing at first.
"Beijing, Shanghai and other coastal cities are always on the top of the list. Chongqing lacks a geographic advantage," she said.
The international culture festival, she explained, is to help students from overseas engage with their Chinese peers as well as the school and the city.
Overseas students are like ambassadors who will report back about Chongqing University, the city and even China, Jiang said.
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