From June 30 to July 1, the 2025 China International Ceramic Summer Academy and Sino–US Youth Cultural Exchange Camp was held at Jingdezhen Ceramic University. Nearly 100 faculty members and students from more than 20 universities across 26 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany, took part in the program. Yang Zhimin, member of the CPC Standing Committee and Director of the Organization Department, attended the keynote speeches and sharing session on the morning of July 1. The event was hosted by the International School.
In his address, Yang warmly welcomed the visiting participants and guests. He noted that as the only comprehensive university in China named after ceramics, Jingdezhen Ceramic University offers a complete academic pathway from bachelor’s to doctoral studies and shoulders the mission of inheriting and promoting ceramic culture while advancing ceramic education and industry. “With ceramics as a bridge, we build a platform for cross-cultural dialogue across oceans, allowing young scholars to explore mutual learning and innovation of civilizations through the shaping of clay and the flow of glazes,” he said. He encouraged international youth to“gain nourishment from Chinese ceramic culture and allow their own artistry to flourish”through their participation in the Summer Academy.
Wang Tongmao, Deputy Secretary-General of Jingdezhen Municipal Government and Director of the Office for World Heritage Application, delivered a keynote speech titled“Protection and Inheritance of Jingdezhen’s Ceramic Cultural Heritage.”He emphasized the living significance of heritage preservation: “To protect heritage is not to lock it away in a museum showcase, but to keep the millennia-old kiln fire burning, illuminating the path of human civilization.” He further stressed, “Porcelain is China’s gift to the world; Jingdezhen is the window through which the world knows China. To safeguard, inherit, and develop this heritage is both our commitment to history and our responsibility to the future.”
Afterward, student representatives Van Anh Vu from Coventry University (UK) and Emma D’Amato from the University of Malta gave keynote sharing speeches.
This exchange camp marked the second collaboration between JCU and Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, following the 2024 China International Ceramic Summer Academy and the “Ceramic Road International Ceramic Education Alliance Ceramic Workshop.” Its success not only further strengthens cooperation in international cultural exchange between the two universities but also forms an important part of their joint role as a “Jiangxi Provincial Base for Sino–Foreign Cultural Exchange.” The program enhances mutual understanding and cross-civilizational dialogue, contributes to telling Jiangxi’s stories and amplifying Jiangxi’s voice, and helps build exemplary platforms and branded projects for international exchange. It also advances the education, communication, and practice of Sino–foreign cultural exchange and the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind, contributing to the development of educational openness and cultural exchange.
During the program, participants also experienced ceramic overglaze painting under the guidance of Associate Professor Pan Lingxia from JCU.
Reported by Chen Yitong
Photos by Liu Xiaoqing
