China Studies: from Great to Greater

In a world that increasingly cries out for knowledge about China, we shall transfer our knowledge to receptive audiences and make an impact on policy and development.

CUHK takes pride in research that spans the past and the present. We rediscovered the history of bark cloth which stretched from Hainan to the Pacific. We have produced machine-readable versions of ancient Chinese texts that are consulted by the leading specialists in the field. We go deep into the villages and discover that despite their diversities they maintain China as whole. We are developing a GIS database on developments in China that include social, economic, political and other indicators about 333 prefectures and 2,862 counties. We research China's labour market, the impact of the one-child policy, NGO's, and migrant populations. We are now launching a study into China's global reach along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, and we have a solid record in overseas Chinese studies on which that may be based. Hong Kong has always been a part of the Belt and Road: ask our colleagues in the Anthropology Department about the history of Chungking Mansions in Kowloon.

China Studies span research on China and Chinese culture. Social science colleagues write papers for international journals, while those in the humanities write books. Hong Kong has the best location in the world to become the hub of leading research in China Studies. In the next five years, we will extend our focus on China's global challenges, the roots of Chinese culture and Hong Kong's role in China's development. The Economic Belt and Maritime Silk Road gives us immense opportunities for building new research directions and capacities. Leveraging on our deep knowledge of China's past and present, we shall launch basic and policy-oriented research that draws on interdisciplinary approaches across all Faculties and collaborates in an international setting, especially with countries on the Belt and Road. It will be a new venture into a new intellectual world. In a world that increasingly cries out for knowledge about China, we shall transfer our knowledge to receptive audiences and make an impact on policy and development.