In the oldest of China’s classical texts, the I Ching, or Book of Changes, it is noted that “maintaining Taihe will help develop everything smoothly.” Taihe stands for supreme harmony. Such harmony can be achieved through coordination and collaboration among all things and the accomplishment of their natural unity. Taihe symbolizes the ancient masters’ understanding of life aimed at guiding people to rediscover the true meaning of their world. The purpose of Taihe is to obtain continuous wisdom and momentum through the creation of common values.
Today, an increasing lack of Taihe poses a serious challenge for human civilization. Rapid technological advancement, climate change and environmental degradation, uneven economic development, and geopolitical tension are some of the key threats undermining our common values and human civilization.
The Taihe Civilizations Forum (TCF) has been established to engage leaders of all fields across the globe to support “the harmonious development of common values and the advancement of human civilization.” The TCF focuses on global and regional challenges, explores root causes, identifies and promotes possible solutions, and facilitates communication and impact creation across borders.
The TCF pursues four principles to define the research agenda, guide its work and actions, and effectively contribute to the overall Forum objectives:
Impartiality: maintaining a diverse and open but rigorous mindset and aligned actions;
Globality: fostering international participation and collaboration;
Foresight: focusing on far-reaching trends and long-term solutions;
Impact: transforming insights into actions and impact.
The Great Wall is an exceptional testimony to civilization, which provides physical evidence of not only far-sighted strategic thinking, ambition, perfection, and determination but also exchange and historical transformation. Inspired by such embodied wisdom, the TCF 2017 will focus on the essence of advancing human civilization and developing common values.
For the inaugural meeting in August 2017, the TCF will bring together leading experts from business, government, international organizations, and academia. In light of the overall objective of advancing human civilization and developing common values, the TCF 2017 agenda will focus on three topics:
1.Creating and deepening people-to-people exchange;
2.Exploring the future impact of artificial intelligence on life and ethics;
3.Building global leadership for climate action and sustainable development;
The TCF was launched by the Taihe Institute (TI), which is based in Beijing and has branches in the United States and Germany. The TI’s mission is to build an international think tank with an impact-oriented research agenda focusing on the global challenges of our time. The TI is committed to offering high-quality intellectual and independent work to support decision-making for China’s development and for international exchange in various fields. The research agenda covers various fields, including politics, economics, security, law, education, international relations, advanced technologies, public relations, culture and society, sustainability and climate change, and strategic development. With over one hundred researchers, the Taihe Institute maintains intensive relations with leading research institutes in key countries and regions.
August 25th 2017 (Friday) | ||||
Time | Activity | Location | ||
08:00-16:00 | Arrival, Registration, Hotel check-in | South District, Grand Bay Hotel | ||
17:00-18:20 |
Cocktail Party *Dressing Code:Business Casual |
Lounge, Floor 5 | ||
18:30-20:30 | Welcome Banquet | Ballroom 1 & 2, Floor 5 | ||
Morning, August 26th 2017 (Saturday): Opening Ceremony Dressing Code:Formal Attire | ||||
Time | Activity | Speaker | Title/Organization | Location |
07:00-08:30 | Breakfast | Ballroom 3, Floor 5 | ||
08:30-09:00 | Photo Session | Landscape Waterfalls, East Wing, South District | ||
09:00-09:10 | Welcome Speech | Boping Gu | Chief Cultural Scholar at Taihe Institute | Ballroom 1 & 2, Floor 5 |
09:10-09:20 | Jeffrey Brez |
Chief of the NGO Relations and Advocacy at the United Nations Department of Public Information |
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09:20-09:30 | Hailong Wu | Director of the Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs | ||
09:30-09:35 | Opening Ceremony | |||
09:35-09:50 | Keynote Speech | Stephen Orlins |
President of the National Committee on United States - China Relations |
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09:50-10:05 | Hongjun Yu |
Vice Chairman of the Chinese People’s Association for Peace and Disarmament |
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10:05-10:20 | Cheng Li | Director John L. Thornton China Center of Brookings Institution | ||
10:20-10:35 | Liru Cui |
Senior Advisor and Researcher of the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations |
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10:35-10:50 | Yifan Ding | Senior researcher of Taihe Institute | ||
11:00-11:45 | Media Interview Session | Lobby, Floor 2 | ||
12:00-13:00 | Lunch | Ballroom 3, Floor 5 | ||
Afternoon, August 26th 2017 (Saturday) : Parallel Session | ||||
Time | Activity | Location | ||
13:30-15:00 | Parallel Session | People-to-People Exchange | Meeting Room 6, Floor 2 | |
13:30-15:00 | AI and Digital Citizenship | Meeting Room 7, Floor 2 | ||
13:30-15:00 | Climate Change and Sustainable Development | Meeting Room 2, Floor 2 | ||
15:00-15:15 | Coffee Break | Common Area, Floor2 | ||
15:15-16:30 | Interactive Discussion | Respective Session Room | ||
17:00 |
Departure for Banquet *Dressing Code:The temperature will be lower.Trousers,long sleeves,etc.,are recommended |
Gate of South District | ||
19:00-21:00 | Banquet at the Great Wall | |||
21:00 | Return to Host Hotel | |||
Morning, August 27th 2017 (Sunday): Parallel Session Dressing Code:Formal Attire | ||||
Time | Activity | Location | ||
07:00-09:00 | Breakfast | Ballroom 3, Floor 5 | ||
09:00-11:00 | Workshop | People-to-People Exchange | Meeting Room 6, Floor 2 | |
AI and Digital Citizenship | Meeting Room 7, Floor 2 | |||
Climate Change and Sustainable Development | Meeting Room 2, Floor 2 | |||
10:30-10:45 | Coffee Break | Common Area, Floor 2 | ||
11:00-11:30 | Closing Ceremony | Ballroom 1 & 2, Floor 5 | ||
12:00-14:00 | Lunch | Ballroom 3, Floor 5 | ||
14:00 | Hotel Check-out, Departure |