On December 11th, sponsored by the Changchun Municipal Government and the Valencia Municipal Government, undertaken by Northeast Normal University, University of Valencia, Education Department of Jilin Province, Foreign Affairs Office of Changchun Municipal People’s Government and Changchun Education Bureau, the first “Changchun-Valencia Children’s Theme Painting Competition” work exhibition and award ceremony was held at the Jilin Province (Folk Craft) Art Museum. This event received strong support from the Confucius Institute at the University of Valencia, Changchun Children’s Palace, Children’s Palace in LvyuanDistrict, Children’s Palace in Erdao District and Youth Activity Center in Jiutai District. A total of 238 works were collected, 60 of which were awarded first, second, and third prize.
At the award ceremony, Zhang Jingping, Director of the International Cooperation and Exchange Office of NENU, pointed out that the Confucius Institute at the University of Valencia has always been committed to international Chinese education and Chinese and Western culture exchanges, and has become one of the most influential Chinese and Western language exchange and cooperation institutions in the world. She emphasized that NENU attaches great importance to the important function of universities serving the society, and in recent years has played an active role in promoting education, culture, business and tourism cooperation between Changchun and Valencia. This event aims to further deepen the cross-cultural understanding of the youth of the two countries, and promote cultural exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and Western cultures. Xue Chunzhi, Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Changchun Municipal People’s Government, said that the Silk Road is a road of friendship that connects China and Spain. The “Changchun-Valencia Children’s Theme Painting Competition” is the first creation of Changchun and Valencia in the field of cultural exchanges. It serves as a bridge and bond for the country’s “the Belt and Road Initiative” and enhances communication and understanding between the two peoples. Changchun will continue to support the organization of such activities and build a high-quality platform for the majority of young people to participate in international exchange activities.
The president of the University of Valencia Vicenta Mestre, the vice president Carles Badia, and the foreign dean of the Confucius Institute Vicente Andreu respectively sent video messages to the event. They said that this event was held in China and Spain at the same time, and the themes were “Confucius arrived in Valencia along the Silk Road” and “Jamé I arrived in Changchun along the Silk Road”. The two are sister articles to each other. Confucius is a great thinker in Chinese history, and King Jamé I is the founder of the Valencia region. Young people’s knowledge of these important historical facts will help build a fruitful dialogue platform in different cultures.
This event is another useful effort by NENU to promote the friendly cooperation between Changchun and Valencia after the “Changchun-Valencia International Tourism and Cultural Experience Online Seminar”.
(From News Center, translated by Wei Jia, revised by Liu Lixin)