Beijing Foreign Studies University holds an opening ceremony for the BFSU Research Centre for Country-specific Translation and Interpretation Capacity on May 22, 2021. 

A ceremony was held at the Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Center for Arabic Language and Islamic Studies of Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU) on May 22, 2021, to celebrate the opening of the BFSU Research Centre for Country-specific Translation and Interpretation Capacity (RECTIC) and the release of two major research results.

Jia Wenjian, deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) BFSU Committee and vice president of the university, presided over the inaugural ceremony, at the beginning of which a video clip, titled "80 Years of BFSU: Translation & Interpretation Connect China and the World", was broadcast to portray the history of the university, and to demonstrate the contributions made by its graduates, in the sectors of translation and interpretation.

As China's first professional research institute committed to the cultivation of country-specific translation and interpretation capacity, the RECTIC is designed to fully leverage its strengths in multiple foreign languages and high-quality resources in the discipline of translation and interpretation at home and abroad.

It will also foster an academic team engaged in frontier research on translation and interpretation, as well as cross-disciplinary research and signature research in the new era of liberal arts. It seeks to make noticeable progress in relevant fields, facilitate the implementation of the "Double First-Class" initiative of BFSU, and to help the university play a larger role in the building of a translation and interpretation's theoretical discourse system with Chinese characteristics, with Beijing as a center for international exchanges.

The center will further raise the country's translation and interpretation capacity and cultural soft power, and provide intellectual support to major national development strategies on increasing the overseas presence of traditional Chinese culture, as well as the Belt and Road Initiative and the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Yang Dan, deputy secretary of the CPC Committee and president of BFSU, speaks at the ceremony.

In his speech at the inaugural ceremony, Yang Dan, deputy secretary of the CPC Committee and president of BFSU, extended a warm welcome to all attendees and expressed his deep thanks to people from all walks of life for their long-term support in the university's development.

As the first higher education institute for the study of foreign languages built by the CPC, BFSU is committed to carrying forward revolutionary traditions and promoting national development, Yang said. He added that the inauguration of the RECTIC was the latest major step taken by the university to further implement its global development strategy, actively meet the demand of national development, and to facilitate the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

Yang noted that the cultivation of translation and interpretation capacity has become an important component of national strength and cultural soft power in an era of intensified development in globalization.

Therefore, it is of great significance in helping the nation learn more from other countries, as well as to better share the nation’s stories with foreign nationals, and develop a dialogue with the world. Through this, the center can help to advance the joint building of the world through research and the development of translation and interpretation capacity.

Yang urged the RECTIC to better align itself with national strategies, take lead in the research and development of translation and interpretation capacity, and make greater contributions to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, as BFSU has been working on its 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) and global development strategy.

Xu Qingsen, director-general of the Department of Social Sciences in the Ministry of Education, addresses the ceremony.

Xu Qingsen, director-general of the Department of Social Sciences in the Ministry of Education, congratulated the RECTIC on its formal opening. He called on the newly launched center to explore more effective approaches to further the improvement of Chinese culture's international communication and global influence capacity, nurture a group of talented personnel with majors relating to the translation and interpretation of foreign languages, especially lesser-known ones, and integrate the application of information technologies, such as big data and artificial intelligence, with the research and development of translation and interpretation.

Zha Mingjian, vice president of Shanghai International Studies University, addresses the ceremony.

Zha Mingjian, vice president of Shanghai International Studies University, said in his congratulatory speech that the opening of the RECTIC demonstrates the firm will and far-sighted vision of BFSU in its implementation of national development strategies.

He said he hopes that the center will make remarkable progress in academic research; aid in the construction of think tanks and personnel training; play a leading role in the global research of translation and interpretation capacity and the cultivation of high-level talents; work closely with its domestic counterparts to strengthen exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations, and promote the building of a translation and interpretation discourse system with Chinese characteristics.

Mona Baker, chief academic advisor of the RECTIC and honorary president of BFSU’s School of Translation and Interpreting, and Anthony Pym, a professor of translation and interpretation research at the University of Melbourne in Australia, extended their congratulations to the center on its opening via video link.

Beijing Foreign Studies University holds an opening ceremony for the BFSU Research Centre for Country-specific Translation and Interpretation Capacity on May 22, 2021. 

Together with Xu and Yang, Du Zhanyuan, head of the China Foreign Languages Publishing Administration (CFLPA), Hu Kaihong, director-general of the International Communication Bureau under the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, Wang Dinghua, secretary of the CPC Committee of BFSU, Wu Yaowu, vice president of Xi'an International Studies University, and Zhu Chaowei, vice president of Sichuan International Studies University, jointly unveiled a training base for translation and interpretation talents, co-sponsored by the CFLPA and BFSU, and the RECTIC at the inaugural ceremony.

Wang Dinghua, secretary of the CPC Committee of BFSU, presents certificates of appointment to professional figures.

Wang Dinghua, secretary of the CPC Committee of BFSU, presents certificates of appointment to professional figures.

Wang presented certificates of appointment to professional figures, who hold different titles in the RECTIC.

Signing of a cooperative agreement between the RECTIC and the China Academy of Translation

Sun Youzhong, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC BFSU Committee and the university's vice president, and Yu Yunquan, president of the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies under the CFLPA, witnessed the signing of a cooperative agreement between the RECTIC and the China Academy of Translation.

In addition, Sun and Jiang Yonggang, director of the Department of International Affairs in the CFLPA, jointly launched the website of the 10th Asia-Pacific Translation and Interpreting Forum, marking the beginning of the preparatory work for the upcoming forum.

Meanwhile, the RECTIC also released two major research results; the “Series of Education Governance and Leadership”, mainly authored by Wang, and the “Global Index of National Translation and Interpretation Capacity & the Ranking List of Chinese Universities in Translation and Interpretation Capacity”.

On May 22, organizers held a symposium, titled "National Translation and Interpretation Capacity: Theoretical Construction and Practical Exploration", in which professors from BFSU, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, the Ocean University of China and other universities, exchanged their views on theoretical and practical issues related to national translation and interpretation capacity.

A group photo of attendees at the symposium

A number of domestic media outlets, such as the Xinhua News Agency, CCTV-13, and People's Daily, covered the inaugural ceremony.

A group photo of attendees at the opening ceremony