Advanced research to us means to place all theories into their historical contexts, to adopt a multi-theoretical perspective, and to use theory more for questions than for answers. From the point of view of Western theoretical expectations, China’s is a past and present of great and continuing paradoxes. Properly studied and conceptualized, Chinese experience / practice can form the basis for unique contributions to human knowledge.

In addition to our own substantive individual and group research, and the lecture series, conferences, writing workshop and study group, our permanent and visiting faculty will each be asked to offer a course representing his/her own most important and basic learning. The purpose is to help young scholars develop, in addition to the standard training in their chosen disciplines, trans-disciplinary, cross-civilizational and past-present perspectives that are at once broad and yet sharply focused.

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