 |
| Wei Guoying, Former Executive Vice-Dean of the Center for Women's Studies, Peking University |
The Global Leaders' Meeting on Women will provide a great opportunity to promote women's development in China, and to advance the development of women's studies.
Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we should summarize our experiences in hosting the Fourth World Conference on Women, and we should summarize the progress in the development of women's studies in China since 1995. We should enhance research into Marxist theories on women, and into adapting it to the Chinese context and the needs of our times, to elevate women's studies in China to a new height.
I participated in preparations for the NGO Forum on Women of the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995. While I was engaged in the preparation work, I began researching the development situation of contemporary women, and the basic theories of women's studies.
After the Fourth World Conference on Women, the academic community in China established women's studies as a discipline of higher education. In 1998, Peking University established an interdisciplinary master's program in women's studies, under the discipline of sociology. The Center for Women Studies at Peking University has developed a discipline system of women's studies, covering various subjects, including principles of women's studies, the history of women's development, and research methods in women's studies. The center offers a course, "women's studies research," which includes the basic theories and methods of women's studies.
Thirty years have flown by. As I'm one of those who have personally participated in and witnessed the Fourth World Conference on Women, I feel it is my responsibility to reflect on China's experiences in facilitating women's studies, and to reflect on the value and significance of theoretical exploration within China's specific historical and cultural contexts. I believe, by working together, women and researchers engaged in women's studies will celebrate the upcoming Global Leaders' Meeting on Women with solid actions.
Photos from Interviewee
Source: Women of China
Editor: Wang Shasha
