From September 18th to 20th, 2023, the Institute of International Education (IIE) and China Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE) co-hosted the first post-COVID U.S.-China Higher Education Dialogue. The Dialogue was held in the United States with invited university leaders from China and the U.S., reiterating the importance of cooperation in the field of higher education and recognizing educational ties as a significant pillar in the U.S.-China bilateral relationship. The discussion, conducted under Chatham House rules initially focused on discussing the ways that each side identified and understood existing problems and then began to propose pathways for addressing continuing as well as future challenges and opportunities. The two sides engaged in frank and honest conversations about areas of concern in each country.
As leading organizations in promoting international education in their respective countries, the IIE-CEAIE collaboration is a key anchor in the sustained development of U.S.-China educational relations that extends beyond the two institutions. The two sides continue to seek an enduring collaboration that supports frank conversations, advances solutions to specific differences and expectations, prioritizes common goals, and provides opportunities for further collaboration. Both IIE and CEAIE are committed to the following key points as discussed during the Dialogue:
-The two organizations recognize that “people-to-people exchange” has an important role to play in the U.S.-China bilateral relationship, especially in the field of education. Accordingly, the two sides encourage their respective higher education institutions to reengage as well as grow and deepen their cooperation.
-The two organizations encourage their respective higher education institutions to organize a list of past and present achievements derived from U.S.-China educational cooperation, including specific examples of what has been accomplished and the valuable outcomes that have yielded mutual benefits for the two countries.
-The two organizations commit to leveraging both proven and new frameworks of collaboration to encourage their respective universities to build greater confidence among leading institutions in both countries about the value of on-going collaboration, while directly addressing current and future challenges.
-The two organizations reiterate their expectation that they will work with the relevant entities in the U.S. and China to foster a conducive environment to deepen and expand higher education relationships, in particular educational exchanges between the two countries. The two sides affirm their commitment to support the two-way flow of students, teachers, scholars, researchers, and administrative staff from universities, as well as leveraging short-term exchange programs, internship opportunities, summer schools, cultural visits, and research fellowships.
-The two organizations recognize that one meeting cannot sufficiently solve the full spectrum of challenges and issues facing bilateral relations in education. Therefore, the two sides agree that this Dialogue will be developed into a mechanism and be organized in our two countries in turns. Next Dialogue will be hosted in China in 2024. The continuing goal of the Dialogue is to serve as an effective channel for communication and to provide each side with a better understanding of the other’s challenges and opportunities, while simultaneously contributing to addressing the issues and expectations of both academic communities.
-The two organizations suggest establishing a U.S.-China Education Cooperation Consultative Committee, led by Dr. Allan Goodman, Chief Executive Officer of IIE and Dr. Liu Limin, President of CEAIE.
Immediate attention