The 2021 China (Qufu) International Confucius Cultural Festival and the 7th Nishan Forum on World Civilizations opened in Qufu, Shandong, on September 27th. Nearly 200 Chinese and international experts and scholars engaged in debates and exchanges of views under the theme of “Dialogue among Civilizations and Global Cooperation” within two days.

Zhang Boli (Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Winner of the National Honorary Title “People’s Hero”)

Traditional culture proved to be powerful in the critical juncture of the fight against COVID-19

In his keynote video speech, Zhang Boli said that since last year, COVID-19 has been raging and is still spreading around the world. The vision to put people first, the nation's unity, the spirit of sacrifice, and sharing the same future have allowed China to win a victory over the epidemic for the current stage.

Zhang Boli believes that further analysis would reveal that this reflects the subtle influence of traditional culture on the Chinese nation for thousands of years. Thoughts such as “plan and worry ahead of everyone else" have become internal characters of the Chinese people, becoming powerful force in the critical juncture of the fight against COVID-19. Traditional Chinese culture usually doesn't show itself in everyday life, but it proved its power in the fight against the virus, which speaks volumes of the profound influence of the Chinese civilization.