Hopkins-Nanjing Center Blog

 In honor of the HNC’s 30th anniversary, the HNC has created the U.S.-China Exchange Scholars Fellowship for alumni of U.S. government-supported programs for Chinese language study. These programs include, but are not limited, to the Critical Language Scholarship, Boren Award for International Study, Chinese Language Flagship Program, and the National Security Language Initiative for Youth. We are pleased to introduce our first five U.S.-China Exchange Scholars for the 2017-2018 academic year who have studied Chinese through a number of U.S. government-supported programs.  Emily Rivera Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad Program (GPA) HNC Certificate ‘18 Emily Rivera graduated from Hamilton College in 2016 with dual concentrations in Government and Chinese. The daughter of two first-generation Colombian immigrants, Emily grew up speaking both English and Spanish. Largely because of this, Emily developed a keen interest in intercultural dialogue at an early age and lat...

During the Dragon Boat holiday in June, the HNC participated in Nanjing’s annual dragon boat race and held the annual end of the year barbecue at the HNC.  Levi Johnson, one of the members of the student committee ( banwei ), was instrumental in organizing the barbecue and also participated on the cheer team for the dragon boat festival. For this post, I have asked Levi share his memories from the photos of the Dragon Boat Festival weekend. The Dragon Boat team competing in their festival race Levi: First what comes to mind when I look at this photo from the race is teamwork and the team spirit of the HNC that was represented by the group. I see the preparation they put into that day. I see the workouts we had together, I see the sweat, the breakfast, the team meetings, the 油条 and pancakes, and I see the leadership of Mykael and Maguire. Most of all, I see the pride of representing the HNC.  I remember the excitement of watching the team give their utmost effort to wi...

On June 9, the Hopkins-Nanjing Center held its thirty-first commencement to celebrate the hard work of the certificate and MAIS students. Congratulations to the HNC class of 2017! This year the HNC was proud to host three alumni from the graduating class of 1995: Qi Kezhan, Josh Perlman, and Helen Yang. Graduates, professors, staff and assembled friends and family clearly enjoyed the sincere and meaningful stories that the speakers shared of their life at the HNC and how connections made at the HNC transformed their lives and careers. Chinese Co-Director He Chengzhou  The ceremony kicked off with opening remarks by Chinese Co-Director, He Chengzhou. He thanked the students for a great year and wished them luck for the future. Chinese Co-Director He and American Co-Director Davies then recognized the Class Committees from the fall and spring semesters for their hard work. Josh Perlman delivering commencement address Josh Perlman (HNC ’95), Managing Director at Brande...

On May 10-11, the UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) and UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) jointly held a workshop in Nanjing, China in order to develop a Green Industry Sustainable Progress (GISP) Index to be adopted within China, and potentially employed throughout the world. Professor Roger Raufer, Energy, Resources, and Environment (ERE) Resident Professor at HNC, and Jiwoon Choi, an ERE Certificate/SAIS MA student, were invited to participate in the workshop. Professor Liu Beibei, who teaches at Nanjing University and HNC, was also invited to present her ongoing work on the development of sustainable industry indicators for Jiangsu province. On the first day, participants reviewed a list of potential indicators UNIDO had initially compiled for Jiangsu province in China, as well as existing composite indexes and their methodologies (e.g. UN Human Development Index, UNEP Global Environmental Progress, UNIDO Competitive Industrial Performance, and the China Green ...

Andrew Anderson-Sprecher, HNC Certificate 2006 and SAIS MA 2007, reflects back on his time at the HNC and his experience working for the American Institute in Taiwan.  Tell us about your current role. I am currently serving as the Acting Agricultural Section Chief at the American Institute in Taiwan. How did your experience at the HNC prepare you for this work? My experience at HNC prepared me for my work by giving me an in-depth understanding of China's economy and politics and rock solid Chinese language skills.   This was invaluable in helping me get job offers and making me successful in the jobs I took.  What was your most memorable moment when you were at the HNC? My most memorable experience was getting to see a Chinese court room as part of my judicial systems class.  It was a remarkable education on how China's legal system works. What advice would you give for current or future students at the HNC? Focus on building expertise rather than o...

Student life at the HNC is filled with many different events that are dependent on specific interests and community involvement! Here’s a snippet of my typical weekday at the HNC. Enjoy! 9:00am: I wake up and head to find breakfast on 金银街. It’s a street right outside of HNC’s East entrance and it usually has different vendors selling 煎饼 or 包子 for breakfast in the morning. This morning I grab some steamed buns filled with veggies and an egg soaked in spiced tea with soybean milk. Yum! 10:00am: After eating breakfast and getting ready for the day, I go outside into the HNC courtyard to study for my Chinese History Since 1949 class. I start a chapter of 《暴风雨的记忆》 an account on Qin Xiao’s experience during the 1960s Cultural Revolution. 11:40am : I head to the cafeteria for lunch. Usually the cafeteria opens from 11:15 to 12:30 so often times people head straight over after their morning class! After lunch, I go back outside into the courtyard to relax, talk and continue readi...

Last weekend, I joined a group of HNC students and faculty on an epic and memorable walk around the Nanjing city wall. The wall traces the traditional city limits of Nanjing, originally built at the beginning of the Ming dynasty, but also continuously rebuilt during different time periods. If you follow the original structure of the wall as it encircles the city, the total distance is about 26 miles. Today, though still a defining characteristic of the city, the wall exists in segments, with some parts having been intermittently destroyed during the Sino-Japanese war, and again during the founding of the People’s Republic. More recently, parts of the wall have been restored as a cultural heritage site and popular attraction for visitors. We began our trek early in the morning on Saturday, departing from the HNC at 6 am. Although the early departure time was easier for some than others, it also offered a chance to see the city in a new light. Besides our troupe, most other early ri...