Bridging Cultures: Notre Dame and Peking University’s Collaborative Philosophy and Cultural Immersion Program
This summer, Notre Dame Global, Notre Dame Beijing, and Peking University (PKU)’s Department of Philosophy collaborated on an initiative that welcomed 10 Notre Dame students and 12 Peking University students to take part in a three-week long philosophy and cultural immersion program. This is the first time Notre Dame Beijing has welcomed students since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Esteemed professors Don Howard from the University of Notre Dame and Peter Takacs from the University of Sydney led the classroom lectures. Top professors from PKU, including Lesong Cheng, department chair of Philosophy, also provided lectures on Chinese philosophy, such as Confucianism and Daoism.
In addition to classroom lectures, the program immersed Notre Dame students in Beijing’s rich cultural heritage, providing them with an opportunity to visit famous landmarks such as the Temple of Heaven, The Forbidden City, and the Great Wall.
“You have to come here and experience it for yourself. Don’t let others make up your mind for you. The culture here is so deep and intertwined with everyday life. It is something you can’t put into words.”
Lauren Young, class of ’25 at Notre Dame and an international student fellow, shared, “The cultural immersion through these guided visits and lectures was unparalleled. It was refreshing to have them integrated into the program, as this is not the norm for study abroad programs.”
Rebecca Soto, class of ’27 noted, “As an architecture major, I loved the lecture on Chinese architecture. Some of my classes at Notre Dame had touched on it before, so it was enlightening to see it in person.”
A highlight of the program was an AI ethics panel featuring Professor Howard, organized in partnership with American Chamber of Commerce in China and Notre Dame Beijing. During this, students engaged with Howard and Richard Zhang, Ph.D., Chief Technology Officer and Senior Principal AI Engineer at Intel China, discussing the ethical considerations surrounding AI and its future impact on our world.
One of the featured models of this summer joint-program is that PKU students joined their Notre Dame counterparts in the classroom. They explored the philosophy of physics with Professor Howard, including quantum physics and the work of Albert Einstein and Aristotle. This was a unique experience for all involved due to the integration of American students with Chinese students. Young remarked, “When we got into the mini-discussions, it was always very interesting to hear the insightful comments from the PKU students.”
“The recent PKU-ND summer school was a great success,” comments Qiaoying Lu, Assistant Professor from the Department of Philosophy at Peking University. “The students' feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with both PKU and ND participants actively engaging both in and out of the classroom. This experience has demonstrated the significant benefits of the summer school for students from both institutions. We are committed to making this an annual event in the coming years.”
“I definitely feel safe here, safer than many of the other countries I have visited. Especially walking around the streets at night. That was a major misconception I had that has been dispelled since arriving here.”
In the third and final week of the program, students were taught by Peter Takacs on the philosophy of biology. Takac focused on evolutionary biology, particularly Darwinist theory. Takac praised the students’ engagement. “The students were wonderful, they made a great effort and came to me with deep questions and concerns about the material.” He added, “Cross-cultural initiatives such as this provide a platform for dialogue between students who previously would not have had the opportunity to interact. I think that it is essential for one’s education.”
For many students, this program had a major impact on diversifying their worldviews and perspectives of China. Karita Nguyen, Class of ’27, remarked, “You have to come here and experience it for yourself. Don’t let others make up your mind for you. The culture here is so deep and intertwined with everyday life. It is something you can’t put into words.”
Miaoyan Hou, a student from Harvard and a Beijing native, echoed this sentiment: “It’s important to keep an open mind. See things with your own eyes before you make a judgment. It’s good to experience and feel a culture that is completely different to the States and has existed for thousands of years.”
The experience was eye-opening in more than one way for students. As Young shares, she came in with assumptions about safety that were quickly disproved after spending time in the city. “I definitely feel safe here, safer than many of the other countries I have visited. Especially walking around the streets at night. That was a major misconception I had that has been dispelled since arriving here.” She continued, “That is the good thing about traveling, you get to see things for yourself. The people here are incredibly nice and it’s super safe.”
Professor Howard expressed his gratitude for the program, “This initiative has been five years in the making. It is fantastic to finally be here and to see it come to fruition. I appreciate the work that Notre Dame Beijing and Peking University have dedicated to ensure this collaboration was successful.”