In December 2014, the Confucius InstituteHeadquarters (Hanban) officially issued a paper approving the establishment ofthe first base of International Chinese Promotion and Tea Culture Communicationat Zhejiang A & F University. The base is an International ChinesePromotion Base featuring tea culture, where tea culture trainings are carriedout for staff members from Confucius Institutes around the world.
The International Chinese PromotionBase aims to integrate all kinds of resources, such as government, teachinginstitutions, and enterprises (markets), to attract talents and technology inthe field, and offer experience, models and resources for international Chinesepromotion, eventually providing strong support for the sustainable developmentof Confucius Institutes and Confucius classrooms in various countries. Afterthe establishment of the base of International Chinese Promotion and TeaCulture Communication, tea culture trainings have been carried out for theDeans, teachers and volunteers from Confucius Institutes around the world witha focus on the growing global understanding of Chinese culture, and inconjunction with the “Belt and Road” Initiative. Combined with the developmentplan of our Confucius Institutes, the base actively explores the commoninteraction between China and the world regarding tea culture and human health,establishes a ‘tea quality’ and ‘taste standard’ system, a tea cultureexperience center, and also takes initiatives to develop tea culture trainingmaterials and teaching resources appropriate for national communication.
Zhejiang A & F University jointlyfounded the Tea Culture College with the China International Tea CultureInstitute in 2006, becoming the first university in China to set up a TeaCulture College. Zhejiang A & F University has trained the first batch ofundergraduates proficient in tea culture in China, and actively recruitsgraduate students and students studying abroad with a major in tea culture. In2014, Zhejiang A & F University and the University of Novi Sad in Serbiajointly founded a Confucius Institute, and made it the world's first ConfuciusInstitute featuring the communication of tea culture.
At the same time, Zhejiang A & FUniversity has actively promoted tea culture and has created a series of workswithin the theme of tea promotion, such as theChinese Tea BalladandSixDesires, which have been performed on important platforms at home andabroad, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations(FAO) stage and the Shanghai World Expo. The documentaryThe Story of Tea(which the university provided academic supportfor) has been broadcast on several channels of CCTV. In addition, during itscourse, the university has carried out tea qualification trainings for society,and has become a “tea art training base” for China Eastern Airlines and otherorganizations.
