The 2022 Shanghai International Sister Cities Youth Camp, which was held online from July 18 to 31, promoted youth exchanges between Shanghai and its international sister cities.
The two-week camp attracted 144 foreign students from 17 sister cities in 16 countries and 160 volunteer students from local high schools in Shanghai to participate.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's camp involves the use of online platforms like Zoom and WeChat to bridge the gap between participants from different nations.
Foreign students studied Chinese language and traditional Chinese culture with Chinese students and took part in various interactive activities like the Youth Forum, which helped enhance cultural awareness between Chinese and foreign participants.
The online camp also displayed the cultural landscape of Shanghai and provided virtual tours of universities and attractions in Shanghai.
"It is really amazing that so many students from all over the world share the same passion for learning about Chinese culture and language. I look forward to visiting Shanghai in the future and meeting my classmates", said Luca Milcoveanu, a participant from Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
"I made friendships with many people from China and other countries and this provided me with a great cultural exchange. I taught them about Egypt and they taught me about their cultures, and it was very nice!" said Adnan Ahmed Hamed, a participant from Alexandria, Egypt.
Hosted by the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission and organized by the education bureau of Shanghai's Yangpu district, the youth camp is aimed at fostering educational and cultural exchanges between Shanghai and other international sister cities, and enhancing friendship and understanding among teenagers from around the world.
Zhou Qinjian, director of the International Exchange Office of the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, congratulated all the participants for successfully completing this year's online summer camp during the closing ceremony. He said that this summer camp fully demonstrated that the connections and exchanges between sister cities in various countries cannot be blocked by a pandemic, and that online methods can also enhance exchanges between young people from various countries, deepen mutual understanding, and build friendships.
He added that he believes the students have developed their abilities in all aspects, gained valuable experience and new knowledge by participating in the summer camp. He said that he expects foreign students from sister cities to visit Shanghai and experience this beautiful city in person.
Launched in 2009 as part of Shanghai's efforts to promote enhanced exchanges among international youth, the program has attracted a total of 1,287 overseas teachers and students from 41 sister cities of 37 countries from the previous sessions.
