On Sept. 26, a symposium on Marine Culture Development and Building a Strong Maritime Country was held in joint with the inauguration ceremony of the Marine Culture Research Center in Nanjing. Scholars discussed marine culture studies and how to build China into a strong maritime country.

Participating scholars believed that marine resources and the seas have been highly relevant to China’s past growth, and they are even more relevant to the present and future. Therefore, it’s necessary to care about, understand and utilize the ocean. The academic community should deepen the study of marine culture and contribute more wisdom to implementing national marine strategy.

He Yun’ao, director of the Institute of Culture and Natural Heritage at Nanjing University, said that since ancient times, marine culture has been an integral part of Chinese culture. This history has laid the groundwork for studying marine culture and building a strong maritime country.

In the future, he said, many concrete studies need to be conducted, including an investigation into marine resources and an effort to build databases. This requires a joint effort between the government and civil society to collaborate with and complement each other, thereby serving the country well and bringing benefits to people.

Zhao Zhigang, a research fellow from the Academic Committee of Ship History Research of the China Shipbuilding Engineering Society, said that people are increasingly aware of the need to develop and utilize the ocean. Marine culture research has become one of the most important academic frontiers in the 21st century and a strategic task closely related to national interests. Academia has a great responsibility to deepen marine research, disseminate marine knowledge and increase public understanding about the ocean.

Mao Min, deputy director of the Exhibition Department of the China Maritime Museum, believed that the study of marine culture and the building of a strong maritime country should be rooted in the profound marine culture of ancient China.

As for sources of research material, Mao said, there are mainly three types: literature, material and intangible cultural heritage, and folklore. Among them, cultural heritage is the most authentic and vivid representation of China’s marine culture. Therefore, it is necessary to study marine cultural heritage well.

(Edited and translated by Shao Yijia)