“The China-Southeast Asia Capacity Building Workshop: Transforming TVET and Adult Education for Sustainable Rural Development” was held by UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (UNESCO INRULED) on 13 June at Beijing Normal University. 

SOU was invited to attend the workshop and share the practice and experience of learning village development in Shanghai. Ms. WANG Yifan, Chief at the Community Education Department of SOU delivered a presentation titled “The Learning Village Development and the Exploration of Digital Empowerment in Shanghai”, which highlighted SOU’s efforts in integrating digital technologies to enhance learning in rural communities.

UNESCO INRULED, a UNESCO Category II centre, was established by UNESCO and the Chinese government in 1994 with a mandate to promote sustainable socio-economic development in rural areas. This year, the centre conducted a research programme on “Learning Villages in a Digital Era (LVDE)”, where SOU provided experience and practice through a case study of learning villages in Shanghai.

As the coordinator of UNESCO UNITWIN Network in Distance and Open Learning (East-Asia), SOU has maintained active cooperations with the UNESCO Category I and II centres. INRULED and SOU have together engaged in various initiatives and programmes, including workshops, lectures, case studies, and partnerships with international organizations. All these efforts aim to better share China’s stories, and provide China’s solutions on an international scale.