The Nature of Mind Professor John Campbell

Chinese have interacted with Muslim populations and communities for over a millennium — since the early days of maritime entrepots and silk road caravans — exchanging goods, arts, and ideas. Today, relations between China and the Muslim world remain complex and varied. China's increasing power brings a new hunger for markets and material, a hunger that has driven overtures to Muslim regions around the world. This conference considers historical connections and contemporary realities of Southeast Asian, Central Asian, and the Middle Eastern relations with China. What factors and interests mediate each region's interactions? To what extent has China has confronted or accommodated Islam, in its various forms, in pursuing its national interests? How has China negotiated international relations in light of recent events, such as a nuclear Iran or the surge of activism collectively called the Arab Spring? And in what ways has exchange with the Muslim world shaped Chinese thought, culture, and contemporary realities? This conference brings together specialists in historical and contemporary relations between China and Muslim regions for an exploration and assessment of interaction and exchange.