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Digital Humanities and Education at Guangdong

By Simon Mahony, on 4 January 2020

It was my very great pleasure to be invited to speak at a conference at the School of Information Management at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou.

Mandatory conference group photo at the School of Information Management, Sun Yat-sen

Mandatory conference group photo at the School of Information Management, Sun Yat-sen

Being in Guangdong it was an opportunity to escape from the cold of London to the warm sunshine and visit a part of China that is new to me, other than for a very brief visit to Shenzhen. The event, Digital Humanities Research and Teaching in the Information Discipline, brought together scholars and practitioners from across China as well as South Korea to enjoy rich discussion, exchange of ideas, conversation and the generous hospitality of this institution, which is also, like DIS, an iSchool. My talk was on pushing the boundaries of digital humanities research beyond the traditional limits of textual scholarship.

Conference discussion at Sun Yat-sen

Conference discussion at Sun Yat-sen

It was also the occasion of the inauguration of their new and very impressive VR + Culture Lab with demonstrations for the guests.

Inauguration of the VR + Culture Lab at Sun Yat-sen

Inauguration of the VR + Culture Lab at Sun Yat-sen

A visit to Guangzhou would not be complete without a trip to the top of the Canton Tower (604 meters high and know by the locals as ‘Slim Waist’ because of its shape) and a ride in the Bubble Tram.

The close proximity also allowed a visit to the Beijing Normal Zhuhai campus to hold a series of meetings there to discuss their plans for a Digital Publishing and Digital Humanities Centre. Digital Humanities is thriving in this leading region of economic growth, the Greater Bay Area of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao.

Meeting with the Dean of the Department of Publishing and the President of Beijing Normal Zhuhai campus

Meeting with the Dean of the Department of Publishing and the President of Beijing Normal Zhuhai campus

As always, the hospitality at both universities was great and if you get the opportunity to visit, (subject to other commitments) always say yes.

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