Topic: 2025 Sustainable Global Leaders Conference & First Green Industry and Sustainable Consumption Expo The 2025 Sustainable Global Leaders Conference was held in Shanghai's Huangpu District, Expo Park from October 16 to 18.
The conference was co-hosted by the World Green Design Organization (WGDO) and Sina Group, with the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation (IFRS Foundation) Beijing Office as a co-organizer. It was undertaken by Sina Finance and the WGDO Beijing Representative Office, with support from the People's Government of Huangpu District, Shanghai.
Shen Energy Group, as the global partner of the conference, held a special sub-forum on the core topic of "Shanghai Action and Multidimensional Collaboration in Global Transformation," engaging in discussions around "Creating a Sustainable Eastern Model," "Decoding the Sustainable Dynamics of Shanghai's Industrial Upgrading," and "Exploring New Paradigms for Growth in Shanghai's Five Major Centers."
Hu Junjie, Vice President of Shanghai Yuyuan Tourist Mart, attended the conference and delivered a keynote speech.
In light of the current challenges facing the "cost-first" competitive model due to geopolitical tensions, supply chain reshaping, and other factors, Hu emphasized the necessity of breaking through international information silos and reshaping the global communication paradigm for Chinese enterprises. He advocated for initiating cultural exchanges, prioritizing "making friends" before conveying value.
Hu pointed out that one of the core issues China faces in international communications is the significant information silo and stereotypes held by foreign nations regarding China. If, from the very beginning of the communication, there is a rush to prove the rationality and advantages of China's development, it is often difficult to achieve acceptance. Instead, it is more effective to first eliminate resistance through soft cultural exchanges. Yuyuan has demonstrated this approach over the past two years by promoting the Yuyuan Lantern Festival to countries such as France, Thailand, and Vietnam, and plans to continue exploring opportunities in Singapore and other European countries. By creating culturally rich scenarios, the international community can first develop a positive perception of China before engaging in deeper dialogues; this way, conveying viewpoints and explaining advantages becomes significantly more effective.
He stressed that as the global competitive paradigm transforms, Chinese enterprises must not only strengthen their own advantages but also innovate their communication methods. In future international engagements, cultural platforms should be established to create emotional connections, enabling the gradual transmission of corporate philosophies and development results. This "make friends first, then reason" model will become a crucial pathway to overcoming international communication misunderstandings and enhancing global competitiveness.
Below are some statements from the forum: Moderator: Everyone has noticed that the combination of geopolitical factors, supply chain reshaping, and climate change has posed challenges to the previously cost-leader and cost-first competitive model that China excelled in. With issues like carbon taxes and rising costs in the supply chain process, as well as priority shifts from efficiency to security caused by geopolitical issues, how do you view the changes in the global competitiveness paradigm that we are relatively good at?
Hu Junjie: Analyzing this issue from a more rational perspective will yield varied opinions. From my point of view, whether in international trade or communication, we often find ourselves trapped in a very rational self-validation process, trying to prove our legitimacy. However, this rational self-validation may not lead to effective communication results. Through my extensive experience in Sino-foreign cultural exchanges, I have discovered that one of the main issues we encounter in international communication is that there is a significant information silo regarding China from abroad. People's understanding of Chinese culture, both at the corporate level and among the local populace, is very limited and one-sided. Hence, I've always maintained that if someone has already formed a stereotype of you, it is challenging to discuss anything with them.
In international communication, we typically try to directly inform the other party of the rationality and quality of our offerings. I think this overly rational and rigid way of expressing might be a point that needs rectification. Conversely, before discussing any principles, it would be beneficial to first attempt to establish an emotional connection. Once friendships are formed, and the severe stereotypes are diminished, then explaining these principles is likely to be more effective. Our recent efforts focus on "soft" exchanges, where we let others engage with us without initial resistance instead of jumping straight into an argument. We encourage overseas participants to understand Chinese culture through experiential means; they first engage with our traditional aesthetics and enjoy our cuisines. Once friendships are established, we can then effectively share our insights.
Hence, over the past few years, we have brought the Yuyuan Lantern Festival to France, Thailand, and Vietnam, with plans to explore opportunities in Singapore and other European nations. In the environment created by the Yuyuan Lantern Festival, the atmosphere for communication becomes entirely different. When foreign audiences can experience Chinese culture firsthand within the lantern festival setting, the subsequent introduction of who we are becomes much more impactful. Why can we achieve this? It is because, through the participation in the Yuyuan Lantern Festival, the international audience has already developed an intuitive understanding of Chinese culture, influencing their perception positively for our subsequent dialogues.
Therefore, in the future of global communication, while we certainly need to confidently present our strengths, how we effectively articulate those strengths and convey our messages can begin with building a good communication platform from a cultural perspective. Once we become friends, we can then narrate our advantages and express the information we want to convey. Yuyuan has already achieved commendable results in its practices, and we will continue to adopt this approach in future international communication scenarios.
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