On April 6, the Institute of National Memory and International Peace (formerly known as the Institute of Nanjing Massacre History and International Peace) held the 2023 Academic Committee Conference. The conference was attended by more than 10 experts from universities and research institutes including Nanjing University, Nanjing Normal University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Chinese Society of Sino-Japanese Relations History, Jiangsu Provincial Academy of Social Sciences, and Party School of CPC Jiangsu Committee. At the conference, the experts had an in-depth exchange of views on the institute’s development in the future, discussed its priorities for 2023, and the proposal for holding the “Nanjing Massacre Interdisciplinary Seminar for Young Scholars”.

Established in November 2015, the institute draws more than 100 experts in such areas as the history of the Nanjing Massacre, peace studies, research on “sex slaves”, and the development history of China-Japan relations. They come from universities, academies of social sciences, archives centers or research institutes. This year, the institute will continue to work on academic research and offer advice and suggestions, to play a role in enhancing basic research, spreading national memory and other aspects.

Zhang Xianwen, director of the institute and honorary senior professor of humanities and social sciences at Nanjing University, emphasized strengthening empirical studies and interdisciplinary research on the Nanjing Massacre. Zhang also stressed the need to dive into more research projects and identify significant areas of research.