10th Anniversary & Closing Reception

The Lau China Institute is pleased to have hosted this celebration to mark the end of our inaugural China Week. 2021 is also our 10-year anniversary, we were also delighted to be able to provide an opportune occasion for our students, researchers, alumni and supporters to come together and celebrate our achievements over the past decade.

At this event, we were honoured to be welcoming Dame Caroline Wilson DCMG, British Ambassador to China, to provide a virtual address to our China Week guests on aspirations for UK-China cooperation at the UNCOP26 on tangible climate action. We also welcomed special guest Dr Florian Schneider from Leiden University to provide a keynote address and Yintong Betser to present our photography exhibition silent auction along with final remarks from the Director of the Lau China Institute, Professor Kerry Brown.

The event opened with a silent auction of the selected pieces from the China Week Photography Exhibition: 'Seeing the Impacts of Climate Change' displayed throughout the week. The auction featured guest speaker Yintong Bester, Founder and Director of Global SinoPhoto awards. Proceeds from the auction were donated to Greenpeace Asia, an independent environmental charity. For more information about the charity, the exhibition and Yintong Bester, click here.

About the speakers

Dame Caroline Wilson DCMG, British Ambassador to the People's Republic of China, British Embassy in Beijing

Caroline has been the British Ambassador to China since October 2020. Caroline joined the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) in 1995 after qualifying as a Barrister-at-law. She completed Mandarin language training at Beijing Normal University before taking up her first role overseas at the British Embassy in Beijing from 1997 to 2000. Prior to her appointment as the British Ambassador to Beijing, she had previously been the Europe Director at the FCDO from 2016 to 2019, Her Majesty's Consul General to Hong Kong and Macao from 2012-2016, and Minister Counsellor at the British Embassy in Moscow from 2008-2012. She has also formerly been the Deputy Director of the European Secretariat at the Cabinet Office and also Private Secretary to the Foreign Secretary from 2004 to 2006. Caroline speaks Mandarin fluently.

Professor Kerry Brown, Director, Lau China Institute, King's College London

Kerry is a Professor of Chinese Studies and the Director of the Lau China Institute at King's College London. He is an Associate of the Asia Pacific Programme at Chatham House. He was formerly a Professor of Chinese Politics and Director of the China Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, Australia. Prior to academia, Kerry was a career diplomat, working for the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office as the First Secretary at the British Embassy in Beijing and then as the Head of Indonesia, Philippine and East Timor Section. He is also a graduate of the University of Cambridge. Kerry's main research areas include post-1949 Chinese history, Chinese international relations (particularly UK-China and EU-China relations), Chinese political economy, as well as Taiwanese and Hong Kong history and politics.

Dr Florian Schneider, Senior Lecturer, Leiden University

Florian is a Senior Lecturer in Politics of Modern China at Leiden University. He is the Managing Editor of the academic journal Asiascape: Digital Asia and is the author of China's Digital Nationalism and Visual Political Communication in Popular Chinese Television Series. His research interests include questions of governance and public administration in the PRC, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, political communication strategies and political content of popular Chinese entertainment, recent Chinese economic developments, as well as Chinese foreign policy. Florian’s most recent work focused on the political contents of mainland Chinese films and popular Chinese television series, including their production process, censorship, broadcasting, and audience reception. Methodologically his work has combined critical discourse analysis, semiotics, and iconography, as well as the analysis of semi-structured qualitative interviews.

Yintong Betser, Founder, Global SinoPhoto Awards

Yintong is the Founder and Managing Director of ACTIVE Anglo Chinese Communications, a business and PR/marketing consultancy specialising in business between the two countries since 2001. This has enabled her to capitalise on her varied experience and draw upon her deep understanding of both Western and Chinese cultures, and to benefit her clients most effectively. Yintong is a regular contributor to the London Chamber of Commerce & Industry publication, London Business Matters, writing a column on themes and issues relating to China. She was also nominated as an ambassador for the Chamber. She is also the Founder of Global SinoPhoto Awards.

Hannah Bretherton, Impact & Engagement Manager, Lau China Institute, King's College London

Hannah is leading the Lau China Institute's impact and engagement strategy, reaching new audiences by developing global partnerships, flagship events, digital media and publications. This includes leading the development of the inaugural China Week event series.

She is also the founder of The China Puzzle - a digital media channel designed to create constructive dialogue on China in the UK. Hannah has significant policy experience, having worked as an energy policy advisor for the New South Wales Government Department of Premier & Cabinet. She also led on policy advocacy and business-government engagement for the Australia-UK Free Trade Agreement in her role at the Australia-UK Chamber of Commerce.

Hannah began her career as a researcher at the Australia-China Relations Institute, the University of Technology Sydney, and went on to facilitate senior level strategic dialogue on China between business and government at China Matters. Her research has been published in peer reviewed academic journals including the Australian Journal of Politics and History, the China Economic Journal, and the Australian Journal of International Affairs. Hannah received First Class Honours in International Relations from the University of New South Wales and received two scholarships to study in China – at Lanzhou University and Shanghai Jiaotong University.