Meeting with the directors of the Confucius Institute of the University of Latvia

The Confucius Institute has operated in Latvia for more than 10 years. On 22 November 2024, at the Chinese restaurant “Old Hongkong” in Riga, L.C.F.A. president Dr. Ņina Linde and assistant manager Anete Propere met with the directors of the Confucius Institute of the University of Latvia — Prof. Pēteris Pildegovičs, director on the Latvian side, and Prof. He Dong, director on the Chinese side.

Prof. Pildegovičs shared how he came to study Chinese, how he compiled the Great Chinese-Latvian Dictionary, and how much China has changed in his lifetime, while Prof. He Dong added historical context on Chinese society and philosophy. The meeting also covered opportunities for cooperation between Latvia and China in education.

Prof. He Dong is an award-winning professor of education and pedagogy at South China Normal University. Prof. Pildegovičs is one of the leading figures in Latvian sinology and was Latvia’s first official chargé d’affaires in the People’s Republic of China; he received the Order of the Three Stars in 2010, and was one of a small number of people presented with “The Brilliance of the Confucius Institute” award at the World Chinese Language Conference in Beijing this November, attended by more than 2,000 people from around the world.