In February 2018, during the Chinese New year, The Confucius Institute at UQ was again welcomed to Far North Queensland for a series of school visits and cultural events to celebrate the Year of the Dog.
Visiting Cairns and Innisfail, the program was successful in contributing to a deeper understanding of Chinese culture in the region, as well as engage with local students and community groups who have an interest in Chinese culture.
Led by the Institute’s newest staff member A/Professor Ying Chi, the travelling group consisted of a selection of professional artists who delivered Chinese cultural activities and Chinese New Year performances in four local schools from 13-17 Feb, 2018.
A variety of Chinese cultural topics, including traditional Chinese New Year celebration customs, folk dancing handkerchiefs and fans, traditional opera and Chinese knots were also introduced as part of the engagement with classrooms.
Highlighting the cross-cultural opportunity were New Year festivities jointly celebrated with students and staff through performances as well as interactive singing and dancing in both Chinese and English.
Working with educators with a keen interest in developing Chinese culture in schools and the local community was a key factor is the visit’s success, in addition to complementing local programs and activities such as a Chinese Culture Exposition Week held at one particular school.
Completing the visit was an important community event in Innisfail, a town with deep historical connections to Chinese culture. Reported in the local news, the ceremony brought together the local Chinese community with politicians, business representatives, media and local residents to celebrate this important date in the Chinese lunar calendar.
