From June 6 to 8, the 2nd International Conference on China Policy Studies (ICCPS 2025) was held at the Haidian Campus of Beijing Normal University (BNU). The theme of the conference was "Advancing Policy Studies: Addressing Conventional Issues and Emerging Challenges in Global Transformation". Nearly 300 experts and scholars from more than 70 universities and research institutions in China and abroad attended the conference. Yu Haibo, Party Secretary of the School of Government at BNU presided over the opening ceremony.

Group Photo at the Opening Ceremony

Kang Zhen, Vice President of BNU, delivered a speech. He noted that the theme of the Conference reflects the continuous development and innovation of the public administration discipline of BNU in the fields of global governance and policy research.

Remarks by Kang Zhen

Meeting Chaired by Yu

HaiboProfessor Zhang Wenguang, Co-Chair of the Conference and Dean of the School of Government at BNU, also made a speech. He stated that the School of Government will remain committed to advancing research in China’s public policy and to promoting global academic exchange through high-quality international conferences and journal platforms.

Remarks by Zhang Wenguang

Professor Chen Can, Co-Chair of the Conference, CPSG Chair and Associate Professor of Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University introduced the founding history, core mission, and key initiatives of the association.

Remarks by Chen Can

Xue Lan, Co-convenor of the Public Administration Discipline Review Group of the Academic Degrees Commitee of the State Council, Dean of the Schwarzman College in Tsinghua University, extended his warm congratulations on the convening of the conference. He also expressed high recognition for the efforts of the School of Government at BNU in establishing this important academic platform.

Remarks by Xue Lan

Professor John R. Bartle, President of the American Society of Public Administration (ASPA) and NAPA Fellow, expressed his great honor to gather with scholars from around the world via an online platform. He emphasized that the world is currently facing pressing challenges such as climate change and public health crises, and that international dialogue has become an essential means of addressing these issues.

Remarks by John R. Bartle

Daniel I. Gutierrez-Sandoval, Executive Director of the Policy Studies Organization, emphasized that the goal of the conference is to seek context-based, evidence-informed solutions rather than one-size-fits-all answers. He noted that policy is not merely a technical tool, but a product shaped by historical, cultural, and social frameworks.

Remarks by Daniel I. Gutierrez-Sandoval

During the keynote session, eight senior scholars in public policy research from China, the United States, and Europe delivered keynote speeches respectively.

Xu Ping hosted the keynote speeches in the first half.

Keynote Speech by Ian C. Elliott

Keynote Speech by Jiang Xiaoping

Keynote Speech by Christopher M. Weible

Keynote Speech by Emma R. Norman

Xu Ping hosted the keynote speeches in the second half.

Keynote Speech by Zhu Xufeng

Keynote Speech by Gwen Arnold

Keynote Speech by Wu Xun

Keynote Speech by Sanneke Kuipers

The conference then proceeded with 26 parallel sessions featuring academic paper presentations.

Parallel sessions

In addition, this conference set up a poster presentation session for the first time, with authors from over 20 universities presenting their posters.

The poster presentation session

On the morning of June 8, the Round-table Forum for International Journal Editors was held. The forum was held under the theme of "Meet the Editors Round-table" and was conducted in the form of exchanges and dialogue

Round-table Forum

The conference concluded with a closing ceremony, which featured four segments: a keynote speech, the presentation of Best Paper and Best Poster Awards, closing remarks, and a handover ceremony.

Professor Ding Huang, Co-convenor of the Public Administration Discipline Review Group of the Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council, China; Distinguished Professor of School of Political Science and Public Administration at Wuhan University; Dean of School of Public Administration at University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, delivered the keynote speech at the closing ceremony.

Remarks by Ding Huang

During the sector of awarding, two authors and their collaborators from Sun Yat-sen University and Nanjing University received the ICCPS Best Poster Award. Five authors and their collaborators from Tsinghua University, Shandong University, Tianjin University, University of International Business and Economics, and Beijing Normal University were honored with the ICCPS Best Paper Award.

Professor Zhang Wenguang delivered the closing remarks of the conference. He ended the conference with three words — "gratitude", "dialogue" and "community".

A handover ceremony was held. ICCPS 2026 will be hosted by the School of Humanities and Law at Northeastern University. Professor Du Baogui, Dean of the School of Humanities and Law at Northeastern University, delivered a speech. He congratulated the successful conclusion of ICCPS 2025 and expressed his gratitude to the organizing committee. He extended a warm invitation to scholars and students to attend the next ICCPS in Shenyang in 2026.

Conference Flag Handover Ceremony

Remarks by Du Baogui

Group Photo at the Closing Ceremony