The Center for Indonesian Studies (Preparatory) at Fudan University was approved for establishment by the University President's Executive Meeting in July 2026. It will operate on a one-year trial basis and is affiliated with Fudan University's Institute of International Studies. The Center is a university-level research entity in the humanities and social sciences. Its development is overseen by Associate Professor Xue Song of the Institute of International Studies.
Indonesia is Southeast Asia's largest economy and a major member of ASEAN. It is also an important country for China's neighborhood diplomacy, deeper China-ASEAN cooperation, and the expansion of partnerships across the Global South. With its large market, abundant natural resources, and substantial influence on the region's political, security, and economic landscape, Indonesia occupies a pivotal regional position. Its industrial development is highly complementary to the Yangtze River Delta's efforts in manufacturing upgrading, green transition, and internationalization. Drawing on Fudan University's disciplinary strengths in area and country studies, political science, economics, public health, and development studies, the Center seeks to build an interdisciplinary platform for Indonesian studies and China-Indonesia exchanges.
The Center's principal research areas include Indonesian politics, economy, society, culture, and foreign relations; China-Indonesia relations and China-ASEAN cooperation; Indonesia's role in the regional order, cooperation among the Global South, and global governance; China-Indonesia trade and investment and industrial and supply chain cooperation; maritime affairs and regional security; and energy transition, the digital economy, public health, social governance, poverty reduction, and sustainable development. The Center places particular emphasis on fieldwork, data analysis, and interdisciplinary research. It aims to produce original and distinctive scholarship and to support the development of area and country studies at Fudan University.
The Center performs four principal functions: academic research, education and training, exchange and cooperation, and policy advisory work. In academic research, it organizes interdisciplinary projects on major contemporary issues and frontier topics concerning Indonesia and promotes the publication of scholarly work in China and abroad. In education and training, it uses courses, academic lectures, fieldwork, joint training programs, short-term study visits, and graduate exchanges to cultivate interdisciplinary specialists who understand Indonesian and ASEAN affairs and possess local-language proficiency and field research skills. In exchange and cooperation, it promotes joint research, academic conferences, policy dialogues, and reciprocal visits between Fudan University and Indonesian universities, research institutes, government agencies, and civil society organizations. In policy advisory work, it produces timely, accurate, and actionable analysis on important issues in China-Indonesia relations and bilateral cooperation.
The Center is jointly developed by several schools and research institutes at Fudan University. Its core members include Associate Professor Xue Song, Professor Qi Huaigao and Professor Zhao Weihua of the Institute of International Studies; Professor Luo Changyuan of the School of Economics; Professor Chen Yingyao of the School of Public Health; Professor Bai Yun of the International School of Finance; Associate Professor He Jiajie of the School of International Relations and Public Affairs; Associate Research Fellow Liu Li of the Fudan Development Institute; and Associate Professor Liao Jing of the College of Foreign Languages and Literatures. Together, they constitute a cross-school and interdisciplinary research team.
The Center builds on a solid foundation of prior work. In September 2019, Fudan University's Institute of International Studies launched the Fudan Indonesia Initiative to advance Indonesian studies and academic exchanges between China and Indonesia. Under the Initiative, the research team organized international conferences including "The Performance of the Jokowi Administration and the 2019 Indonesian Election" and "Looking Back at a Decade of the Belt and Road Initiative in Indonesia." It has also conducted academic exchanges with the National Research and Innovation Agency of Indonesia (BRIN), Universitas Indonesia, Universitas Airlangga, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta, BINUS University, Universitas Brawijaya, and other universities and research institutions. In addition, the team has hosted several study-visit programs to China for Indonesian scholars, university students, and media professionals.
Fudan University's Institute of International Studies has signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at Universitas Indonesia. The two institutions will develop institutionalized cooperation in joint research, reciprocal visits, student training, academic conferences, and fieldwork. The Center will also expand its network with BRIN, leading Indonesian universities, and institutions specializing in Indonesian studies in other countries and regions, with the aim of establishing long-term and stable mechanisms for international academic cooperation.
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