Consul General of Germany to Shanghai Norbert Riedel visits Zhejiang University

On June 18, Zhejiang University was honored to welcome Dr. Norbert Riedel, the newly appointed Consul General of Germany to Shanghai, and his delegation for an official visit. Vice President ZHOU Jianghong met with the guests to explore opportunities for deepening Sino-German academic and cultural collaboration.

ZHOU extended a warm welcome to Dr. Riedel and introduced ZJU’s recent developments in global engagement, with a particular focus on its longstanding partnership with Germany. He highlighted the university’s strong ties with nearly 20 German universities, research institutions, and enterprises, spanning areas such as student and faculty exchanges, joint education programs, and scientific innovation.  

“Germany has always been one of our most valued partners,” ZHOU noted. “Initiatives like the Sino-German Sustainable Development Forum have become important platforms for dialogue and innovation. With the support of the Consulate General, we hope to further encourage youth exchange, foster mutual learning between cultures, and contribute together to addressing global challenges.

Dr. Riedel praised ZJU’s academic excellence, global outlook, and the breadth and depths of its partnerships with Germany. He expressed his appreciation for the university’s long-term commitment to promoting cooperation in higher education between China and Germany.

Zhejiang University for its distinguished reputation, achievements, and extensive cooperation with German partners. He thanked the university for its longstanding contributions to Sino-German higher education cooperation.  

“As a vital part of people-to-people exchanges, educational collaboration plays a crucial role in promoting closer ties between Germany and China,” he remarked. “The Consulate General is dedicated to supporting deeper cooperation between German institutions and Zhejiang University.

We look forward to seeing more German students in Hangzhou and more active engagement between German enterprises and the ZJU academic community.”

Dr. Riedel and his delegation visited the ZJU Innovation Practice Base of Robotics and Intelligent Equipment, where they interacted with students and explored some of the university’s cutting-edge research and student-led projects.

Representatives from the School of International Studies and the Office of Global Engagement also joined the discussions and site visit.

Adapted and translated from the article by JIN Yanyan and ZHEN Qi

Translator: FANG Fumin 

Photos by GLOBAL ZJU

Editors: HE Jiawen, ZHU Ziyu