HSE Students Return from Third International One Belt and Road Law Student Forum
Anastasia Sudar and Livia Panina, second-year master’s students of the HSE Faculty of Law, have returned to Moscow after participating in the One Belt and Road Student Forum. ‘The forum, which was held on December 4-7 in Beijing, was so full of various events, and we were so immersed in an entirely new culture, that when we came back we felt as if we had spent two weeks there.’
On December 5, there was an opening ceremony, a plenary session and a number of presentations. The forum was attended by students from different countries, including not only Russia and China, but also students from Germany, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Malaysia, Greece, Vietnam, and Pakistan.
Anastasia Sudar
I delivered a speech at the forum opening ceremony. On behalf of the guests, foreign students, and my university, I expressed my sincere gratitude to the hosts and all of the participants as well as my hope for further fruitful cooperation.
Moreover, as HSE University representatives, we were honoured to participate in an official meeting with the hosting partner university (China University of Political Science and Law, CUPL), during which the distinguished Professor Wang Hongsong, Director and Chairman of School Committee, spoke about the university’s programmes and the law faculty’s future plans. We also discussed the possibility of holding the next year’s forum in Russia. At the end of the meeting, each of the participants was given a token present for their university.
We then took part in the report sessions, which were the main event of the forum, and we introduced our research regarding some current legal issues.
Livia Panina
In my report entitled ‘Comparative Analysis of Legal Regulation of Social Entrepreneurship in Russia and China’, I looked into the legal regulation practices of an increasingly popular trend of social entrepreneurship. This type of entrepreneurship is unique because its objective is not only to gain profit, but also to contribute to social wellbeing. This is a recent phenomenon in both China and Russia, which appears to be a rallying point for our countries. However, a number of differences can be found in the application of the Chinese and Russian to legal regulation. In my speech, I tried to carry out a comparative analysis of both laws and summarized the conclusions, pointing out the most efficient Russian and Chinese regulatory practices that could boost social entrepreneurship.
Anastasia Sudar
My report focused on the issue of environmental legal regulation. I touched upon the tax aspects of the issue, analyzing the current Russian and Chinese laws. Last but not least, I drew the audience’s attention to the need for establishing a moot court under the auspices of the Belt and Road project. A moot court would allow students to gain deeper insight into the issue and find a solution, while facilitating coordination and interaction with other foreign students, and allowing students to get valuable experience from mentors, etc. Representatives of Russian universities supported the proposal.
The following day, we visited TianTai, a legal firm that was established by graduates of the hosting university. We could soak in the atmosphere of Chinese legal consulting and ask our senior colleagues from the Celestial Empire questions. We also had a tour of the Sky Temple. On the last day of the forum, we took a trip to the Forbidden City, that legendary palace complex of Chinese Emperors. After the trip, our volunteer escort recommended that we go and try Peking duck, and so we did that together with some other members of the Russian delegation. I believe this was the most delicious dish of all that we managed to try in Beijing. :)
Finally, it was time to say goodbye to China. Apart from souvenirs, the forum gave us plenty of knowledge, great memories, professional contacts, and new friends from all over the world.