Building bridges

Kaligaeva says learning about China should be a lifetime's endeavor and should not be limited to the language.

As a result, in her final year at Tsinghua University, she made the decision to delve deeper into Chinese and global politics at the Yenching Academy of Peking University. She describes the interdisciplinary master's program in China studies as a window to China for students from all continents which form two thirds of the cohort every year. Kaligaeva says this program also helps international scholars to learn more about her home country. When she encounters individuals who are unfamiliar with Belarus, she chooses to embrace them as possibilities to spread awareness about her country. By doing this, stereotypes will be broken and more young people will be motivated to co-create a future filled with diversity.

Graduates are expected to integrate their leadership lessons and exchanges into their future careers in various sectors in order to become truly global citizens. As a Yenching Scholar, she is most fascinated by China's political leadership in the region and its ties to the Commonwealth of Independent States, particularly Belarus, as well as with the members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

She says five years ago, many young people in her country would not even be aware of the existence of the SCO and would pay little attention to international security and development, with Belarus focusing more on Russia and neighbors in the European Union. She says she has learned that more young people, in the midst of the ongoing global crises, now think more productive cooperation with the East, China in particular, holds the key to finding a solution for our shared future.

Belarus' admission as an official SCO member this year would mark an important commitment of the nation. Kaligaeva is excited about the prospect of youth involvement in the SCO, especially the potential of the higher education network "SCO University" to enhance cultural exchanges, advance academic research, and remove barriers to further promote equitable quality education. She has also taken part in a variety of events such as startup conferences and summer camps.