Ca’ Foscari - Soochow, new opportunities for students, professors and staff

Ca’ Foscari and Soochow University are closer than ever: from May 20 to June 2, Livio Zanini, Research Fellow of the Ca’ Foscari Department of Asian and North African Studies, has spent his Erasmus + in the Chinese partner University, where a Ca’ Foscari Office is also present, marking the beginning of a new cooperation and exchange program between the two partner institutions, which in the future will hopefully see other professors, students and staff members take part in the initiative.

Livio Zanini currently teaches classes in consecutive interpreting and business negotiation in Chinese. His research interests focus on intercultural mediation and the history of culinary culture in China, with a special attention to tea culture and the consumption of alcoholic beverages.

During his exchange period, professor Zanini held various conferences on Italian, European and Chinese culture, directed at students and colleagues from Soochow University, mainly focused on wine and tea consumption in an intercultural context. 

All these activities were made possible thanks to the precious contribution of the Ca’ Foscari Soochow Office, created in 2017 as the very first office in the Ca’ Foscari Desks in the World project. Three research projects on Environmental Science, Management and Cultural Heritage are among the activities set up in collaboration with Soochow University, where professors from both institutions will work together. 

The Office isn’t only a base for academic projects in China, but it also promotes job opportunities, welcoming Ca’ Foscari interns in its headquarters and building bridges between China and prestigious Italian companies: with the help of the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Soochow University, a successful Career Day was organized, which assisted three brilliant students in securing a six-month internship in Shanghai and Soochow.

“Soochow offers many academic and professional opportunities - says Anna Zhu, Ca’ Foscari staff member working in the Soochow Office - It is also an incredibly beautiful city, which reminds me of Venice in a way, as it has many ponds and canals. The locals even call it the Venice of the East. This place is rich in tradition and culture but it is also a modern city, projected into the future, which keeps on evolving and expanding. 

From mid July till the end of October, the Office will also support the setup and launch of the Italian course offered by Ca’ Foscari in Soochow. This will be the very first Italian course organized by an Italian university in China.
In the past few years, there’s been a considerable increase in the amount of Chinese students who decide to continue their studies in Italy and so learning Italian becomes a fundamental element in their academic progress.
In this regard, Ca’ Foscari University decided to launch a new, highly formative course, that can equip students with solid notions on Italian language and culture. To this end, Ca’ Foscari has selected three brilliant teachers, specialized in delivering language lessons to foreign students: Silvia Scolaro, Luisa Cipolla e Stefania Nardi. 

The course was organized by the Ca’ Foscari School for International Education with the collaboration of Lab.ITALS, part of the Ca’ Foscari Department of Linguistics and Comparative Cultural Studies. 


Visit Ca' Foscari in China to stay updated on all initiatives by the Ca' Foscari Soochow Office