By Liu Zhonghua, People’s Daily
Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer, a renowned German sinologist and vice president of the International Confucian Association, recently shared his insights with People’s Daily on the unique spiritual strengths and internal drivers of Chinese culture. He discussed how traditional Chinese culture heritage can contribute wisdom and solutions to global governance.
Schmidt-Glintzer, with nearly six decades to China studies, noted that the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan(2026-2030) for national economic and social development explicitly calls for stimulating the cultural innovation and creativity of the entire nation and promoting the prosperity and development of socialist culture.
He views this as deeply consistent with enduring Chinese cultural traits: rootedness in tradition, openness and inclusivity, and a drive for continuous innovation. This approach, he argues, demonstrates China’s strategic commitment to advancing cultural inheritance and development at the national level.
The scholar emphasized that understanding contemporary China requires an appreciation of its historical and cultural traditions, characterized by “unity in diversity,” and the internal logic behind Chinese civilization’s millennia-long continuity.
“The defining feature of Chinese culture is ‘unity in diversity,’ where unity and diversity complement each other. This is not only a unique cultural gene of China, but also one of the country’s major strengths today,” he said. In his view, China’s contemporary development reflects both the organizational capacity to pool resources to accomplish major tasks and the wisdom embodied in the principle of “seeking harmony without uniformity.”
Schmidt-Glintzer emphasized that Chinese culture has always maintained openness. China, he said, has never believed it possesses the “ultimate answer.” Instead, it upholds a pragmatic and open-minded approach, adjusting its development path through real-world practice, embracing diverse possibilities and adapting them rationally. This, he noted, stands in sharp contrast to Western traditions that often emphasize a singular “absolute truth.”
“Chinese culture has long been highly inclusive, valuing diversity and integration, which has enabled Chinese civilization to endure uninterrupted through the ages,” he said. “The Chinese classics have accumulated into a profound and lasting reservoir of intellectual resources. They not only help forge social consensus, but also provide intellectual support for national development and friendly exchanges with other countries.”
Having closely observed China’s modernization for years, Schmidt-Glintzer once harbored concerns that China might lose its cultural identity by imitating Western models. However, he affirmed this did not occur. “China has not abandoned its historical roots. Instead, grounded in its traditional culture and social structures, it has forged a path of socialism with Chinese characteristics suited to its conditions,” he said.
“While drawing on Western experience, China consistently emphasizes pragmatism, inclusiveness, adaption to local conditions, and the unity of knowledge and action. It neither isolates itself nor engages in blind imitation,” he added.
He pointed to localized solutions in areas like ecological governance and rural revitalization as contemporary applications of traditional Chinese concepts such as prioritizing the people and adapting to local realities.
“There is no universal model for modernization,” Schmidt-Glintzer asserted. “The core value of China’s development path lies in achieving modernization through civilizational inheritance, building a balanced and open development pattern amidst diversity.”
The sinologist also sees deep historical roots in China’s emphasis on narrowing wealth gaps and ensuring development benefits all. Traditional Chinese society, he noted, stressed the organic connection among individuals, communities and the broader collective, and this holistic outlook has provided intellectual support for balanced development.
“The cultural and ethical progress constitutes a core part of modernization. All countries should build consensus and mutual recognition, and drive development through shared responsibilities,” he said.
According to Schmidt-Glintzer, China’s traditions and achievements in cultural and ethical progress provide its modernization with profound intellectual resources and solid value foundations. Through inheritance and renewal, they sustain social harmony and cohesion, offering enduring momentum for long-term development.
Globally, he added, China’s philosophy of harmony between humanity and nature offers vital intellectual guidance for ecological governance and sustainable development. China’s key roles in areas like climate governance and water-resource protection, providing viable pathways for global modernization through its ecological wisdom and practical experience.
Schmidt-Glintzer views China as Europe’s natural partner for cooperation. Historically, Europe and Asia have maintained deep connections for centuries. Geographically, both share the Eurasian landmass, connected by land rather than separated by oceans.
“Europe needs more stable ties with China and robust trans-Eurasian networks for transportation and people-to-people exchange,” he said. “The Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China provides an important platform for cross-regional cooperation. Europe should not remain a bystander, but should actively align itself with the initiative.”
He also noted the scholarly view of China not merely as a traditional “nation-state,” but as a “civilizational state.” For such a vast and ancient country. achieving balance between unity and diversity has always been paramount. The institutional flexibility and adaptability China demonstrates in governance, he suggested, may offer valuable insights for Europe.
“Intellectually, Europe has a long tradition of learning from China,” he said, citing thinkers such as Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz and Bertrand Russell, both of whom argued that Europe could draw wisdom and valuable experience from Chinese civilization.
“Mutual learning between European and Chinese civilizations has a historical foundation and should be strengthened through deeper communication and cooperation,” he said.
Addressing global challenges like climate change, aging populations, and environmental pressures, Schmidt-Glintzer pointed out that nations share common interests. He called for cooperation to tackle these issues, resolving differences through dialogue and preventing conflict through greater mutual understanding among nations and civilizations.
“Europe, once exerted broad global influence, now needs to build a new framework on that historical foundation,” he said, adding that it should actively look eastward, strengthen exchanges and cooperation with East Asia, especially China, and work together to explore pathways that promote world peace and development.
