The annual BUCT English Speech Contest was held on September 28 at the University’s Changping Campus. It also served as a qualifier for the English speech contest in the 2026 “FLTRP·ETIC Cup” “Understanding Contemporary China” National Foreign Language Contest for College Students and the 17th Beijing College Student English Speech Contest. This year’s theme was “China in the Garden of Civilizations”. It encouraged students to reflect on China’s role in the world’s diverse civilizations and to tell China’s story in English.

Over three hours, contestants delivered engaging speeches that kept the audience’s attention. Drawing on their own perspectives, they described how China learns from diverse civilizations and promotes exchange and mutual understanding. They also discussed how China works with other countries on infrastructure, food security, public health, and climate action to address shared challenges and support development. Young people have an important role to play in this work.

Nearly 30 contestants competed. Xin Xin, a student in BUCT’s Mechanical Engineering and Its Automation program (Guoji 2503), and Li Enxi, a law major (Fashi 2501), received gold awards. received gold awards. Lingchen, Wang Zhaoran, Xie’erkeye, Wei Jiaying, and Fan Zhiyuan received silver awards. Pu Xiaojue, Lan Xin, Qin Yidan, Yiliminu’er Halike, Zhang Yuhan, Xiremayi Abudurusuli, Peng Yixuan, and Jiang Zihan received bronze awards.

The contest was co-hosted by the College of Humanities and Law and the Academic Affairs Office and organized by the College’s Department of Foreign Languages. Four experienced English instructors from the department, Liu Hongxia, Wang Hongyan, Song Xinying, and Guo Shan, served as judges. They assessed contestants on the content and organization of their speeches, language use, and overall performance, and provided detailed feedback.

Today’s young people have a responsibility to meet the challenges of their time and share China’s perspectives with the world. We look forward to hearing more from our students. May they draw on the idea of mutual learning among civilizations and offer thoughtful perspectives on China’s contributions to the world. Together, they can help build a future in which different civilizations thrive and learn from one another.