On the morning of August 12, the 10th Sanlitun Belt and Road Friends Forum on New Quality Productive Forces was held at the Sanlitun International Youth Talent Lounge. Under the guidance of the Academy for International Business Officials (AIBO), Ministry of Commerce, the forum was jointly organized by the Sanlitun Chamber of Commerce and the Sanlitun International Volunteer Service Team.
Under the theme of “Globalizing Chinese Services,” the forum brought together international friends, business representatives and Sanlitun international volunteer service partners to exchange views on Chinese urban governance, public services, business globalization and international-friendly neighborhood services.
Building a Platform for Practical International Exchange
Sanlitun is one of Beijing’s most active international neighborhoods, bringing together foreign residents, international organizations, commercial communities, young professionals and cross-cultural resources. In recent years, Sanlitun has developed an integrated service model supported by the Sanlitun International Volunteer Service Center, the Sanlitun International Youth Talent Lounge, the Sanlitun International Volunteer Service Team and AI digital volunteers such as “Sanli” and “Sally.”
The forum continued the Sanlitun Belt and Road Friends exchange mechanism, with an emphasis on real experience, practical dialogue and potential cooperation. It connected international perspectives, the needs of Chinese enterprises going global and Sanlitun’s local practice in international services.
Focusing on the Globalization of Chinese Services
Adam Yuan, head of the Sanlitun International Volunteer Service Team, delivered a keynote sharing on “Globalizing Chinese Services.” He noted that the globalization of Chinese services is not only about products, technologies or business expansion. It is also about service concepts, user experience, urban governance capacity and cross-cultural collaboration. Chinese enterprises going global should pay closer attention to local rules, cultural habits, public service systems and trusted partner networks.
International participants shared observations from their own countries and regions, including business environments, public services, cultural understanding and cooperation opportunities. They agreed that successful globalization requires not only commercial resources, but also long-term, friendly and reliable cross-cultural communication mechanisms.
Roundtable: From Urban Governance to International-Friendly Services
During the roundtable session, participants discussed three key questions: what aspects of Chinese urban governance and public services are most impressive and what could be further improved for international visitors and businesses; what kinds of local cooperation, cultural understanding and public service support Chinese enterprises need when going global; and how neighborhoods such as Sanlitun can better connect foreign visitors, international talent, local businesses and Chinese companies with global ambitions.
Participants recognized China’s strengths in infrastructure, digital applications, transport efficiency, public safety and city-level service organization. They also suggested that services for international visitors and cross-border business communities could be further improved in multilingual guidance, payment convenience, policy explanations, offline consultation points, cross-cultural communication and referral mechanisms for complex issues.
Using Sanlitun as a Bridge for Future Cooperation
The forum deepened international participants’ understanding of Sanlitun’s international service system and created new opportunities for cooperation in business exchange, talent connection and people-to-people friendship. Moving forward, Sanlitun will continue to use its international volunteer service network and youth talent platform to support more practical exchanges, helping international communication move from mutual understanding to joint participation and concrete cooperation.
Prepared by: Sanlitun International Volunteer Service Team