The Eighth World Confucian Conference opens in grand style on Sept 20 in Qufu, the hometown of Confucius in Shandong province. [Photo by Yang Yunlei/ provided to China Daily]

The Eighth World Confucian Conference opened in grand style on Sept 20 in Qufu, the hometown of Confucius in Shandong province, gathering more than 600 domestic and international experts and scholars to discuss the recent hot topics regarding Confucianism.

Themed "Confucianism and a community of shared future for mankind", the three-day event is jointly organized by the Chinese Ministry of Culture, Shandong Provincial Government, the Chinese National Academy of Arts, Shandong University, Jinan municipal government and the Confucius Institute.

More than 300 distinguished guests from government departments, Confucianism research institutions and academic communities took part in the opening ceremony, including Wang Shengjun, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, Liu Jiayi, Party chief of Shandong, Lian Ji, president of Chinese National Academy of Arts, Fan Liming, president of Shandong University and Harvard professor Du Weiming.

Professor Tsai Jen-hou (second from left) from Tunghai University and Professor Guo Qiyong (third from left) from Wuhan University are awarded the "2017 World Distinguished Researcher in Confucianism" during the opening ceremony of the Eighth World Confucian Conference in Qufu, Shandong province, Sept 20. [Photo by Yang Yunlei/ provided to China Daily]

During the ceremony, Professor Tsai Jen-hou from Tunghai University and Professor Guo Qiyong from Wuhan University were awarded the "2017 World Distinguished Researcher in Confucianism".

This year the conference has five sub-topics: the religion and belief under Confucianism, Confucian ethics and common human values, Confucianism and the individual value, rites civilization and value reconstruction in the current society, and the modern path of inheriting and developing traditional culture.

Two keynote speeches, eight round table forums and three panel discussions will take place during the conference.

More than 300 distinguished guests from home and abroad take part in the opening ceremony of the Eighth World Confucian Conference in Qufu, Shandong province, Sept 20. [Photo by Zhou Yusen/ Sdchina.com]?

The attendees include noted scholars from 34 different countries and regions.

Inaugurated in 2007, the event was designed to inherit and popularize traditional Chinese culture as well as enhance the dialogue and exchanges among different civilizations. It has become a high-end platform for international Confucianism study and communication.