JINAN -- The 11th Nishan Forum on World Civilizations kicked off on Wednesday with the theme of "Beauty in Diversity: Nurturing Understanding Among Civilizations for Global Modernization."

The two-day forum takes place in Qufu, the birthplace of the prominent Chinese philosopher Confucius, in East China's Shandong province. The 11th edition of the forum has attracted over 560 guests from more than 70 countries and regions, participating in various activities, including high-level interviews, keynote speeches, and parallel dialogues.

The forum also features six sub-topics, including the origins and future development of civilizations, Confucian culture and its significance for the world today, mutual assistance in pursuing modernization, the importance of family and social development through the lens of civilization, artificial intelligence and the future of human civilizations, and Qilu culture (traditional culture in ancient China's Qi and Lu states and today's Shandong Province) and world civilizations.

The Nishan Forum on World Civilizations focuses on dialogues among world civilizations. The forum fosters academic, international and open dialogues as a platform for international cultural exchange and cooperation.