On June 21, the 4th Academic Seminar on Party Governance Systemization and Academicization Research of the Party’s Innovative Theory System in the New Era, which was hosted by Shanghai Party Institute of CPC (SPI) and Shanghai Research Center for XI Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, was held at SPI.

LUO Feng, Deputy Director and Secretary-General of Shanghai Research Center for XI Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and Vice President of SPI, delivered a speech. HAN Qingxiang, Leading Expert of the Central Party School of CPC Expert Studio, YAN Xiaofeng, Dean of the School of Marxism at Tianjin University, LI Ran, Dean of the School of Marxism at Fudan University, and XUAN Chuanshu, Secretary of the Party Committee of the Graduate School of Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, gave keynote speeches.

In his speech, LUO Feng pointed out that the development of XI Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is a process of continuous enrichment, expansion, systematization, and academicization. Systematization focuses on comprehensiveness, which is dialectical, organic, and systematic; academicization focuses on profoundness, which relates to academic research, disciplines, and discourse power. The truthfulness of the Party’s innovative theory is reflected in its “comprehensiveness” and “profoundness”. The systematic interpretation of the Party’s innovative theory has two dimensions ---- use existing theories” and “produce new theories. Using existing theories means continuously promoting the systematic interpretation of XI Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era according to the laws revealed by the Party’s innovative theory. Producing new theories means facilitating the academicization of politics and promoting the Party’s theory innovation through academic research. We can use the interwoven “vertical and horizontal” method to study the systemization and academicization of the Party’s innovative theories. The “vertical” approach means systematically tracing the formation and development of the Party’s innovative theory since the 18^th CPC National Congress. The “horizontal” approach means comprehensively and systematically studying all aspects of the Party’s innovative theory so as to find laws and gain inspiration.

HAN Qingxiang delivered a keynote speech on “Understanding the Scientific System of XI Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era via Academicization”. He pointed out that the research on systemization and academicization should first clarify the meaning of the two concepts. Academicization should cover six aspects ---- problem conversion, ideological development, discourse expression, content interpretation, essence summary and general layout; systematization should have six characteristics: objective, identifiable, principled, logical, integral, and philosophic. The urgent task of establishing a scientific system for XI Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is to grasp three principles: having a clear historical position, figuring out the main core, and summarizing its philosophical foundation.

YAN Xiaofeng delivered a keynote speech on “Understanding the Logic of Systemization and Academicization of the Party’s Innovative Theory in the New Era in a Problem-orientated Approach”. He said that systemization and academicization must first solve the problem of building logic. Adhering to problem orientation is the key to this problem. First, promoting practical innovation and theoretical innovation in the new era inevitably requires problem orientation，which lays the foundation for the power source, goals, process and evaluation. Second, adhering to the problem-oriented approach clearly reflects the philosophical character of the Party’s innovative theory in the new era. We should take problem solving as the fundamental task, improve the ability of theoretical thinking, and demonstrate a strong sense of problem awareness. Third, theoretical innovation in the new era should adhere to the problem-oriented approach, and enrich and develop dialectical materialism and historical materialism.

LI Ran discussed the national narrative, historical narrative and civilizational narrative focusing on the academicization of Chinese modernization. XUAN Chuanshu focused on the construction of Marxist parties, pointing out that building a Marxist party as a long-term ruling party is a major political proposition put forward by the Party on the basis of summarizing the historical experience of struggle in a century. It constitutes one of the major theoretical achievements of the sinicization and modernization of Marxism. CHEN Fangliu, Director of Department of Scientific Socialism of SPI, LI Zongjian, Deputy Dean of Marxism Research Institute of SPI, and SONG Bin, Lecturer of Marxism Research Institute of SPI, gave keynote speeches on key issues of systematization and academicization.

The sessions of keynote presentation and the keynote speech were hosted by WANG Gonglong, Deputy Secretary-General of Shanghai Research Center for XI Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and Dean of Marxism Research Institute of SPI, and JIANG Youfu, President of Shanghai Journal of Social Sciences.

More than 120 representatives from domestic universities, research institutes, Party school systems and academic groups participated in the seminar.