The year 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Embodying peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit, the Silk Road Spirit has become a valuable asset to humanity.

The 2023 "My Story of Chinese Hanzi" international competition kicked off worldwide on June 12, 2023. The event is hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and organized by People's Daily Online.

The theme of this year's competition is "家园" (Homeland). We invite people from all over the world to participate in the event and share stories of exchanges and mutual learning, as well as understanding, friendship and affinity among civilizations. Your stories will contribute to the shared vision of building a beautiful world. Participate in this exchange activity, and let the world hear your stories of Chinese Hanzi!

Who can participate in the competition?

1. Foreign nationals who work, live or study in China and neither they nor their parents speak Chinese as their mother tongue. If they are of Chinese descent, they must be at least third-generation immigrants.

2. Foreign nationals residing overseas who are also non-native speakers of Chinese.

Please note: Finalists who made it to the last rounds in previous editions of the competition will be ineligible to proceed to the semi-finals and finals of this year"s competition.

How will the competition be held?

The competition will be held online and offline. It consists of an online preliminary round, online semi-finals and offline finals.

Schedule

The online preliminary round will take place in June.

The online preliminary round includes two parts:

1. Contestants will first answer questions online. Upon completing the questions, they will be directed to a new page where they should write out their favorite Chinese character. Following this, a poster image showcasing their handwritten Chinese character will be generated for contestants to share on WeChat.

2. Contestants must send a one-minute self-introduction video.

Special Note: We request all contestants submit their one-minute self-introduction video, along with an image of the poster showing their handwritten Chinese character, via email to hanzi@people.cn.

Please ensure your submissions reach us by July 12. Your email's subject line should be formatted as follows: "your name + your mobile phone number."

The video file should meet the following criteria:

Format: MP4

Quality: 1080p

Orientation: Landscape

Duration: Not exceeding one minute

In your self-introduction video, feel free to share any personal connections and experiences you've had with Chinese Hanzi.

The top 40 contestants, who achieve the highest total scores in the preliminary round, will advance to the semi-finals.

The online semi-finals will be held between July and early August.

In the second round, contestants will participate in a video conversation where they will each take turns speaking on the spot. Once our panel of expert judges evaluates and scores the performances, the top 10 contestants with the highest scores will advance to the finals.

The competition will also invite second-round contestants to submit short videos, recorded in their native language, where they will share their experiences and feelings about China. These videos will be reviewed and shared on the multilingual platforms of People's Daily Online.

The offline finals will be held between late August and September.

At the finals, the finalists will each deliver a seven-minute speech. Judges will evaluate and score the speeches based on several criteria: the core message conveyed in their stories, their expressiveness, their proficiency in the Chinese language, and the effectiveness of their speeches in promoting cross-cultural understanding. These scores will be used to determine the ultimate champion and distribute various other awards.

Awards

Grand Award (presented to one contestant)

First Prize (presented to two contestants)

Second Prize (presented to three contestants)

Third Prize (presented to four contestants)

There will be a Special Award specifically for the champion of the overseas competition zone.

Each winner will receive a certificate, a souvenir and a cash prize that could be as high as 10,000 yuan (about $1,403).