The US-China Education Trust, in cooperation with Tsinghua University and George Washington University, has re-launched the Students Finding Common Ground—US-China Collaborative Projects in An Era of Strategic Competition project for its second iteration in 2025. The project brings American and Chinese students together, working on areas where US-China cooperation is urgently needed in an era of competition and tension between the two countries. It dives deeper into topics addressed by the previous project and explores new areas of cooperation.
Thirty-two students, chosen through a competitive process, are taking part. Half of the students are enrolled at Tsinghua University, and half are in American universities from the DMV area (Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia). The students have formed four groups of eight students, each group focusing on a separate topic area: 1) Climate Change and Environment, 2) Public Health; 3) Education; and 4) Peace and Conflict Resolution.
On January 10, the Students Finding Common Ground program held its first session, bringing together students and mentors from the United States and China. The meeting featured opening remarks from USCET, Tsinghua University, and George Washington University, highlighting the importance of dialogue in fostering mutual understanding. Students then broke into mentor-led small groups, where they explored the challenges and opportunities in U.S.-China collaboration, shared personal insights, and began shaping potential projects for the months ahead.
Over the next three months, the program will continue with three additional sessions, further developing students’ projects and deepening cross-cultural engagement. One session will feature an expert speaker providing greater insights into a specific field, enhancing students’ understanding of critical global challenges. As the program progresses, students will refine their ideas, build lasting professional networks, and reinforce the importance of people-to-people exchanges in addressing shared global issues through their projects.
Mentors
Climate and Environment: Jennifer Turner, Director of the China Environment Forum at the Woodrow Wilson Center
Public Health: Tang Bei, China Forum expert Associate Professor, School of International Relations and Public Affairs, Shanghai International Studies University
Education: Emily M. Matson, Adjunct Professor of modern Chinese history at Georgetown University in the College of Arts and Sciences, Department of History
Peace and Conflict Resolution: Senior Colonel Zhou Bo, China Forum expert Senior Fellow of CISS, Tsinghua University
Senior Advisors
DA Wei is the Director of the Center for International Security and Strategy (CISS) and Professor in the Department of International Relations, School of Social Science, Tsinghua University. Dr. Da’s research expertise covers China-US relations and US security & foreign policy. Da Wei has worked in China’s academic and policy community for more than two decades. Prior to current positions, he was the assistant president of University of International Relations (UIR) (2017-2020), and director of the Institute of American Studies, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR) (2013-2017). He has written hundreds of policy papers to Chinese government, and published dozens of academic papers in China, the US and other countries.
Bob Sutter is Professor of Practice of International Affairs at the Elliott School of George Washington University. His previously full-time academic position was Visiting Professor of Asian Studies at Georgetown University (2001-2011). Sutter’s government career (1968-2001) saw service as senior specialist and director of the Foreign Affairs and National Defense Division of the Congressional Research Service, the National Intelligence Officer for East Asia and the Pacific at the US Government’s National Intelligence Council, the China division director at the Department of State’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research and professional staff member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Sutter has published numerous books, articles and several hundred government reports dealing with contemporary East Asian and Pacific countries and their relations with the United States.
Zach Zhang is the Alumni Mentor, supporting student groups by addressing questions related to project development. An alumnus of the inaugural Common Ground Program in 2024, he is currently a Schwarzman Scholar at Tsinghua University. He earned his BA in International Affairs from George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs, where he initiated projects fostering trust and understanding between Chinese and American foreign policy experts. Zach has also interned at various think tanks in Washington, D.C., and Beijing.
The students, mentors, and advisors will meet regularly throughout the spring semester to develop their projects. Stay tuned for more on this exciting journey! launched a new project to bring American and Chinese students together, working on areas where US-China cooperation is urgently needed in an era of competition and tension between the two countries.
See here for biographies of Common Ground project mentors.
See here for biographies of Common Ground participating students.