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Orientalist scholar, Doctor of Historical Sciences Klara Shaisultanovna Khafizova joined the faculty of the Branch Campus of BLCU at Astana International University.

Professor Khafizova is a recognized expert on the history of international relations and Chinese foreign policy in Central Asia, Kazakh-Chinese relations and Chinese sources on Kazakhs and Dzungars.

Klara Shaisultanovna is also the author of many scientific articles and monographs, including “Chinese Diplomacy in Central Asia. XIV-XIX centuries“, ‘Kazakh’ strategy of the Qing Empire”, “Dialogue of civilizations of Central and East Asia”, “Dialogue of civilizations on the Silk Road”, “Steppe rulers and their diplomacy in XVIII-XIX centuries”.

The cooperation between Astana International University and Klara Shaisultanovna Khafizova will make a significant contribution to the teaching of Chinese history and foreign policy, as well as help students delve deeper into the richness of Chinese culture and language.

✔️Cooperation between Kazakh and Chinese universities will provide students with unique opportunities for learning and professional growth, and will contribute to the development of language skills, intercultural communication and scientific research.

✔️The successful implementation of these projects is expected to be an important step towards enhancing cultural and educational exchanges, as well as developing political and economic relations between the two countries.

The Research Institute of the New Eurasian Land-Sea Transport Corridor at the International University of Astana, together with the International Alliance of Chinese Freight Forwarders and the Union of Transporters of Kazakhstan “KazLogistics”, jointly held a B2B meeting of transport and logistics companies of Kazakhstan and China on May 17.

The Chinese delegation was led by Sheng Xin, Vice President of the Ocean University and Director of the Research Institute of the New Asia-Europe Land-Sea Transport Corridor.

Kazakhstan-China relations have demonstrated continuous growth dynamics for over 30 years. The transportation and logistics direction is becoming increasingly important. Kazakhstan's geographical location provides our country with great opportunities. China, in turn, implementing the Belt and Road Initiative, is interested in a reliable partner.

Currently, favorable opportunities are emerging for the implementation of joint projects in the field of transportation and logistics. More than 90 companies from both countries participated in the event. The head of the Chinese delegation was Lin Beizhan, President of the Lianyungang Belt and Road Development and Research Association and Secretary-General of the International Alliance of Freight Railway Expresses.

The main objectives of the visit were to discuss joint projects for the development of transportation routes, strengthen partnership relations between Kazakhstani and Chinese transport and logistics companies, explore opportunities for mutual investments, exchange experiences in logistics and transportation management, and conclude agreements.

The event proved to be a significant milestone towards the creation of an efficient and modern transportation and logistics system linking our countries and promoting the development of international trade.

As a result of the event, the parties reached a common understanding about the necessity of holding B2B meetings of transport and logistics companies on an annual basis. It was also decided to organize a visit of a delegation of Kazakhstani transport and logistics companies to China in the fall of this year.

The Ambassador of China to Kazakhstan Zhang Xiao visited Astana International University. During the negotiations with the President of AIU Serik Irsaliyev the parties discussed a number of important issues regarding bilateral relations in the field of higher education and science.

The President of AIU outlined the university's key priorities and collaboration with leading Chinese universities (Beijing, Tsinghua, UIBE, BLCU, Fudan, Jiangsu). He particularly highlighted the visit of a delegation from a Kazakhstani university to China in March of this year, during which an agreement was signed to establish a branch campus of Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU) at AIU.

The head of the diplomatic mission positively assessed the development of cooperation between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the People's Republic of China in the field of education and science. According to him, Chinese universities are eager to establish and develop partnership contacts with Kazakhstani universities, among which AIU holds an important position. He emphasized the significance of opening a branch campus of BLCU, which is the main university for training Sinologists and Chinese language translators. The Embassy, on its part, will provide necessary assistance in organizing the branch's operations.

The delegation of Astana International University led by President S.A. Irsaliyev visited the city of Lianyungang in China.

The first meeting of board of directors of the Research Institute of the New Land-Sea Transport Corridor Asia-Europe was held at the Oceanological University of Jiangsu Province, China. The meeting was attended by the head of the city development and reform committee Wei Huai Yu, the president of Astana International University Irsaliyev Serik Aztaevich, the vice-rector of Jiangsu Ocean University Shen Xin, the executive director of the Institute for Strategic Studies of the Belt and Road Initiative of Tsinghua University Shi Zhiqin.

Wei Huaiyu was appointed chairman of the board of directors of the New Asia-Europe Research Institute, Serik Irsaliyev was appointed chairman of the Kazakh branch, and Fan Ziqiang and Kairat Abdrakhmanov were appointed deputy chairmen from the Chinese and Kazakh sides, respectively.

In his speech, Wei Huaiyu briefly spoke about the economic and social development of Lianyungang City, as well as the experience of exchanges and cooperation between Lianyungang City and Kazakhstan. He expressed hope that communication bridges through scientific and cultural activities, by promoting exchanges and cooperation between the political, business and academic societies of Kazakhstan and other Central Asian countries and Lianyungang will contribute to the development of the region. Lianyungang will become an international exchange center for countries and regions along the New Asia-Europe Land-Sea Transport Corridor; organizing talent exchange events, training for foreign students from Central Asian countries and other events.

Serik Irsaliyev spoke about the progress of friendly exchanges between China and Kazakhstan in recent years, as well as about joint efforts of establishment of the Asia-Europe Intermodal Transport Corridor Research Institute. He said that we are witnessing the formation of a new global economic and geographical model. The unique advantages of Kazakhstan’s location, as well as China’s formation of a logistics network in countries and regions along the Belt and Road will help strengthen the high quality of container trains on the China-Europe route, the development and participation in the construction of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor, which has provided favorable conditions for construction and development of research institutes. We hope to develop the institute into a platform for collaborative research and learning, exchange of experiences and practices, and creation of development opportunities, and work together to actively promote sustainable economic and human capital development.

Experts and scholars in related fields from Tsinghua University, Jiangsu Ocean University, Lianyung Economic Development Zone, China-Russia Digital Economy Research Center and SCO International Logistics Park (Lianyungang) were invited to the meeting.

The AIU delegation also visited the port and the Kazakh-Chinese logistics cooperation base in Lianyungang, where employees of JSC KTZ Express organized an excursion and introduced in detail the activities of the joint terminal.

The visit resulted in agreements to deepen bilateral cooperation with the Chinese side in the scientific and educational sphere.

The administration of Astana International University (AIU) and the Embassy of Kazakhstan in China convened an official meeting with delegates from the Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU). Subsequent to the deliberations, the parties formalized an agreement to inaugurate a branch of the institution in Kazakhstan.

During the gathering, which convened in the capital of the People's Republic of China, it was underscored that the establishment of a BLCU branch in our country constitutes a logical progression of the enduring partnership between the two nations in the realms of science, education, and culture.

The branch will accommodate the "HSK Center" (a facility dedicated to the study and assessment of the Chinese language) to evaluate the proficiency levels of students engaged in Chinese language studies. Furthermore, pursuant to the agreement, dual-degree programs will be implemented for students hailing from both nations.

BLCU stands as a preeminent educational institution in China, specializing in humanities, with a storied history of having graduated approximately 300,000 foreign students over the course of its six decades of existence.

International Astana University (hereinafter - AIU) has won the scientific project GUCAE-Consolidate with the support of the German Ministry of Education and Science under the leadership of the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Development in Countries in Transition (hereinafter - IAMO). 

The consortium of foreign partners along with Astana International University (AIU) from Central Asia includes: International Agricultural University IAU (Uzbekistan, Tashkent), (TBC), Institute of System Analysis and Development of Agricultural Economics (Tajikistan, TBC) and Ashgabat Agrarian Institute (TBC). 

The main objective of the international project is to develop research skills of PhDs, postdoctoral fellows, young researchers and PhD doctoral students from universities in Central Asia and Germany.

Through the proposed project, the consortium aims to take GUCAE-Consolidate to a new level by addressing pressing issues such as working with advanced econometric methods, mutual exchange and expanding linkages in agricultural and environmental economics. 

A team of scientists and PhD doctoral students from the Higher School of Economics will participate on behalf of AIU.

The visit of Professor Simon Redfern, the Dean of the College of Science at Nanyang Technological University, to Astana International University as part of the academic mobility program initiated by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan, has drawn to a close. Throughout his stay, the professor delivered lectures to students, hosted a master class and training sessions for budding scientists and doctoral candidates, and conducted scientific seminars for the university's teaching staff. Additionally, Professor Redfern held discussions with Arman Ashkin, the Deputy Chairman of the Board of JSC Center for International Programs (Bolashak), as well as met with the British Embassy in Kazakhstan.. These meetings delved into the potential for fostering bilateral connections in the realms of science and education among Singapore, Great Britain, and Kazakhstan.

Professor Redfern has held several competitive UK research grants (total funding of more than £25m). He has also supervised over 30 PhD students in Cambridge and NTU, and acted as postdoctoral mentor and advisor to more than 20 postdoctoral researchers.He has published more than 270 peer-reviewed papers in the scientific literature (H-index 56 [ISI], 58 (Scopus), 65 [Google Scholar]), in internationally leading journals including Nature, Science, Physical Review Letters, Advanced Materials, Earth and Planetary Sciences Letters, JACS, Applied Physics Letters, and GRL. Professor Redfern is the recipient of the European Mineralogical Society’s Medal for Research Excellence and is the only individual to have been awarded both the Max Hey and Schlumberger Medals of the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland, of which he is a Fellow. Simon Redfern is also Fellow of the Mineralogical Society of America and of the Geological Society of London. He was also a member of the UK ministerially-appointed Committee on Radioactive Waste Management charged with providing independent scrutiny of the development of a geological radioactive waste repository in the UK.

Professor Simon Redfern of Nanyang Technological University (Singapore) conducted a master class and training on the topic “Writing and Publishing Academic Paper” for teaching staff, doctoral students and master’s students of Astana International University.

During the master class, Professor Simon Redfern spoke about the style and features of writing an academic article, research methods, gave examples from his own experience as an editor of a scientific journal, and shared his insights on top-rated journals for publishing the main results of doctoral students' dissertations.

During the training, the professor gave specific tasks for young scientists in order to improve their skills in meeting the standards of writing and formatting scientific papers. He answered questions regarding the choice of topic and structure of scientific papers.

  It is worth noting that Professor Simon Redfern is actively engaged in scientific research aimed at studying the properties of minerals under conditions of high temperature and pressure. He has more than 260 scientific articles, his H-index is 58 (Scopus), 56 (WoS), 65 (Google scholar).

A teacher from Nanyang Technological University, Dr. Xiaolei Feng, conducted research and methodological seminars for teaching staff and students of the Higher School of Natural Sciences and the Pedagogical Institute of Astana International University.

Xiaolei Feng is trained as a condensed matter physicist, having graduated with a bachelor’s degree and PhD from the department of Physics of Jilin University, China. Towards the end of her studies at Jilin, she realised the need to broaden her understanding of the physics of materials to encompass naturally-occurring materials’ behaviour in the environment. She therefore took the opportunity to undertake a 2nd PhD at the department of Earth sciences at University of Cambridge. She worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at the research institute “High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research (HPSTAR)” in Shanghai and Beijing, China. She also worked as associate professor at the Institute for Disaster Management and Reconstruction, Sichuan University, China before she joined the NTU in 2022. 

Dr. Xiaolei Feng spoke on the Sustainable Development Goals and how they can be implemented in the educational process, as well as advanced/innovative teaching methods used at the School of Materials Engineering NTU. Students and teaching staff thanked the speaker and organizers (teachers of the Pedagogical institute G.S. Sagimbayeva and A.B. Kazhigalieva) for the opportunity.

On December 11, 2023, Professor Simon Redfern of Nanyang Technological University (Singapore) conducted a seminar for the teaching staff of Astana International University. The professor proposed for discussion the current topic of the 21st century “Communication, education, and research in the age of AI.” From the question “Should we be afraid of artificial intelligence, since technological innovations such as a calculator, a mobile phone, the Internet, etc. have long been part of our lives?” - the professor began the seminar. Using real examples, he showed the capabilities of AI used by different groups of people. The professor emphasized that based on the results of students’ work using Chat GPT, it is difficult to unambiguously assess the skills and competence of students and specialists. Therefore, in modern times there is concern for the quality of knowledge of the younger generation. “With the help of intelligent programs, a student can write an excellent essay, draw a beautiful picture, prepare a good project, but to what extent can this student be an expert in his field?” “How can teachers and employers recognize a student’s true knowledge and skills?” These and other questions were raised in the lecture by Professor Simon Redfern.