On September 9, 2026, Professor Pei Changhong, former Director of the Institute of Economics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Chair Professor at the University of International Business and Economics, and a member of the National Social Science Fund’s applied economics review panel, delivered an invited lecture in the CESD Distinguished Lecture Series. His lecture was entitled ‘Theoretical Awareness and Epistemological Foundations for Building an Independent Knowledge System of Chinese Economics.’ Professor Du Chuanzhong, Director of CESD’s Institute of Industrial Economics, chaired the event. Attendees included Dean Professor Liu Binglian, Associate Deans Professor Bai Xuejie and Professor Liu Weilin, Professors Li Lanbing, Pang Ruizhi, and Zhang Gui, and other CESD faculty and students.

Professor Pei called for a thorough exploration of China’s economic history and the history of its economic thought, alongside the critical assimilation of useful contributions from economics developed abroad. On this foundation, he argued, scholars should draw on China’s reform and development to formulate original, distinctive concepts and develop theoretical, academic, and discourse systems that explain Chinese economic practice and reflect Chinese characteristics and approaches. Discussing the role of artificial intelligence in economic research, he observed that AI can improve the efficiency of literature searches, data processing, and econometric analysis, but cannot replace economists’ independent thinking, value judgments, or critical inquiry. After the lecture, faculty and students engaged Professor Pei in detailed discussions on pathways toward an independent knowledge system and innovations in economic research paradigms.