DUSHANBE, 07.07.2026 (NIAT Khovar) – Recently, the Qingdao City Promotion and Cultural Exchange event themed “Qingdao Opportunities for a Shared Future” was held in Regensburg, Germany. The event was sponsored by the Information Office of the Qingdao Municipal People’s Government.

A promotional video of Qingdao was screened at the event, showcasing the city’s openness and inclusiveness, its excellent business environment, and and its dynamic industrial development strengths. It vividly presents Qingdao’s high-level opening-up and high-quality development in the new era, allowing attending guests to gain a deeper appreciation of the unique charm and development potential of this modern international metropolis.

Wang Hua, president of the Regensburg German-Chinese Friendship and Cultural Exchange Association, gave the participants an introduction to Qingdao’s efforts to promote the development of  the China Health Bay. Leveraging the University of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, China’s only new research university specializing in rehabilitation, Qingdao is actively building an innovation ecosystem that integrates education, science and technology, talent, and industry, while accelerating the development of a life and health industry cluster valued at more than 100 billion yuan. The city strives to develop into an internationally influential “wellness city surrounded by mountains and sea and charaterized by a vibrant health bay area.” This will provide broad opportunities for cooperation between China and Germany in areas such as rehabilitation, eldercare, talent development, and industrial collaboration.

Silvia Hipert, an executive at a German strategic consulting firm, shared insights from a strategic development perspective based on her observations of and reflections on China’s development direction during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, particularly her understanding of trends in the silver economy. Silvia said that, against the backdrop of population aging, China and Germany have significant potential for cooperation in health management, eldercare service innovation, and smart eldercare.

Prof. Thomas Bonkovski of the University of Regensburg, who serves as chairman of the Association of Friends and Supporters of Nursing at Regensburg University Hospital, highlighted China’s strengths in innovative eldercare service delivery and smart eldercare applications. He said he hopes to help further strengthen exchanges and cooperation between Germany and China in medical care, eldercare services, and professional talent development, enhancing the health and well-being of people in both countries through complementary strengths and shared experience.

During the event, a photo exhibition showcasing Qingdao’s cityscapes and the “Qingdao Premium Products” intangible cultural heritage exhibition were also held. The ingeniously crafted intangible cultural heritage works—such as Jimo lace artworks and Jiaozhou paper-cutting—and the beautiful photographs of mountains, sea and city allowed the guests to deeply understand Qingdao’s profound history and culture in an immersive way.

The event further enhanced understanding of Qingdao among people from all walks of life in Regensburg and raised the city’s visibility and influence in Germany and across Europe.