Embracing the spirit of the Silk Road– ‘peace and friendship, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit’, We, the representative members of the University Alliance of the Silk Road (UASR), are committed to promoting the openness and cooperation in higher education. Advocating the exchanges and mutual learning among diverse cultures, we are devoted to the common prosperity of humankind. We hereby adopt the UASR Charter at the first Executive Council meeting held today in Xi’an, the starting point of the ancient Silk Road, and reach upon the following consensus:

——Adhering to the principle of consultation and joint construction, we shall improve the institutional system and operational mechanism of the Alliance.  UASR shall establish the information platform to facilitate cooperation among the members, and promote regional and specialized sub-alliances of under the framework of the UASR charter.

——Advocating the spirit of openness and inclusiveness, we shall initiate the joint-training and the cooperative education. UASR shall promote multiple forms of cooperation in talent cultivation, expanding the scale of student exchange and cultivating high-level and interdisciplinary talents with an international vision.

——Upholding the concept of extensive exchanges and mutual learning, we shall organize various activities to enhance cultural dialogues and cooperation. UASR shall carry out the collaborations in the fields of culture, science &technology and sports to boost the exchanges among members and strengthen the friendship in the young generations.

—— Acknowledging the commitment of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, we shall support multi-tiered and wide-ranging cooperation in research.  UASR shall enhance the cooperation in science and technology in order to establish joint research centers and international technology transfer centers. The alliance shall promote cooperation between think-tanks of different members and countries. Focusing on the major issue concerning the development of human beings, UASR shall form inter-displinary and cross-cultural research centers to develop significant collaborative platforms.

The Silk Road has witnessed a long history of openness and cooperation in global scale. Today, once again, it is witnessing the opening of a new page of educational cooperation in the ancient city of Chang’an, for the "glory of the world". Hereby We all Members of the UASR sincerely undertake to pursue our common goal for the openness and cooperation in higher education, and to strive for the sustainable development and common prosperity of all humankind!

(This consensus was written in Chinese and English and adopted on 9 April 2016 in Xi'an, China.)