

In December 2022, a group of Ostrom scholars from various leading Chinese universities hosted a virtual event to honor the lives and works of Distinguished Indiana University Professor Elinor Ostrom, 2009 winner of Noble Prize in Economic Sciences, and her husband Vincent Ostrom who was also a world-renowned scholar in political science. This event was organized to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of their passing and was attended by over 400 participants including activists, community leaders, and practitioners who implemented the concept of self-governance at a local level.
The esteemed couple, and the workshop named after them, are all highly respected and very well known in the country. Over the past two decades, a large number of Chinese scholars have studied and visited the Ostrom Workshop. They brought back to China not only the knowledge they gained from the two academic masters, but also their inspiring life attitude and spirit of continuously pursuing academic excellence. For many, Elinor and Vincent are not only their dear teachers but also their role models.
Scholars and graduate students from Tsinghua University (Tsinghua), Peking University (PKU), Renmin University of China (RUC), and Chinese University of Political Science and Law (CUPL) gave presentations and passionately reflected upon their personal experiences in learning with the Ostroms. The event was attended by hundreds of scholars across China, emphasizing the depth and breadth of the impact that Indiana University has across the country, both academically and in practical applications of their work.
The event started with a short preview of the film Actual World, Possible Future.This WTIU documentary film from 2020 about the Ostroms was only recently translated into Chinese by Professor Shoulong MAO and Professor Youhong CHEN from RUC, and Professor Jianxun WANG from CUPL, who also helped to coordinate part of the film’s production in China. They shared stories about filming in China and the translation process, then kicked off a series of presentations and personal remembrances that exemplified the real-world impacts of the Ostrom Workshop in China.
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