The ability of Chinese civilization to maintain its uniqueness while being open, inclusive, and ever-evolving is the foundation for the success of Chinese-style modernization, Zheng Yongnian, a scholar from the Chinese mainland told a Macao civilization forum on Tuesday.

Zheng, who is the dean of the School of Public Policy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and director of the Institute for International Affairs, Qianhai, made the remarks when delivering a keynote speech at the 2025 International Forum on Mutual Learning Among Civilizations.

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Summarizing the core principles of different countries’ modernization, he said that a modernization model aligned with a country’s own civilization, culture, and national conditions is more likely to succeed, whereas simply copying foreign models is likely to result in failure.

Zheng said Chinese-style modernization has two essential characteristics: embracing the world while steadfastly following its own path, and assisting other countries after achieving self-development. This approach aims to promote the construction of a community with a shared future for humanity.

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Regarding international affairs, so far China has proposed four major initiatives in global development, security, civilizational dialogue, and governance. These initiatives offer the world an alternative path to modernization different from that of the West, contributing to the creation of a fair and equitable global order, Zheng said.

He said he believes that the initiatives embody China’s vision for shaping the future global order, which will aid in achieving its mission to pursue internal modernization while promoting external peace, ultimately realizing a community with a shared future for humanity.