The signing ceremony takes place for the new China-Malaysia Tea Culture International Research Center. [Photo/WeChat account: zisuwlxy]

Zhejiang International Studies University, the Malaysia-China Cultural Tourism Association and the Malaysian Tea Association signed a cooperation agreement on July 12 in Hangzhou — capital of East China's Zhejiang province — to launch the China-Malaysia Tea Culture International Research Center.

Establishing the center represents a major initiative by the university to advance international academic cooperation and to contribute to Hangzhou's global engagement.

To date, the center has already attracted scholars from several Malaysian universities, including the University of Malaya, Sunway University and HELP University.

A research team from Zhejiang International Studies University learns about local tea in the tea plantations of the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia. [Photo/WeChat account: zisuwlxy]

Having evolved from the 2024 China-Malaysia Youth Exchange Program, the center is building on fieldwork within Malaysia's tea industry being conducted by a research team from Zhejiang International Studies University.

The team visited nearly 10 representative Chinese-owned tea business enterprises and studied cultivation and processing techniques in the tea plantations of the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia, gathering valuable first-hand data.

During the center's preparation phase, China and Malaysia co-hosted a series of academic lectures and seminars and published several research papers. These explored Chinese tea culture's historical roots, its contemporary challenges and future innovative path in the southeastern Asian country — helping to define the center's research direction and generate initial findings.

Moving forwards, plans are for the center to serve as a key connector between China and Malaysia's tea industries and their academic sectors.

It will integrate Malaysia's academic and industrial resources and promote high-level academic research, youth collaboration, cultural exchanges and industry development through regular events.