He Yalan: Continuously Develop the Culture of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics in the New Era | Marxism Research Network

He Yalan, Deputy Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and President of the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, focuses her discourse on "Continuously Developing Chinese Socialism Culture in the New Era," expanding her analysis across three dimensions: theory, practice, and guarantees. She emphasizes that Xi Jinping Thought on Culture is the work that "establishes the roots and casts the soul" ^[1] of cultural development. She posits that the "Two Combinations" ^[2] constitute the fundamental path, requiring a firm grasp of the integration between the "soul-vein" of Marxism and the "root-vein" of fine traditional Chinese culture. Cultural confidence serves as the spiritual core, necessitating the activation of the innovative and creative vitality of the masses. Furthermore, openness and inclusiveness are defining characteristics, contributing a Chinese solution to global cultural development through the Global Civilization Initiative.

On the practical level, Beijing, as the national cultural center, has achieved significant results in ancient capital protection, public cultural services, and cultural industry upgrading within the framework of "One Core, One City, Three Belts, and Two Districts" ^[3]. In 2024, the revenue of cultural enterprises above designated size ^[4] reached 2,302.26 billion yuan, with revenue from new cultural business formats accounting for 70.7%. She proposes the construction of a "four-in-one" guarantee mechanism comprising "Party leadership, institutional reform, talent support, and the rule of law." By strengthening the guidance of Party building, deepening reform and innovation, building a strong contingent of talent, and perfecting the legal system, long-term momentum can be injected into cultural construction.

Notes

↩ [1] 立根铸魂 (lì gēn zhù hún): A metaphorical expression frequently used in CPC ideological work. "Establishing the roots" refers to grounding development in traditional culture and fundamental principles, while "casting the soul" refers to the ideological work of shaping the values and spirit of the people and the Party.

↩ [2] 两个结合 (liǎng gè jié hé): The "Two Combinations" refer to combining the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and with China's fine traditional culture. This concept is central to the Sinicization of Marxism in the New Era.

↩ [3] 一核一城三带两区 (yī hé yī chéng sān dài liǎng qū): Refers to the spatial layout of Beijing's cultural strategic positioning. The "One Core" is the core area of the capital; "One City" is the historic old city; "Three Belts" are the Grand Canal Cultural Belt, the Great Wall Cultural Belt, and the Western Hills-Yongding River Cultural Belt; "Two Zones" refer to the National Cultural Center Demonstration Zone and the Cultural and Creative Industry Development Demonstration Zone.

↩ [4] 规模以上文化企业 (guī mó yǐ shàng wén huà qǐ yè): A statistical category in China referring to cultural enterprises with an annual main business income above a certain threshold (usually 5 million to 20 million yuan depending on the specific sector), used as a key indicator of industrial health and scale.