The Human Rights Research Center, Zhejiang University evolved from the Zhejiang University Center for Public Law Studies, which was established in 2005. In order to further implement General Secretary and President Xi Jinping’s important discourse on respecting and protecting human rights, serve the overall development of China’s human rights cause, and respond to changing domestic and international circumstances as well as disciplinary developments, the Center was officially renamed the Human Rights Research Center, Zhejiang University in December 2023 with the approval of the University.
Drawing on Zhejiang’s strategic position as a Demonstration Zone for Common Prosperity and High-Quality Development, and supported by the interdisciplinary strengths of Zhejiang University as a comprehensive research university, the Center is dedicated to developing an independent Chinese knowledge system on human rights. It aims to become an internationally recognized platform for human rights scholarship, talent cultivation, and policy research, rooted in Zhejiang University, based in the Yangtze River Delta region, serving China, and engaging with the world.
The Center has developed a multidisciplinary research framework centered on legal studies while incorporating expertise from Marxist studies, public administration, economics, philosophy, media and communication, history, and other fields. Its legal research is supported by Zhejiang University’s strengths in jurisprudence and public law. The Center has established a distinguished and influential research team that includes leading scholars such as Xiaoxia Sun, Zhiping Liang, Minyuan Wang, Ming Hu, Jun Yu, Le Cheng, and Linghao Wang. Their work has made significant contributions to human rights philosophy, fundamental theories of human rights, innovative approaches to human rights justification, and human rights protection in the context of social transformation.
The Center also actively promotes interdisciplinary research on human rights. Its research agenda covers a wide range of topics, including international human rights, democracy and human rights, human rights diplomacy, human rights and economic development, environmental rights, migration law and human rights, the rights of children and women, consumer rights, property rights, human rights in public participation, democratic governance and human rights, as well as emerging issues such as personal information protection, digital identity, and data transactions.
Supported by a research team with diverse expertise and a well-balanced disciplinary structure, the Center has achieved significant results in human rights theory, innovation in human rights discourse, policy consultation, and international engagement. Its work has generated substantial academic and social impact. The Center has identified three key areas of strategic development: the construction of an independent Chinese human rights knowledge system, digital human rights studies, and the international communication of human rights theory.
In developing an independent Chinese human rights knowledge system, the Center examines the intellectual origins and theoretical characteristics of China’s human rights discourse by integrating Marxist views on human rights with Chinese realities and the rich traditions of Chinese culture. It seeks to formulate original concepts and analytical frameworks grounded in China’s practical experience, and to provide theoretical support for the development of a distinctly Chinese disciplinary, academic, and discourse system for human rights studies.
In the field of digital human rights, the Center focuses on the transformation of rights paradigms in the digital age. It investigates emerging human rights issues and challenges such as the digital divide and algorithmic discrimination, explores the conceptual dimensions and normative foundations of digital human rights, and develops a comprehensive framework encompassing digital political rights, digital economic rights, and rights related to digital culture and social development.
In the field of international communication of human rights theory, the Center relies on high-level academic dialogue platforms, including international human rights forums and conferences, to critically examine the structural limitations of Western-centered human rights paradigms. It promotes sustained mechanisms for international academic exchange and mutual learning, enhances the global visibility and influence of Chinese human rights theory, and contributes academic insights and practical solutions to the development of a more just, inclusive, and equitable system of global human rights governance.
