As a result of the development of the natural sciences such as astronomy and geography along with the leaps and bounds in shipbuilding and navigation, the contacts among different civilizations became unprecedentedly frequent in the 15th century. And driven by the Industrial Revolution, Western European civilization started to expand and forcefully impose itself on other civilizations.

In this way, Western European civilization made all civilizations connected and had decisive impacts upon them, to the extent that it advocated its superiority above all other civilizations and promoted the universality of its culture, social system and ideology. The doctrine of Western Civilization's universality caused great suffering for other civilizations. Colonial exploitation, two devastating World Wars, indelible racial discrimination, there can be no denying the fact that these agonizing historical events are deeply related to the negative influences of Western Civilization based on the conceit that it was superior to others.

However, coexistent diverse civilizations facilitate the progress of humankind. Each civilization is a unique cultural entity differentiated from others. As British historian Arnold Toynbee noted, every civilization consists of some unique parts which are incomprehensible to other civilizations. Civilizations have emerged, developed, adapted, boomed, prospered or perished in the course of history, but the uniqueness of civilizations constitutes the enduring continuation of human history. As matter of fact, each of the current major civilizations has evolved for more than 1,000 years, and some trace their origins back to several older ancient civilizations in earlier history.

The coexistence of diverse civilizations constitutes the mainstream of human history, and the plurality of civilizations originates from their cultural diversity. Civilizations are the product of cultural development, or put it in a simple way, civilizations are culture amplified. Especially in the era of globalization, more and more local cultures have obtained unprecedented opportunities to step onto the world stage and enrich themselves through cultural exchanges at the global level. Civilizations have appeared and disappeared, experienced ups and downs, convergence or confrontation, contact or conflict, nonetheless, the normal trend and mainstream is the coexistence of diverse civilizations. This is the general picture of the ecological system of human civilizations.

Undeniably, the plurality of civilizations based upon cultural diversity mean there are differences among civilizations, and the "stronger" civilizations have maintained obvious advantages over the "weaker" ones because of their respective development processes and stages. This enabled the strong to exploit the weak in the past. But in the era of globalization, the relationship between the current major civilizations has undergone fundamental readjustments. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the theory that there will be clashes between civilizations gained popularity. According to this theory, clashes between civilizations would dominate world politics and lead to confrontation and conflict. As matter of fact, the clashes of civilizations are only on the surface since they originate from the pursuit and competition for power, wealth and security by different countries and ethnic groups. The fundamental reasons leading to conflicts are socioeconomic, and it is the unjust and unequal world political and economic order that is the fundamental cause of the clashes between civilizations. It is true that cultural differences result in or even foster the conflicts, but they are not the primary cause.

The diversity of civilizations and cultures does not necessarily mean conflicts, on the contrary, it is the biases and misconceptions resulting from the misunderstandings and miscommunications that lead to clashes and conflicts. Therefore, it is important to promote exchanges among civilizations based upon respect for cultural diversity and adhering to the principle of putting aside minor differences so as to seek common ground. This is the modern and sustainable method to ensure the healthy and prosperous coexistence and progress of the diverse civilizations that exist today.

In order to promote dialogues and exchanges among different civilizations, it is urgent to establish and mobilize various platforms and ensure the sound functioning of international organizations such as UNESCO, as well as promoting bilateral and multilateral people-to-people exchanges. Each civilization can learn from others, so as to enhance the common prosperity and progress of humankind, and this is well illustrated by the vision to build a community of shared future for mankind.

Every civilization is proud of its glorious history and marvelous accomplishments, and has taken its own history as the main stage for the whole globe. But in this era of globalization, full of shared development, changes and adjustment, cultural diversity has become unprecedentedly obvious, as the exchanges and dialogues among civilizations have grown rapidly. Every civilization is undergoing tremendous adaption and adjustment, and as a result, civilizations are deeply integrated into this interdependent world and impossible to disconnect from the other civilizations.

Inclusiveness displays self-confidence, openness promotes integrity, civilizations benefit from exchanges and dialogues based upon respect for cultural diversity, and there are no other better solutions to guide the coexistence of the world civilizations.

The author is an associate professor at the School of Government and director of the Center for BRICS Cooperation Studies at Beijing Normal University. 

The author contributed this article to China Watch exclusively. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Watch.

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