The 15th ACYD marked a significant milestone in fostering meaningful connections between emerging leaders from Australia and China. This year’s dialogue not only showcased the city of Guangzhou as a hub of trade and cultural exchange, but also allowed the delegates of the ACYD to engage in impactful conversations that shape the future of bilateral engagement.
The 15th ACYD would not have been possible without the unwavering support of our Major, Associate and Affiliate partners: The National Foundation for Australia-China Relations, King & Wood Mallesons, Tourism Australia, and Airwallex. Their contributions, including ongoing support and the provision of expert panel members and world-class venues, ensured delegates could engage in a program that inspired collaboration and strengthened professional networks across borders.
Announcing the 30 Delegates of the 15th Australia-China Youth Dialogue 🌏
15th ACYD Delegates — The Australia-China Youth Dialogue
We’re thrilled to introduce the outstanding cohort selected for the 15th Australia-China Youth Dialogue (ACYD) — 30 emerging leaders from across government, business, academia, technology, media, and civil society, representing both nations’ next generation of emerging leaders.
This year’s delegates include Forbes 30 Under 30 honourees, UN-accredited researchers, diplomats, AI innovators, global correspondents, and social entrepreneurs driving impact across sectors from clean energy to culture.
From across Australia and China, they bring a wealth of experience. CEOs, diplomats academics, engineers, consultants, and creators. United by a shared commitment to deepening understanding and collaboration between the two countries.
Together, they’ll gather in Guangzhou, 21–24 November 2025, to explore how we can Buildresilience in uncertainty through dialogue, collaboration and shared vision.
Stay tuned over the next few days as we will be spotlighting our 30 delegates and the themes shaping the future of Australia–China engagement.
#ACYD2025 #AustraliaChina #YouthDiplomacy #PeopleToPeopleLinks #Leadership
#CrossCulturalDialogue
This annual report provides an overview of the 14th ACYD held in Adelaide, Australia, from the 22nd to the 25th of November 2024. A cohort of 30 exceptional Australian and Chinese citizens, aged 25-40, gathered to immerse in the key issues shaping the bilateral relationship between Australia and China.
Together, we are shaping the future of this important relationship by fostering understanding, strengthening people-to-people links, and promoting cultural and societal awareness. To all our partners supporting the 14th ACYD in 2024, thank you for your commitment to our shared vision.
The 14th Australia-China Youth Dialogue (ACYD) will be held in Adelaide this year from Friday 22nd November to Monday 25th November 2024, bringing together 28 delegates from both countries. The four-day conference will explore the overarching theme of Planning for The Future By Learning From The Past, with each day focusing on a particular topic including: Geopolitics, Trade and Investment, Education and Tourism, Energy and Sustainability. This year's dialogue will include panel discussions and interactive workshops, to be led by expert speakers from Australian government and universities, Australia-based Chinese companies, to bring discussions, insights and a more sophisticated understanding of the bilateral trade and investment relationship.
Jade Little, Executive Director said “the ACYD is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year and we will use this opportunity to reflect not just on the ACYD itself, but also on the development of the Australia-China relationship over the years”.
“We expect to deliver an engaging Dialogue with many contributions from our alumni cohort, which is set to hit 300 this year.”
“We have an overarching theme of technology, so during the four-day conference we will be considering this theme when approaching each topic during the Dialogue”, Ms. Little said.
This report summarises the ninth ACYD held in Melbourne from 2-5 November. It also tracks our progress towards our ultimate goal: enhancing and cultivating aspirational exchanges between outstanding and diverse Australian and Greater Chinese citizens between the ages of 25-40 years of age. ACYD never before has encountered a time when its opportunity and challenges have been greater in terms of advancing the relationship in a manner that is fundamental to Australia’s future in the region, and how China positions itself regionally and globally.
Neil Thomas is a Research Associate at MacroPolo at the Paulson Institute, where he works on Chinese politics and international political economy. Neil previously worked for The Australian National University, both as a Morrison Scholar at the Australian Centre on China in the World and as a Research Project Officer at the Crawford School of Public Policy. He has also spent time at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center, Danwei Media, and The Texas Tribune, and has written for various publications. Neil holds a Master in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Earlier this week an inspiring publication was launched which celebrates the Australia-China Council's achievements in fostering people-to-people links during the past 40 years was launched. This event and book launch was at the Australian Embassy in Beijing, with ACYD Board member and 2013 Alumna Cindy Gottinger as emcee.
Meeting ACYD is one kind of fate. Amazing and Fantastic.
ACYD 2018 was diverse and dynamic, which brought macro- and micro- perspectives and created an open and pleasant atmosphere to have in-depth discussions on various and important issues in the past four days. I did not realize how much I enjoyed ACYD until I recalled my endless happy memories with my friends back to China. I strongly recommend that more young talents should join ACYD family to grow people-to-people links between our two countries.
