Professor Chu Hung-lam, Chair Professor of Chinese Culture and Chang Jiang Scholars Chair Professor of Pre-modern Chinese History at PolyU, was appointed as a lead scholar of the Chinese Academy of History to steer the study of grassroots social governance in ancient China.

Professor Chu was among the five lead scholars the Academy announced in its inaugurating appointments on 3 January 2022. Each expert will lead a research team with members from various institutions around the Nation.

The research team of Professor Chu includes 12 other scholars and experts in history, jurisprudence, ethics, and public administration. They come from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences, and leading universities on the mainland like Zhejiang University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Wuhan University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Sun Yat-sen University, Hunan Normal University, and Anhui Normal University.

Their research project will focus on the study of community compacts, rules and regulations of villages and clans from the Song dynasty to the Qing dynasty. Researchers will also explore how these ancient institutions may shed light on present-day public administration and governance at the local level.