China International Forum on Cognitive Linguistics（CIFCL）is an annual event featuring on the “Ten Lecture Series” by the invited keynote speakers as well as on the presentations by the participants. It is an international conference in combination with intensive training courses in particular fields in CL. This forum is centered on CL, but also pays close attention to the development of other disciplines in cognitive science. The forum hosts the latest theories and data from the world's best cognitive scientists with a special focus on language and cognition from disciplines including linguistics, psychology, philosophy, anthropology, artificial intelligence, computer science, and education. Each year, in addition to the core of the forum, that is, the forum speakers' “ten lecture series”, the general participants are invited to submit papers within the whole range of cognitive science. The organizers endeavor to satisfy the general demand from the largest possible research population for latest theories, and for direct communication with the original scholars. The basic features of this forum can be best characterized as follows:

Originality

CIFCL only hosts researchers as forum speakers with original contribution to their own research fields.

Systematicity

Each forum speaker delivers a series of 10 lectures, which approximates a graduate course in teaching load. With this feature, CIFCL equals to “summer institute” in the intensity of training, and therefore the forum is favored by graduate students.

Interdisciplinary

CIFCL intends to invite scholars from all the subject disciplines of cognitive science, including linguistics, psychology, philosophy, anthropology, artificial intelligence, and computer science, with a special focus on language and cognition.

Latest Trends

This forum hosts the latest theories and research trends.

Non-profitable

The cost in inviting the forum speakers is from Beihang Grant for Outstanding International Scientists, which substantially reduces the registration fee. Registration fee will remain the lowest in this country comparing with the similar type of programs.

Audience-friendly

The whole program and the format of organizing are audience-oriented, academic irrelevant procedures and activities are not arranged.

Publications

CIFCL sponsors two publication series; one is the journal ofCognitive Semantics,published with Brill. It was previously published by Nova Science Publisher in New York (https://www.novapublishers.com/) under the title ofInternational Journal of Cognitive Linguistics. The other is theEminent Linguists’ Lectures Series,that is, the video DVD of the forum speakers’ lectures and text transcription, published with the Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, Beijing (http://www.fltrp.com/).

Conference-type

CIFCL is also an international conference; besides the forum lecture series, plenary sessions, parallel sessions, poster sessions, are arranged for the participants with papers. Participants can register to attend the forum with or without presenting a paper.

A Lecture Tour of Top Universities in Beijing

CIFCL is mainly sponsored by Beihang University, co-sponsored by a few other universities in Beijing. The first few days are usually arranged at Beihang University, with the remaining lectures arranged at a few other most prestigious universities in Beijing. The audience will have opportunity to visit Peking U, Tsinghua U, Beijing Normal U, Beijing Foreign Studies U, Beijing Forestry U, Beijing Language and Culture U, etc. and to communicate with the local faculties and students.