WHAT: The Long March to Modern China: Three decades on from his epic historical adventure following the course of Mao's Long March, conservationist William Lindesay reflects on what remains of the spirit of modern China he witnessed along the route.

WHEN: Nov. 13, 2024, Wednesday from 7:00 to 8:00 PM Beijing Time

WHERE: La Maison Lyonnaise 2F, 44 Guanghua Lu, Chaoyang District, Beijing.

北京市朝阳区光华路44号（巴西大使馆对面）

ABOUT THE EVENT: Having been out of 'conventional employment' for four years to make a journey on foot along the Ming Great Wall and write an account of his adventure, William Lindesay faced the question of where to spend his future — in Britain or in China? He chose Beijjng and embarked on a second historical adventure, seeking to retrace sections of the Red Army's Long March in time for the centenary of Mao Zedong's birth. William published, Marching with Mao: A Biographical Journey (Hodder & Stoughton, London) in 1993. Three decades later, William reflects on his quest to explain what led to the Long March and what the Long March led to — the foundation of the People's Republic. To mark the 90th anniversary of the military epic, William shares with RASBJ recollections of the 1990s China life he led as he sought to understand modern China by following the man who founded it.

MORE ABOUT THE SPEAKER: William Lindesay is an English author, runner, and conservationist, best known for his efforts to protect and conserve the Great Wall of China, and for having invented the phrase "Wild Wall". He first went to China to run on the Great Wall in 1986, making the first documented traverse of the ruins on foot the following year, covering 2,470 km. He is a current honorary senior research fellow at University of Liverpool, and received the Royal Society for Asian Affairs' Special Award in 2016. He was the first person to discover an unmapped section of the Great Wall in the Gobi Desert, and has served as an official ambassador for Great Wall conservation since 1998 when he received the Friendship Award from the People's Republic of China. Recollections of William's Long March years are included in his recently published memoir, Wild Wall (Earnshaw Books, Hong Kong, 2022).

HOW MUCH: RMB 200 for members of RASBJ and of RAS branches in London, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul. RMB 300 for non-members. Includes a welcome drink and nibbles. You may find payment by Alipay easier than by Wechat; you can also pay by credit card. Interested in becoming an RASBJ member? Please sign up at http://rasbj.org/membership/​

HOW TO JOIN THE EVENT: Please click "Register" or "I will attend" before noon on Nov. 11 and follow the instructions. After successful registration you'll receive a confirmation email. If you seem not to have received it, please check your spam folder.

MEMBERS OF PARTNER RAS BRANCHES: Please register 72 hours in advance to allow time for membership verification. You'll receive three emails from us: the first confirming receipt of your registration request, the second requesting payment, and the third confirming receipt of payment. Any registrations which have not been paid for by noon on Nov. 11 will be de-activated.

REFUND POLICY: If RASBJ cancels the event, registrants will be refunded in full.