On September 23rd, the 2025 Forum for Asia-Pacific Maritime Culture in association with the ICMM Regional Meeting, co-hosted by China Maritime Museum (CMM) and Hong Kong Maritime Museum (HKMM), kicked off in Hong Kong. With the collaborative support of International Congress of Maritime Museum (ICMM), the forum gathered over 100 experts and scholars from around the world. Thirty guests from 18 countries and regions delivered speeches and shared their insights, jointly exploring cutting-edge topics in maritime culture.

Wang Shifa, Director of the Marine Department of Hong Kong, Jin Xiao, Inspector II (Deputy Director General Level ) of the Shanghai Municipal Transportation Commission, and Richard Kendall, Director and Chief Executive of Hong Kong Maritime Museum, delivered opening remarks respectively. Kristen Greenaway, President of International Congress of Maritime Museums (ICMM), President & CEO of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, and Professor An Laishun, Chairman of the Asia Pacific Alliance of International Councils of Museums, Vice President of the China Museums Association, Professor of Shanghai University (China), gave keynote speeches.

On behalf of the forum, Zhao Feng, Director General of China Maritime Museum, launched the initiative titled “Blue Ocean·Global Symbiosis–Proposal for Building an International Maritime Culture Research and Development Network”. Lu Wei, Deputy Director General of the China Maritime Museum, delivered a speech themed “Zheng He’s Voyages to the Western Ocean from a Shipping Perspective and Exhibition Curation”, further expanding the international influence of CMM’s exhibitions related to Zheng He.