At the January unveiling, a museum curator suggested that the statue showcased Confucius's political and cultural significance.

ECONOMIST: In the night an old philosopher mysteriously vanishes

The students are participating in an annual culture and language learning trip to China through the University of Maryland's Confucius Institute.

CNN: Group of 22 U.S. students quarantined in China

China's government grasps the importance of cultural ties: it has funded hundreds of Confucius Institutes to teach Chinese and nurture China's soft power.

ECONOMIST: Schumpeter

Aware of the need for intellectuals, politicians and civil society from everywhere to rally this cause, UNESCO and the Confucius Institute of the People's Republic of China Headquarters have joined forces to host the Paris-Nishan Forum on "Confucianism and New Humanism in a Globalized World" at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on 16 April 2012.

UNESCO: House | United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

One of two awards of the UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy goes to the U.S.-based Room to Read for its effective programme, Promoting Gender Equality and Literacy through Local Language Publishing.

UNESCO: Communication and Information

Programmes in Nepal and Egypt are receiving the UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy, supported by the People's Republic of China.

UNESCO: International Literacy Day (8 September): UNESCO launches new Knowledge and Innovations Network for Literacy (KINL)

Confucius may not inhabit the crypt, but he still haunts the nation's heart.

CNN: ASIANOW - TIME Asia | China: Inside China's Search for Its Soul

Confucius has been seized on as a possible antidote to a perceived lack of morals accompanying China's headlong rush towards modernity.

ECONOMIST: In the night an old philosopher mysteriously vanishes