The Shanghai Institute of American Studies (SIAS) is a governmental research organization affiliated to the Shanghai Federation of Social Science Associations, established on November 22, 2009. Our mission is to improve Sino-US relations and to strengthen mutual understanding between the two countries through research projects and related activities. We offer a unique Chinese approach to US studies. Funded by the Shanghai municipal government, we provide advisory services to the central government as well as local decision makers.

Since our establishment, we have initiated research into topics such as a new type of major power relationship between China and the US, American anti-terrorism strategies, cultural diplomacy, and the maritime strategies of the US and major Asia-Pacific countries. We have organized and sponsored close to 100 conferences, seminars and workshops. Notable forums include “The Contemporary World Studies Speaker Series” “Marine Salon” and "The Sino-US Cultural Diplomacy Roundtable Seminar”. These and other forums have served as excellent platforms for candid exchange of opinions, and have also become reputable programs in the academic world.

Further sharpening our research focus, we have established four centers dedicated to different fields: the US Foreign Policy and NGO Research Center, the Crisis Management and Anti-Terrorism Research Center, the Maritime Strategies Research Center and the Shanghai-American Exchanges Research Center.

Over the years, we have produced many publications. Our books are highly regarded around the world by experts and the public; major titles include Shanghai Images: A Pictorial Century of Sino-US Relations, Americans in Shanghai, the American Studies Series, and the American Economic Diplomacy Studies Series.