Every year on 26 November, UNESCO marks World Olive Tree Day, a relatively new observance (proclaimed in 2019) that reflects a very old reality: the olive tree has been woven into human history for millennia (UNESCO, 2019). As food, fuel, medicine, and timber, Olea europaea has shaped Mediterranean economies and landscapes; as symbol and metaphor, it has carried meanings of wisdom, peace, and endurance from antiquity to the present.

Thirty-five years after establishing diplomatic ties, Saudi Arabia and China are opening a new chapter with the Saudi-Chinese Cultural Year 2025. Announced in March by the Saudi Ministry of Culture, the year-long program highlights culture as a bridge between two civilizations with ancient roots and global ambition. This approach reflects the soft-power policies that both nations have embraced, using culture, art, and education to reinforce political and economic ties as a pa