Dong Shijie is an Assistant Professor at the Law School of Xiamen University, concurrently serving as the Executive Deputy Editor-in-Chief of China Oceans Law Review. His research focuses on fundamental theories of public international law, maritime disputes settlement, and the international seabed area regime. He has published over 20 academic articles in both Chinese and English, and is the author of one Chinese monograph-Legal Issues Concerning Existing Petroleum Contracts in Disputed Maritime Areas. He has led and completed a National Social Science Fund Youth Project titled "The Influence of the Distribution of Philippine Foreign Affairs Powers on the China-Philippines South China Sea Disputes and Countermeasures," as well as several ministerial and provincial-level research projects.