CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Several students from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools got ready for a trip halfway across the world Sunday.

The students are on their way to Beijing, China. Sixteen CMS students and their chaperones met at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport at 7 a.m. Sunday.

The students are participating in The Light Factory’s China I-Sights project. The project is designed to foster dialogue and discussion between the students and their Chinese counterparts about their daily lives. The goal is to break down stereotypes between cultures. China I-Sights is a media literacy art exchange.

The Charlotte students are studying aspects of China through photography and will have art on display in an exhibit at Spirit Square. The exhibit is set to open in January.