Nanjing University Hosts 2024 Frontier Science and Technology Forum for Chinese and Foreign Academicians

From July 10 to 12, the 2024 Chinese and Foreign Academicians Frontier Technology Forum was held at the Suzhou Campus of Nanjing University. The forum was co-hosted by Nanjing University and the All-British Chinese Professors Association. It is a frontier technology exchange and sharing platform for top Chinese and foreign experts specially built by Nanjing University to deeply study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important expositions on building a strong country in education and science and technology, further expand international scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation, and continuously promote the “three-in-one” integrated development of education, science and technology, and talents. Chinese and foreign academicians gathered together to share the latest developments and future trends in the frontier of the field around the theme of “Life Health, New Materials and New Energy”. Liu Xiaotao, member of the Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee and Secretary of the Suzhou Municipal Party Committee, Tan Tianniu, Secretary of the Party Committee of Nanjing University, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Foreign Academician of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and Dong Hongbiao, Chairman of the All-British Chinese Professors Association and Academician of the Royal Academy of Engineering, attended the opening ceremony. The forum was supported by the Jiangsu Provincial Science and Technology Association and the Suzhou Municipal Party Committee. The opening ceremony was hosted by Lu Yanqing, Vice President of Nanjing University.

Liu Xiaotao, on behalf of the municipal party committee and government, welcomed the arrival of all the guests and congratulated the successful holding of the forum. He said that Suzhou is a paradise for life and even more so for innovation and entrepreneurship. We sincerely welcome scientific and technological workers from all over the world to visit and exchange ideas, provide more valuable suggestions for Suzhou’s development, promote more innovative platforms, cutting-edge technologies, major projects and high-end talents to settle in Suzhou, and help accelerate the cultivation and development of new quality productivity. Suzhou will do its best to provide service guarantees, continue to promote international scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation, and continue to support the holding of the forum and the development of Nanjing University Suzhou Campus, and work with everyone to create a better future.

Tan Tianniu pointed out that Nanjing University is a century-old university that General Secretary Xi Jinping and the Party Central Committee have high hopes for. It has a profound cultural history and a rigorous academic style and school spirit, and has made unique contributions to my country’s higher education and scientific undertakings. In recent years, with the support of the Ministry of Education, Jiangsu Province and Suzhou City, Nanjing University has taken the construction of the Suzhou campus as an opportunity to continuously optimize the discipline layout, continue to deepen opening up and cooperation, and steadily advance the construction of a world-class Nanjing University with Chinese characteristics. The holding of this forum is not only a pragmatic move to thoroughly study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s series of important expositions on education, science and technology talents, but also a proactive move to fully support Jiangsu and Suzhou to “firm confidence, work hard, and take the lead” and accelerate the development of new quality productivity according to local conditions. He looks forward to taking this forum as an opportunity to vigorously promote scientific and technological innovation, integration of production and research, open cooperation and talent training, and make new and greater contributions to comprehensively promoting the construction of a strong country with Chinese-style modernization, the great cause of national rejuvenation, and better building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Dong Hongbiao said that the host city Suzhou has a profound historical and cultural heritage, rapid economic development, a complete industrial system, and a strong atmosphere of innovation. It has shown the potential for harmonious coexistence of technological progress and sustainable development. It has developed into an important economic center and commercial trade focus in the Yangtze River Delta region, and has formed a unique market positioning on the international stage. It is expected that the experts and scholars attending the conference will engage in in-depth dialogues around topics in cutting-edge fields such as life health, new energy, and new materials, share insights, stimulate innovation, explore the development trends of world science and technology, promote more major innovations, and strive to build a healthier, greener, and more sustainable world.

The opening ceremony held a ceremony for the appointment of distinguished visiting professors of Nanjing University. Eight famous scholars from the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia were appointed as distinguished visiting professors of Nanjing University. Tan Tianniu presented the appointment letters to the distinguished visiting professors and wore the school badge.

In the keynote report session, Gao Fu, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and foreign academician of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, John Lawhead, foreign academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and academician of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Rao Zihe, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and foreign academician of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, John P. Diehl, academician of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and Huang Wei, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and foreign academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, gave reports, and conducted in-depth discussions on topics such as diseases and drugs, composite materials, flexible electronic materials, and international scientific and technological cooperation, and exchanged and discussed with the participants on site. Dong Hongbiao and Gu Ning, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, hosted the keynote reports.