Cooperation, Development, Win-win
2018 Tsinghua University Global Strategic Academic Partnership Symposium held in Shenzhen
On October 18th, the 2018 Tsinghua University Global Strategic Academic Partnership Symposium was held at the Tusincere Science Park in Longgang District, Shenzhen. The symposium was attended by Yang Xiuyou, Vice Secretary General of the Shenzhen City Government, Yang Bin, Vice President and Provost of Tsinghua University, Chen Guangwen, Vice District Mayor of Long Gang District Government, Wu Xu, Vice Chairman of TusHoldings and Chairman of Tusincere Science City Investment Group, and other distinguished guests. Leaders, researchers, and students from overseas universities, and representatives from leading companies also attended the symposium.
Focusing on the theme of "International Academic Partnership Development Strategies Among Universities”, the symposium, based on the platform of the Global Academic Strategic Partnership Programs initiated by Tsinghua University in 2016, adheres to the concept of open cooperation, cooperative development, mutual benefit and win-win, while actively promoting existing international academic partnership models and the achievements of the participating universities through exchanges and exhibitions. It will actively promote diversified and innovative international academic partnership models, and build a broader network of cooperation and exchange among leading universities in the world. Meanwhile, based on the achievements of the international academic cooperation, it will combine the development needs of local science and technology industries of Shenzhen City in carrying out joint exploration with the government, industries, universities and research institutes on how to support the effective transformation of the achievements of international academic partnership among universities.
The symposium brought together around 150 participants, comprised of scientific research personnel and administrators from 10 international universities including Imperial College London, the University of Tokyo and University of Hong Kong, leaders of the Shenzhen Municipal Government and representatives of key enterprises. Through theme discussions and reports, in-depth exchanges and heated discussions have been carried out on topics such as smart cities, advanced manufacturing, environment and energy, quantum computing, climate change, and enterprise cooperation in the new economic situation.
The symposium was hosted by Tsinghua University, and organized by the Research Institute of Tsinghua University in Shenzhen, the Tsinghua University Graduate School in Shenzhen and Tusincere Science Park. Ma Jun, Director of Overseas R&D Management Office of Tsinghua University, presided over the opening ceremony of the symposium.
In his speech, Yang Bin, the Vice President of Tsinghua University, extend his warm welcome to all the participants. He noted that 2018 is the 40th anniversary since China first opened to the world in 1978, the past 40 years dramatically changed China and made China more and more open to the world, and have also helped in shaping Chinese universities as they are now. “Having benefited from open exchanges with the world, especially by learning from and working with our peers across the globe, Tsinghua has now become one of fastest growing universities.” said Yang Bin.
Yang Bin said that Tsinghua initiated the “Tsinghua University Global Strategic Academic Partnership Program” in 2016. The goal of the program is to focus our internal resources and group scattered collaborations into a more organized format, then to promote and initiate broader and in-depth faculty and student exchanges and collaborations between Tsinghua and its key partners in selected academic fields. And this symposium helps to create a sharing environment for all the participating universities. The working modes for the program are flexible and adaptive to the different needs of the participating universities, but mostly through joint seed grants that are match-funded by Tsinghua and the partners.
During the symposium, in addition to renewing the second phase of the strategic partnership agreements with the University of New South Wales, the University of Alberta and the Peter the Great Saint-Petersburg Polytechnic University, Tsinghua University also signed new strategic partnership agreements with Imperial College London and the University of Hong Kong, which will substantialize and deepen the construction of the international academic partnership network and form an international academic partnership framework which combines the development needs and advantages of frontier disciplines. Meanwhile, it is anticipated that in 2019, Tsinghua University will further sign and initiate special cooperation with universities including the University of Tokyo, Tohoku University and Monash University.
In his speech, Yang Xiuyou, Vice Secretary General of Shenzhen Municipal Government, stated that education and talent are always taken as priority development strategies in Shenzhen. It will actively seek cooperation with universities at home and abroad, vigorously bring in managers, well-known professors and subject leaders with international vision and first-class standards, and build first-class universities and first-class disciplines with high quality and distinctive features. Apart from that, all the academic achievements of universities will be deeply integrated with the innovation and entrepreneurship in Shenzhen City. The convening of this symposium will further enhance the cooperation between Tsinghua University and the world-renowned universities at the frontiers of science and technology.
Chen Guangwen, Vice District Mayor of Longgang District Government, said that since the establishment of Longgang District, it has developed into an industrial, economic and innovation zone in Shenzhen. It is the main battlefield of innovation-driven development in Shenzhen. In the new round of innovation and development, Longgang District will speed up the construction of the innovation center in Eastern Shenzhen in order to create a better environment for young people to innovate and start their own businesses.
In terms of cooperation with universities, Wu Xu, Vice Chairman of TusHoldings and Chairman of Tusincere Science City Investment Group, said that as a member enterprise of Tsinghua Holdings, Tusincere, relying on the International University Park, has established the International University Park and Urban Integration Development Promotion Center with Longcheng Street Office to jointly explore the development model of an International University Park integrated with urban areas. In the future, Tusincere Science Park will actively promote cooperation with the government and universities on “production, learning and research”, undertake the mission and responsibility of “transfer and transformation of scientific and technological achievements” of its own enterprises, construct the Tusincere Global Innovation Center, and make its own contribution to building Shenzhen into a national innovative city and a national independent innovation demonstration zone.
During the symposium, Tim Green, Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Imperial College London, and Wai Kin Chan, Co-Deputy Director of Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, deliverd keynote speeches entitled “the Need for Collaborative and Multi-Disciplinary Research for Deep Decarbonization of Energy” and “TBSI – an Evolving I3 Program: International Collaboration, Interdisciplinary Education, and Industrial Partnership” respectively.
Afterwards a panel discussion on the theme of “University Academic and Research Development Strategy within a Globalized Context” was held. During the panel discussion, Professor Hiroaki Aihara, Executive Director and Vice President of the University of Tokyo, Professor Matthias Ruth, Vice President of University of Alberta, Professor Toshiya Ueki, Executive Vice President of Tohoku University, Professor Aibing Yu, Vice-Chancellor of Monash University, Professor Sham Mai Har, Associate Vice President of the University of Hong Kong, and Tim Green, Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Imperial College London, expressed their views on international academic cooperation and university academic development strategies.
Concerning the future development of key disciplines and the timetable for breakthroughs, the representatives discussed and shared the main factors for promoting international academic cooperation and the methods for promoting interdisciplinary research through international cooperation, with the hope of jointly building a diversified world-class university academic cooperation platform under the common development goals of each university.
In the afternoon, the symposium was divided into four breakout session with the following themes: Smart City, Advanced Manufacturing, International Commercial Law”, “Energy & Environment”, “Quantum Computing”,
“Advanced Manufacturing”, “Advanced Manufacturing & Climate Changes” and “New Era, New Economy, New Momentum”. Nearly 200 representatives participated in the breakout sessions. The breakout sessions provided reviews and reports of academic collaboration projects under current Global Academic Strategic Partnership Programs, as well as reports on industrial ecosystems. Topics discussed included progress and future planning of academic collaboration projects, academic and industrial innovation and development, and broader collaboration strategies among global leading institutions.
After the breakout sessions, the participating guests visited the Tusincere Science Park.
Writer: Wilson Khor
Editors: John Olbrich, Guo Lili
