Following the recent announcement of the excellent results in the Nature Index Young Universities 2019 rankings, Runyang Stadium at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) hosted the Annual Research Symposium 2019 (Symposium) from Oct 25 to 26. Vice-governor of Guangdong Province Qin Weizhong and Deputy Director-General of the Education Department of Guangdong Province Xing Feng were invited to attend. SUSTech President Chen Shiyi was joined by many leaders, scholars and researchers across campus, along with representatives from government departments across Guangdong Province at the Symposium.

The first day saw reports from the six colleges, Office of Research, offices from different public research platforms, Technology Transfer Center, Affiliated Hospitals and Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies. Each leader provided an extensive briefing about the research being conducted in their respective institutions and their plans for the future. Office of Research Director Zhao Yusheng chaired the first-day afternoon session.

On the second day, Guangdong Province vice-Governor Qin Weizhong delivered a speech introducing scientific and technological innovations in basic research & applied basic research areas.

He affirmed the achievements of SUSTech in its short history and highlighted the enormous possibilities that have been presented to Guangdong Province to develop into an internationally recognized scientific and technological innovation center. With that in mind, SUSTech should use its advantages to meet the major strategic needs of China to further enhance the innovative capability of the country.

The vice-Governor encouraged SUSTech to increase its efforts in both basic and applied research, while developing its cutting edge disciplines that foster high-level talent pipelines of future leaders for the new era. Qin Weizhong anticipated that SUSTech would continue to transform its scientific achievements to the benefit of society, in line with the mission that SUSTech operates under and its broader goal of becoming a world-class research university, rooted in China.

Guangdong Basic & Applied Research Foundation Committee Director Zeng Lu was also invited as a distinguished guest speaker to the symposium.

Zeng Lu spoke about the promotion of basic and applied research work across Guangdong Province. Director Zeng Lu praised SUSTech for their rapid development and their excellent scientific achievements. He noted that these achievements were the result of the outstanding teaching and research teams at SUSTech, as well as its research management systems. Zeng Lu encouraged the scholars in attendance to continue their hard work in developing a world-class research university, rooted in China, at SUSTech.

The second day also saw attendees split into four different sub forums. One group discussed the ability to do high-quality research within the Greater Bay Area that matches regional and national strategic development strategies. A second group focused on innovation in scientific research management techniques and maintaining the integrity of scientific research. Another group discussed interdisciplinary development paths at world-class science and engineering universities.

Acting Vice President Zhang Dongxiao chaired the afternoon session, and reviewed the outcomes of the morning’s sub forums.

Office of Research Director Zhao Yusheng provided his own insights into SUSTech’s scientific research strategy going forward, noting the importance of participating in national and local development strategies, in order to make tangible contributions to regional and national development.

President Chen Shiyi closed the conference. He thanked everyone for attending the Symposium, and expressed special thanks to the VIPs, including Vice Governor Qin Weizhong. Chen Shiyi highlighted the importance of SUSTech’s latest scientific research progress and how the issues discussed throughout the Symposium have set the course for the future. The opportunities that come from the development of the Greater Bay Area and the State Council Statement on Shenzhen means that SUSTech is in a unique position to promote higher quality scientific research that supports major strategic industries across Shenzhen, the Greater Bay Area and China. SUSTech’s scientific achievements would continue to contribute to its ongoing strength and the enduring development of the nation.