Source: SYSU News Center, Human Resources Department
Written by: SYSU News Center, Human Resources Department
Photo by: Jin Feng, Cai Shanshan
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

On December 24-26, 2016, the First International Young Scholars Shenzhen Forum of Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) was held in Shenzhen. Through the plenary meeting, parallel symposiums and sub-forums, the Shenzhen Forum brought together outstanding young scholars from home and abroad to focus on academic frontiers, learn more about SYSU and Shenzhen, and contribute their wisdom to building SYSU into a world-class university and serving the economic and social development of Shenzhen.

The plenary meeting was held on the morning of December 25. Prof. Chen Chunsheng, Secretary of SYSU Party Committee, Prof. Luo Jun, President of SYSU, Ms. Wu Yihuan, Vice Mayor of Shenzhen, Ms. Sun Meihua, Deputy Director of Health and Family Planning Commission of Shenzhen Municipality, Prof. Li Mengfeng and Prof. Ma Jun, Vice Presidents of SYSU, Mr. Yang Qinghua and Dr. Luo Teng, Assistant Presidents of SYSU, young scholars from home and abroad, professors of SYSU’s schools and departments and affiliated hospitals, leaders of relevant bureaus of Shenzhen City and Guangming New District, a total of over 300 people attended the meeting.

Secretary Chen Chunsheng extended a warm welcome to the young scholars from around the globe, and expressed gratitude to Shenzhen City for its support for SYSU in recent years. He introduced the construction of SYSU Shenzhen Campus, and hoped that the young scholars could offer suggestions and participate in the construction and development of Shenzhen City and SYSU Shenzhen Campus.

Vice Mayor Wu Yihuan delivered a speech. She expressed that Shenzhen is an open, inclusive and innovative city, where numerous people realize their dreams and create miracles. With the implementation of the national “Belt and Road” Initiative, and Qianhai’s becoming a pilot zone for financial reform and innovation, Shenzhen is presented with new opportunities of development. At present, Shenzhen is implementing the innovation driven development strategy, and has launched 81 new measures to support talent development and improve the self-innovation ability and the competitiveness of the city. In November 2015, SYSU and Shenzhen municipal government signed the strategic cooperation agreement to jointly build world-class university, establish SYSU Shenzhen Campus and build Shenzhen into a modern, international and innovative city. She noted that SYSU Shenzhen Campus will be a stage for young scholars to realize their academic dreams, and she sincerely welcomed the young scholars present at the forum to join SYSU and Shenzhen to make contribution to SYSU’s construction of world-class university and Shenzhen’s economic and social development.

President Luo Jun noted that Shenzhen is a miraculous city, which has changed from a fishing village thirty years ago into a modern city now. As a window and pioneer of the rapid development of Chinese economy over thirty years, Shenzhen’s development has brought great confidence to us all. He also pointed out that Shenzhen has sufficient resources to build the best universities in China. Shenzhen Campus will bring not only an opportunity for SYSU but also an opportunity for Shenzhen.

President Luo Jun introduced the past, present and future of SYSU. He pointed out that founded by Dr. Sun Yat-sen, a great leader of the 20th century, SYSU has always inherited and carried forward Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s expectations and spirit. Today, SYSU has developed into a modern comprehensive university that enjoys a reputation as a top-tier university nationally and a renowned university internationally. With five campuses in the three cities of Guangzhou, Zhuhai and Shenzhen, SYSU is “oriented toward academic frontiers, toward national major strategic needs, and toward national and regional economic and social development”. Through constructing “big research teams, big platforms and big projects”, and cultivating talents who ”have both ability and moral integrity, able to cultivate charisma and eager serve their country”, SYSU is striving to realize a doubling in the number of faculty and teaching talents, the total floor space of University facilities, and overall operating funds during the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan, and promoting the implementation of the University’s centennial development plan. 18 disciplines at SYSU are placed among the global top 1% according to ESI, tied for second among Chinese colleges and universities. In the QS World University Rankings, Academic Ranking of World Universities, and Times Higher Education World University Rankings, SYSU is also witnessing a swift improvement in its positioning.

President Luo Jun pointed out that our country is pushing forward the construction of world-class universities and world-class disciplines, and SYSU is facing new challenges and opportunities in its development. With the goal of entering the national first-tier universities and fostering an academic environment where all disciplines develop distinctively yet systematically, thus blossoming into an institution with influence and impact on a global scale, SYSU will unswervingly reform and innovate to further consolidate the basis of building a world-class university. As an important part of the University, Shenzhen Campus will focus on medical science and emerging engineering disciplines, as well as the integration of medical science and engineering in order to meet the needs of regional economic and social innovation and development. Through joint efforts of Shenzhen City and the University, Shenzhen Campus will be built into a world-class campus with Chinese characteristics and SYSU’s fine traditions, and an important base for training high level innovation talents to support the economic and social development of Shenzhen, with an impact on Hong Kong and Macao, as well as the Asia-Pacific region. In the next five years, Shenzhen municipal government will invest about 30 billion RMB in infrastructure construction, supporting facilities and teaching and research equipment of SYSU Shenzhen Campus. President Luo Jun thanked the CPC Shenzhen Municipal Committee and the Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government on behalf of the University. He noted that SYSU is in need of talents who are ambitious, capable and broad-minded to realize its goal of becoming a world-class university. He sincerely invites scholars from around the globe to join SYSU and its Shenzhen Campus to participate in and witness the development of the University.

At the plenary meeting, two newly appointed deans of Shenzhen Campus gave a speech respectively. Prof. Guo Deyin, Dean of School of Basic Medicine (Shenzhen), introduced the history and current status of SYSU’s medical sciences, and the future development planning of the School of Basic Medicine (Shenzhen). Prof. Deng Wenbin, Dean of School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (Shenzhen), introduced the overall positioning, development goal and planning, disciplinary development and faculty development of the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (Shenzhen). The two deans also shared their experience of joining SYSU and their determination to participate in the development of the University, and sent invitations to outstanding young scholars.
On the afternoon of December 25, the Shenzhen Forum organized the Science and Engineering Symposium and the Medical Science Symposium, inviting 40 young scholars to share their academic researches. Over 30 schools and departments on SYSU’s Guangzhou Campus, Shenzhen Campus and Zhuhai Campus also held sub-forums.

More than 800 scholars registered for the Shenzhen Forum and nearly 400 were selected to attend the forum. The participants come from renowned universities such as Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Yale University, Stanford University, University of California, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, Tsinghua University, Peking University, etc. Among them, 80% are from overseas, 80% are below the age of 35, and many have expressed their intention to join SYSU.