The 24th Annual Meeting of CAST concludes in Changsha

The closing ceremony of the 24th Annual Meeting of the China Association for Science and Technology [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The closing ceremony of the 24th Annual Meeting of the China Association for Science and Technology was held at Changsha’s Beichen International Convention Center on June 27. The meeting attracted more than 6,900 Chinese and overseas experts and scholars to attend online or onsite. About 3,442 were representatives from business and investment circles, the highest record in the annual meeting’s history. Some 110 associations for science and technology also participated.  

Zhang Yuzhuo, secretary of the CAST's Leading Party Members Group, noted that this annual meeting had the themed "Innovation-led self-reliance and self-strengthening, a new engine for the rise of the central region." It made close matchmaking for the needs of Hunan province’s Three Highlands and Four New Missions Strategy and featured focused tasks and practical activities. The meeting promoted the endeavors of scientists, highlighted support for young sci-tech talents and built a united, open and innovative environment. It focused on serving the scientific decision-making of the Party and the government and continuously produced high-quality products for sci-tech workers and the international sci-tech community. It emphasized local development and fueling the rise of the inland region and the construction of the rich, beautiful and happy new Hunan.

The closing ceremony of the 24th Annual Meeting of the China Association for Science and Technology [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Zhang stressed that the organizations of the CAST should provide great support to enhance sci-tech workers’ confidence. He urged that the organizations should lead sci-tech workers to stand in the front line of sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening. Zhang added that the organizations should enhance openness, trust and cooperation in international sci-tech circles in order to make contributions to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

At the closing ceremony, You Zheng, vice-president of the CAST, president of Huazhong University of Science and Technology and an academician of Chinese Academy of Engineering released 30 major issues of 2022 in science, engineering technology and industrial technology. The CAST has organized  sci-tech societies around the country, enterprise associations for science and technology, domestic and overseas sci-tech associations and experts to collect and evaluate major sci-tech problems. Over the past five years, it has collected 2,772 issues and released 160 problems of them. These problems further ignite the curiosity and passion of scientific and technological works for scientific exploration.

The closing ceremony of the 24th Annual Meeting of the China Association for Science and Technology [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Leaders attending the closing ceremony awarded plaques of “Excellent recommendation unit” to the Chinese Chemical Society, the Chinese Society for Environmental Sciences and 28 societies for the problems they recommended in 2022.

The launching ceremony of the 2022 China (Changsha) overseas talents innovation and entrepreneurship competition was also held at the closing ceremony. The competition began in 2016 as an innovation and entrepreneurship platform for overseas talents. The competition has been held for six sessions. This session will organize teams reaching the finals to carry out the event of “Overseas entrepreneurs tour in China” in Changsha, Zhuzhou, Xiangtan and five other cities of Hunan province in order to promote Hunan’s innovation and entrepreneurship environment and good entrepreneurial ecosystem to the world.

Experts and professionals gave keynote speeches at the closing ceremony, including Chen Liang, vice- president of Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology of CNNC and senior engineer; Deng Yiqi, general manager of Sense Kernei; and Mu Yongqi, a main driver of shield tunneling machine of the China Railway Tunnel Stock Co., Ltd and senior technician of tunnel work.