Hubei Session of 2025 Donghu Forum Convenes with Success
On October 11-12, 2025, the Hubei session of the Overseas Talents China Tour • Agricultural Sci-Tech Innovation convened with resounding success at the International Academic Exchange Center of Huazhong Agricultural University. Under the theme of Science and Technology Empowering Agricultural Modernization, Talents Leading New Quality Productive Forces,a total of 116 young scholars and students from China and abroad gathered by the shores of Nanhu Lake, and engaged in in-depth discussions on global cutting-edge sci-tech innovations in agriculture.
Yan Jianbing, President of Huazhong Agricultural University, Kenichi Tsuda, a Japanese recipient of the Chinese Government Friendship Award, and Robert M. Larkin, an American recipient of the Chinese Government Friendship Award,attended the event.
Wang Lei, Division Chief of the China Association for International Exchange of Personnel(CAIEP), emphasized in his speech that in the face of common global challenges including climate change, resource constraints, and food security, China, as a major agricultural country, deeply recognizes the importance of gathering global wisdom to help agricultural science and technology address these challenges and promote common development. China is actively integrating into the global agricultural sci-tech innovation network, prioritizing talents as the most core and critical element in agricultural sci-tech development, and contributing to global agricultural advancement, food security, and livelihood improvement.
Wu Yongjie, Second-level Inspector of the Department of Science and Technology of Hubei Province, highlighted in his speech that Hubei, as a major economic, scientific, educational, ecological, and agricultural province in China, boasts rich scientific and educational resources and strong innovation momentum. Hubei is leveraging sci-tech innovation to drive agricultural modernization, making it particularly timely to host international exchange events with a global talent perspective. He hoped this event would provide a broader stage for global agricultural scientists and young students to showcase their talents and jointly sow the seeds of innovation and hope in the land of Hubei.
President Yan Jianbing, Professor Xiong Lizhong, and Professor Li Guotian of Huazhong Agricultural University delivered keynote reports and engaged in profound discussions with top international experts and scholars on topics including biological breeding, ecological environment and green development, digital agriculture, and the development of key agricultural industry chains. The opening ceremony concluded with the presentation of appointment letters to overseas scholars and students.
Throughout the event, representatives from provincial research institutions and enterprises actively interacted with young talents. Chinese and foreign experts conducted in-depth visits platforms such as the Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, to observe Hubei's agricultural development and engage in thorough exchanges with sci-tech personnel.
As a significant new session of the 2025 Donghu Forum, this event was jointly hosted by CAIEP, Huazhong Agricultural University, and Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, jointly organized by the Hubei Provincial Association for International Exchange of Personnel and the Shenzhen Center for International Exchange of Personnel (SCIEP), and supported by the Department of Science and Technology of Hubei Province. The event aimed to foster discussions on frontier academic issues in agricultural modern technology, attract outstanding international and domestic talents in the agricultural sector, provide opportunities for international sci-tech innovation cooperation and talent exchange, and lay a solid foundation for advancing agricultural and rural modernization, while strengthening the cultivation of sci-tech talents in agriculture.