Rich diversity of parallel forums enliven main event

To realize sustainable development, it is essential to strengthen knowledge sharing and to improve research institutions’ capacity in basic sciences, technology, innovation and engineering to make everyone benefit from science, said Hu Shaofeng, director of the division of science policy and basic sciences of UNESCO.

Hu made the remarks at the International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development Forum, a parallel forum of the 2024 Zhongguancun Forum, also known as the ZGC Forum, which is being held from Thursday to Monday in Beijing.

The theme of the parallel forum is that of the resolution adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in August 2023 on 2024 to 2033 being the “International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development”.

The forum is aimed at sparking new ideas, expectations, advice, and approaches regarding the goal of sustainable development, according to the organizers.

“The forum provides a unique platform for international scientific cooperation, enabling us to leverage the global power of science to build a sustainable future together,” Shahbaz Khan, director of the UNESCO multisectoral regional office for East Asia, said in his speech.

In addition to the forum reflecting the importance of science for sustainable development, the 2024 ZGC Forum comprises a total of 60 parallel forums, with themes such as cutting-edge technologies, new quality productive forces, tech talents, open ecosystems and science and technology governance.

Seventeen of the forums are hosted or organized by international organizations and foreign government departments, indicating the event’s progress in attracting international involvement.

Experts from nearly 80 countries and regions are participating, including the Nobel Prize laureate Barry Marshall, the Turing Award winners Joseph Sifakis and Yao Qizhi, and Qiu Chengtong, an internationally renowned mathematician.

Of the parallel forums, the Global Forum on Women in Sci-tech Innovation held on Saturday morning is designed to serve as a platform for high-level dialogues among global female scientific researchers and encourage more women to engage in the science and technology sector, organizers said.

Wang Zhizhen, an 82-year-old female academician from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, will deliver a keynote speech at the forum, sharing her perspective on how to make women play a more vital role in the new sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation.

During the roundtable session, six female scientists will engage in an in-depth discussion about creating a favorable innovation environment for women in science and technology; and motivating intrinsic innovation capabilities.

The parallel forum will also display 100 sci-tech innovation achievements made by female researchers and engineers from across the country.

Other forums focus on tech talents, including the Beijing International Youth Innovation and Development Forum on Sunday.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the integrated development of Beijing, and neighboring Tianjin and Hebei province. Governments of the three regions will jointly host the Collaborative Innovation and High-quality Development in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region Forum on Saturday, sharing their experience and showcasing development achievements during the past decade.

As one of the top highlights of the forum, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei national high-tech zone alliance will unveil a map of innovation service platforms in the three regions.

By aggregating innovation resources and offering clear guidance, the map is aimed at attracting more entities to conduct technological research and application in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province, said Zhou Jing, a senior official from the Beijing Science and Technology Commission.

Contracts for over 30 collaborative projects will be signed at the forum, in industries such as hydrogen energy, semiconductors, biomedicine and intelligent connected vehicles.

This year’s ZGC Forum also debuts a parallel forum for unicorn startups.

Representatives from some 150 unicorn companies and 100 investment, finance and service institutions will attend the 2024 Global Unicorn Company Conference on Sunday, exploring development paths and opportunities together.

Additionally, a list of Chinese unicorn firms complied by the Zhongguancun unicorn company development alliance in collaboration with several institutes and companies will be released at the conference.

From Saturday to Monday, the eighth China Science Fiction Convention, another of the parallel forums, will take place in western Beijing’s Shougang Park.

A total of 18 activities will be held, including technology exchange events, the award ceremony for the second Science Fiction Planet Award and a science-fiction film week, according to organizers.