The Holding of 2024 Academic Committee and Development Strategy Symposium of the DDE Frontiers Science Center

2024-12-27     Author：【深时数字地球前沿科学中心】    Views：0

    On December 23, the 2024 Annual Academic Committee Meeting and Development Strategy Symposium of the MOE Frontier Science Center for Deep-time Digital Earth (hereinafter referred to as the DDE Frontier Science Center) was convened at our university. Academician Sun Youhong, President of the University and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), attended the meeting and delivered the opening remarks. Feng Wenli, Director General of the Department of Science and Technology Development of the Ministry of Natural Resources; Zhao Jing, Director of the International Science and Technology Cooperation Center of the Ministry of Science and Technology; and Zheng Yuanming, Division Chief of the Comprehensive Affairs Division of the Department of Earth Sciences of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), attended the meeting and delivered speeches. The meeting was attended by Academician Zhou Chenghu, Director of the Academic Committee of the DDE Frontier Science Center; Academician Hou Zengqian, Deputy Director of the Committee; and committee members including Academicians Shen Shuzhong, Zheng Zhiming, Wang Jian, Li Xianhua, He Hongping, and Researcher Yan Guangsheng. Academicians Li Shuguang and Mo Xuanxue from our university, along with Guo Wei, Director of the Science and Culture Division of the Secretariat of the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO, were also invited. Vice President Wu Huaichun was in attendance, while Vice President Liu Dameng and Academician Zhou Chenghu moderated the opening ceremony and the report/discussion sessions respectively. Finally, Academician Cheng Qiuming, Chief Scientist and Director of the DDE Frontier Science Center, presented the center's comprehensive work report.

    Sun Youhong expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the superior management authorities and the participating academicians and experts for their long-standing care and support for the university's construction and development. He pointed out that since its inception and approval by the Ministry of Education (MOE), the DDE Frontier Science Center has adhered to the philosophy of the "Mount Everest Plan for Basic Research in Higher Education Institutions." Leveraging CUG's (China University of Geosciences) strengths in deep-time Earth system science, the center has actively supported the Deep-time Digital Earth International Big Science Program (hereinafter referred to as the DDE Program). Focusing on the formation and evolution of a Habitable Earth, the center has addressed major scientific questions such as the co-evolution of life, environment, and matter in deep-time Earth, as well as extreme geological events. Through deep interdisciplinary integration, it has achieved "from zero to one" breakthroughs and yielded a series of original outcomes. Sun expressed his hope that the attending leaders and experts would provide valuable insights to facilitate a comprehensive analysis of the DDE Frontier Science Center's current status and to chart its future strategic direction. The ultimate goal is to build a world-leading frontier science center for basic and applied basic research in deep-time Earth science, providing robust support for national socio-economic development and the construction of an ecological civilization, while contributing CUG’s strength to meeting major national needs and advancing scientific research.

    Feng Wenli emphasized that China's leadership in spearheading international big science programs plays an irreplaceable and vital role in bolstering the nation's overall scientific and technological innovation capabilities. The Deep-time Digital Earth (DDE) International Big Science Program has already made remarkable strides in basic research, data sharing, and international cooperation. As a cornerstone supporting the DDE program, the MOE DDE Frontier Science Center should further strengthen interdisciplinary integration, talent cultivation, the transformation of scientific achievements, and science communication in the future, thereby elevating its prowess in original innovation and its capacity to serve global sustainable development.

    Director Zhao Jing introduced the recent positive progress of the Deep-time Digital Earth (DDE) International Big Science Program and emphasized our commitment to supporting global scientists in exploring theoretical issues of deep-time Earth system science through the DDE Program. This initiative aims to drive a paradigm shift in geoscience research, provide geoscience-related information support and technical guarantees for sustainable development, and foster the development of a global science and technology community in the field of geosciences. Director Zhao Jing expressed her hope that the China University of Geosciences (Beijing) would leverage its disciplinary advantages and abundant resources to further harness the collective power of the scientific community, strengthen the construction of talent echelons, and expand international cooperation. Such efforts will provide more comprehensive guarantees and support for the DDE Program, propelling the realization of its visionary goals.

    Zheng Yuanming pointed out that the Department of Earth Sciences of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) has in recent years centered its efforts on Earth habitability, continuously advancing the disciplinary development of geosciences guided by the concepts of Deep Earth, Deep Sea, Deep Space, and Earth System Science, and has deployed the first batch of projects under the Original Exploratory Program—"Knowledge Graph and Knowledge Evolution of Deep-time Geosciences." The DDE Frontier Science Center should draw upon the experience of past projects and continue to advance its work in areas such as AI-enabled geoscience research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and talent cultivation, striving to become a pivotal force in driving the development of geosciences in China and the world.

    Academician Cheng Qiuming provided a detailed overview of the 2024 construction achievements of the DDE Frontier Science Center, covering strategic positioning and goals, implementation content and schemes, progress and challenges, as well as future work plans. He noted that the DDE Frontier Science Center focuses on major scientific questions concerning extreme geological events and the synergetic evolution of life, environment, and matter in deep-time Earth. In 2024, the center yielded a series of innovative results in fields such as deep-time paleogeographic evolution and deep Earth processes, deep-time life and environmental evolution, deep-time paleoclimate evolution, deep-time Earth material evolution and resource effects, and the simulation and prediction of extreme geological events using deep-time big data. The center maintains standardized operations and management, continuously strengthens joint research efforts at home and abroad, promotes interdisciplinary talent cultivation, and deeply engages in international exchanges. It plays a leading role in addressing global major geoscience questions and supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals, while actively supporting the DDE Program. Focusing on key scientific issues and geoscience knowledge innovation, the center facilitates the shift and innovation of the geoscience research paradigm, centered on big data and artificial intelligence.

Academician Zhou Chenghu delivered a speech

Academician Li Shuguangdelivered a speech

Academician Mo Xuanxue delivered a speech

Academician Shen Shuzhong delivered a speech

Academician Zheng Zhiming delivered a speech

Academician Wang Jian delivered a speech

Academician Li Xianhua delivered a speech

Academician He Hongping delivered a speech

    Focusing on the theme of strategic consultation, the participating leaders and experts offered constructive opinions and suggestions regarding the refinement of research directions, the intensification of investigation and research efforts, and the strengthening of organized scientific research and international cooperation. In his concluding remarks, Sun Youhong emphasized that the university would provide full support for the construction of the DDE Frontier Science Center. By pooling interdisciplinary strengths and gathering superior innovative resources, the university aims to give full play to the center's pivotal role in talent cultivation, scientific research, disciplinary development, and international exchange and cooperation, striving to build the center into a world-class research platform and innovation center in the field of geosciences. The meeting was attended by heads of relevant functional departments and teaching units of the university, as well as core members of the Deep-time Digital Earth (DDE) Frontiers Science Center.