2020-11-18
Establishing ceremony was held on BFU campus on September 26 to mark the formal unveiling of the National Garden Plants and Biosphere Construction Innovation Alliance (NGP&BCIA), which coincides with the opening of the 5thforum on garden plants and biosphere environment construction. Present at the ceremony were Mr. Yin Weilun, the CAE academician; Mr. Li Jianzhu, senior official from the Science and Technology Department of the SF&GA; Mr. Gao Chi, vice director of China Landscape Architecture Society (CLAS) and the CPC Secretary of the Huazhong Agricultural University (HAU); and Mr. Li Xiong, Vice President of the BFU. In addition to the administrators of the university’s School of Landscape Architecture (SLA), advisory specialists, and representatives from relevant universities, enterprises and other entities that took personally in part to celebrate the occasion, over 3500 people, including those from the 14 NGP&BCIA membership entities listed on its board of directors as well as from the 23 membership organizations, also witnessed the ceremony online. Directors from the university’s S&T Division presided over the establishment ceremony.
Vice President Li Xiong, in the message he gave on the ceremony, extended his warmest congratulations to the setting up of the NGP&BCIA and his heartfelt thanks to the supports offered by the SF&GA, the BFU, the SLA and all other relevant organizations, as well as to members on the specialist advisory panel for their highly professional consultations. He highlighted on the needs for the NGP&BCIA to formulate long-term goals that tap into the fullest potential of both the universities and the industries so as to best fulfill its mandated missions and build up its comprehensive competitive edges.
Mr. Li Jianzhu summed up his expectation for the NGP&BCIA into 5 key points. Firstly, it is necessary to formulate a clear vision that is solidly based on scientific assessment about the current situation as well as future trends in the field of garden plants and biosphere environmental construction. Through taking the industry technological innovation as the guidance, concentrated efforts should be made to tackle the key problems and challenges the industry is and shall be faced with; Secondly, Through the conception of prescient yet realistic annual work plans, medium and long-term development plans of the alliance, the respective roles that each membership holding organizations to the Alliance shall be clearly prescribed so that innovative approaches can be developed to drive the academic-industry-integration further forward. Thirdly, an optimal operation mechanism must be put in place so as to enable the leading entities to the Alliance to take initiatives in playing their due roles and fulfilling their responsibilities. The fourth is to give full play to the role of the Alliance and its members in regulating the conducts of all stakeholders in the industry, formulating common standards for product promotion and information disclosure and exchange. And finally, concerted efforts shall be needed to strengthen resource and information sharing through the establishment of an NGP&BCIA databank.
Mr. Gao Chi in his address noted in particular the positive impacts that the establishment of the NGP&BCIA shall have on driving closer collaboration between universities, research institutes and the industry. He urged the newly established NGP&BCIA shall in its future work tap into its distinctive features and play a leading role in promoting the development of both academic disciplines and industries through making the fullest use of the high-end platform it boasts.
Ms. Dong Li, the NGP&BCIA director and SLA professor, delivered her reported during the ceremony, in which she, by referring to the historical developmental trajectory of garden plants and human-biosphere environment, elaborated on the inspirations that gave birth to the NGP&BCIA, the structural framework as well as its visions for future development.
Following the above-mentioned speeches and congratulatory messages, leaders present at the ceremony formally unveiled the name plate for the newly inaugurated NGP&BCIA, and corresponding certificates and credentials were duly conferred to the director, vice directors, membership holders as well as to the consultative specialists on the advisory panel. The grand ceremony was then followed by the 5thforum on garden plants and biosphere construction.
According to information released at the ceremony, visions for setting up the NGP&BCIA were conceived of and subsequently approved by the AF&GA back in 2019. Championed by BFU and made up of universities, enterprises, research institutes and individual persons engaged in this sector, the Alliance is aimed to establish a resource sharing mechanism and platform that integrates policy-making, education, researches, production and resources utilization into a well-coordinated system that covers all stakeholders in the upstream, middle and downstream of the industry. Focal areas of the NGP&BCIA include ornamental plants R&D, seedling production and use, design and planning of garden plants in landscape projects, technologies concerning greening engineering, construction and maintenance and other relevant fields.
