Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the South China Sea (SCS) held the 2023 Academic Committee Meeting and Academic Annual Conference

From May 12 to 15, 2024, the 2023 Academic Committee Meeting and Academic Annual Meeting of the Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS was successfully held.

Attendees included: Academician Jiao Nianzhi (Director of the Laboratory's Academic Committee), Academician Chen Fahu (Deputy Director), Academician Liu Congqiang, Academician Jian Zhimin, Academician Lin Jian (European Academy of Sciences), Researcher Li Tiegang, Professor Qi Shihua, Researcher Wei Gangjian, Professor Wang Yinghui, Professor Yu Kefu, Researcher Wang Sumin (Consultant of the Academic Committee).

Specially invited experts from related organizations: Professor Wu Zhiqiang, Researcher Xu Xiangrong, Researcher Chen Lianguo.

And Liang Enwei (Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee (CPC) and Vice President of Guangxi University), Yao Zuofang (Member of the Standing CPC, Assistant to the President, Minister of the United Front Work Department of the Party Committee, and Director of the State-owned Assets and Laboratory Management Office), Shen Peihong (Vice President of the University's Research Institute and Director of the Research Platform Construction Management Office) and Wang Shaopeng (Director of the University's Party Committee Office and Principal's Office). More than 200 people, including laboratory members, graduate students, and undergraduate students, attended the conference.

At the opening ceremony, Liang Enwei, Member of the Standing CPC and Vice President of the University, delivered a welcome speech, extending his greetings to all the academicians, academic committee members, invited experts and leaders in attendance. He reviewed the construction history of the Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS, fully affirmed the remarkable progress made in scientific research, talent cultivation and other aspects. He highly praised the laboratory's outstanding contributions to discipline development and science popularization education, the important achievements of ecological restoration of coral reefs in the Beibu Gulf. He also commended the laboratory’s crucial role in the "Double First-Class" construction of Guangxi University. He emphasized that as Guangxi University enters a new historical stage focused on the China-ASEAN strategy, the development of Marine disciplines has become a top priority for the university. Laboratory's in-depth research in marine economy and South China Sea security fields will greatly help the university in better shoulder its historical responsibilities and contemporary missions. He expressed sincere respect for the hard work of all laboratory staff and expressed heartfelt gratitude to the experts and scholars for their support and assistance. He expressed hope that the experts would give valuable criticisms and suggestions, so that laboratory colleagues staff could engage in study, think and learn from them in depth, continuously optimize and improve the laboratory's construction, and better serve the school's development and national needs. At the opening ceremony, Jiao Nianzhi (academician of the CAS and professor of Xiamen University), Chairman of the Laboratory's Academic Committee, expressed his ongoing concern for the construction and development of THE Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS, and fully affirmed the laboratory's progress, especially the achievements in scientific research output and platform construction. He emphasized that the laboratory should seize the opportunities of the era and fully grasp coral reefs topic, focus on all aspects of that research field comprehensively and thoroughly, and become a national leader-team for coral reef research. He hopes that all members of the laboratory would maintain determination, confidence, persistence and concentration, and believe that coral reef research would definitely have a promising prospect. Academician Jiao Nianzhi also hopes that the university could continue to increase its support for the laboratory, especially to increase the size of the research team and help the laboratory achieve greater progress in coral reef research. He believed that coral reef research would significantly contribute to enhancing Guangxi University’s comprehensive strength and influence.

Professor Chen Fahu (academician of the CAS, and former director of the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research CAS), Deputy Director of the Laboratory's Academic Committee, presided over this academic committee meeting. Professor Yu Kefu, Director of the Laboratory, presented the "2023 Annual Progress Report of the Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the South China Sea". He reported on the laboratory's achievements and major problems in 2023, covering aspects such as laboratory infrastructure construction, overall distribution of scientific research and major progress and existing challenges for the year.

The attending experts and leaders conducted evaluations and discussed based on Professor Yu Kefu's reporting. They unanimously highly recognized the laboratory’s uniqueness and innovation in the field of South China Sea coral reef research. They praised the achievements of laboratory members in coral reef research, such as the formation evolution and environmental change history, the relationship between coral reef ecological processes and global change, seawater environmental processes and source-sink mechanisms in coral reef waters, as well as coral reef monitoring and restoration. The attending experts offered valuable suggestions on the future development-direction and goals of the laboratory. They encouraged that the laboratory should continue to focus on its distinctive research direction — Coral Reef as the research core, to drive the development of marine discipline. They also recommended that the laboratory should actively engage in international cooperation and exchanges with a global perspective, to enhance its academic influence in global coral reef research. Additionally, they emphasized the importance of talent development and team building, and advising the laboratory to actively recruit and cultivate high-level research talent and strengthen team with a more reasonable structure and complementary advantages. The attending experts offered valuable suggestions on the future development-direction and goals of the laboratory. They encouraged that the laboratory should continue to focus on its distinctive research direction — Coral Reef as the research core, to drive the development of marine discipline. They also recommended that the laboratory should actively engage in international cooperation and exchanges with a global perspective, to enhance its academic influence in global coral reef research. Additionally, they emphasized the importance of talent development and team building, and advising the laboratory to actively recruit and cultivate high-level research talent and strengthen team with a more reasonable structure and complementary advantages.

Yao Zuofang (Assistant to the President and Director of the State-owned Assets and Laboratory Management Office), said that Guangxi University will continue to deepen its support and investment in the Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS, work with the Beibu Gulf region and even ASEAN countries to jointly build a large-scale research platform, and actively attract top domestic and international research talents through talent recruitment mechanisms. At the same time, the university will strive for policy support and financial support from the autonomous region’s government, actively seek close cooperation with first-class and international research institutions, in order to jointly promote coral reef scientific research of our country, better serve the major strategic needs to build China into a strong maritime country and respond to General Secretary Xi Jinping’s expectations for Guangxi to “Seeking national prosperity and strength from the ocean”

The annual academic conference also carefully planned a " Face-to-Face with Experts". College faculty and students present actively participated focused on research challenges, industry prospects, academic advancement and raised their questions. Experts and scholars patiently and meticulously answered all questions, offering not only professional guidance but also a special ideological and political education and a vivid professional course. They encouraged the teachers and students to cultivate patriotism, inherit scientific spirit, be brave in innovation and strive diligently. They expressed hope that young students could contribute their youthful strength to the vigorous development of coral reef and marine disciplines, and work together to advance this field. This segment not only deepened the teachers' and students' understanding of professional knowledge, but also inspired their enthusiasm and confidence to engage in scientific research.

From May 12 to 14, Academician Chen Fahu, Deputy Director of the Academic Committee, and some participating experts visited Beihai and Weizhou Island to inspect the laboratory's coastal base and the coral reef ecological restoration area.

Zhang Shi, Secretary of the Party Working Committee and Director of the Management Committee of Weizhou Island Tourism Area, briefed Academician Chen Fahui and other experts on the progress and plans of cooperation with the laboratory. Huang Wen, Director of the Coral Reef Museum on Weizhou island of the School of Marine Sciences at Guangxi University, and Huang Aiguo, Executive Deputy Director, introduced the construction of the Coral Reef Museum and scientific research and popular science work. Dr. Huang Wen gave an in-depth introduction to the achievements of the faculty and students of the School of Marine Sciences at Guangxi University in coral reef ecological restoration on Weizhou Island, including ecological monitoring, construction and maintenance, ecological restoration and restoration area construction and maintenance of coral reefs in Weizhou Island surrounding water. Academician Chen Fahu and other experts highly commended the importance of the Coral Reef Museum on Weizhou island and the coral reef ecological restoration area. They noted that it is not only a key scientific research base of the School of Marine Sciences, but also an important position for Guangxi University to disseminate marine science knowledge and science popularization. They emphasized that these efforts have profound significance for the protection, research, and ecological restoration of coral reefs in China.

Academician Chen Fahu and other experts also inspected the geological and geomorphological landscape of Weizhou Island’s coral reefs, and made an in-depth analysis of the formation causes of the beach rocks on Weizhou Island and the paleo-climate and environmental information coral reef recorded; visited Guangxi University SSI Diving Cente and gained a detailed understanding of the center's role in coral reef scientific research and teaching. Academician Chen Fahu also put on a diving suit and equipment and went into the personally went underwater to inspect the coral breeding base and coral reef ecological restoration nursery on Weizhou Island. He witnessed the remarkable achievements of the laboratory in coral reef ecological restoration.

During the meeting, experts and leaders visited the Marine Science and Education Museum and Island and Reef Ecological Restoration Laboratory of Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS.

Attendees included:

Academician Jiao Nianzhi (Director of the Laboratory's Academic Committee), Academician of the CAS and Deputy Director of State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science of Xiamen University

Academician Chen Fahu (Deputy Director), Academician of the CAS, and former director of the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research CAS

Member of the laboratory's academic committee:

Academician Liu Congqiang, Academician of the CAS and Dean of Institute of Surface-Earth System Science College

Academician Jian Zhimin, Dean of the School of Ocean and Earth Sciences of Tongji University

Li Tiegang, Researcher, Director of the First Institute of Oceanography, MNR

Academician Lin Jian, European Academy of Sciences, AIOR Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen Ocean University Preparatory Director

Professor Qi Shihua, China University of Geosciences

Researcher Wei Gangjian, Deputy Director of the State Key Laboratory of Isotope Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry of CAS

Professor Wang Yinghui, Head of Technical Brokerage Department of Guangxi Institute of Industrial Technology and the School of Marine Sciences at Guangxi University

Researcher Wang Sumin (Consultant of the Academic Committee), Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology Chinese Academy of Sciences

Professor Yu Kefu, Dean of the School of Marine Sciences at Guangxi University

Professor Wu Zhiqiang, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Guilin University of Technology

Researcher Xu Xiangrong, the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology CAS

Researcher Chen Lianguo. Institute of Hydrobiology CAS

And

Liang Enwei, Member of the Standing CPC and Vice President of Guangxi University

Yao Zuofang, Member of the Standing CPC, Assistant to the President, Minister of the United Front Work Department of the Party Committee of Guangxi University, and Director of the State-owned Assets and Laboratory Management Office

Wang Shaopeng, Director of the Guangxi University's Party Committee Office and Principal's Office

Shen Peihong, Vice Dean of the Guangxi University's Research Institute and Director of the Research Platform Construction Management Office

Qin Huadong, Secretary of Party Committee of School of Marine Sciences at Guangxi University, etc.

(First review and proofreading by: Zhou Jian; Second review and proofreading by: Huang Rongyong; Third review and proofreading by: Yu Kefu; Photos by: Hu Ange, Zhou Jian)

Opening Ceremony of the 2023 Academic Committee Annual Conference of Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS

Group photo of the academic committee members, attending experts and leaders, and laboratory faculty and students

Liang Enwei, Member of the Standing CPC and Vice President of Guangxi University, delivered the welcome speech.

Professor Yu Kefu, Director of the laboratory, reported on laboratory progress

Key Laboratory Annual Meeting Seminar

Yao Zuofang made a summary remark

Experts and faculty and students engaged in discussions face to face

Visit to Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS

Academician Chen Fahu dived to inspect coral reef ecological restoration nursery underwater-base of the Guangxi Laboratory on the Study of Coral Reef in the SCS

Visit the Coral Reef Museum on Wezhou island of the School of Marine Sciences at Guangxi University

Inspection of the coral reef beach sediments and beach rock landscapes primarily formed by coral reef sediments on Weizhou Island

Investigate the volcanic geology and ecological distribution on Weizhou Island