We sincerely invite you to share your insights on science and your vision for the future!

1. Forum Overview

The 9^th South Lake Forum for International Young Scholars of HZAU aims to provide a platform for outstanding young scholars from around the world, who are active in the fields of global food security, food safety, bio-security, ecological security and human nutrition and health, to exchange ideas, discuss research progress and promote collaborations and communications.

The Forum will feature a combination of in-person main sessions and ongoing sub-forums, available both online and offline.

2. Forum Arrangement

1) Main forum. Young scholars from both domestic and international institutions are invited to participate in forum activities at the university. The forum will feature presentations by renowned scholars and emerging experts across various fields, along with on-site visits and exchanges. The schedule includes a full day of registration on Friday, December 20th. The opening ceremony will take place on the morning of December 21st, followed by sub-forums and exchange visits in the afternoon of December 21st and continuing through December 22nd.

2) Sub forums. From September 2024 to January 2025, online and offline sub-forums will be organized across various fields and time frames to facilitate in-depth exchanges among peers. Scholars participating in the online sub-forum are encouraged to attend the main forum in person for on-site visits and further exchanges.

3. Disciplines

Major fields of Biological Seed Industry:

1) Conservation, Evaluation, and Innovation of Agricultural Germplasm Resources

2) Biological Foundations of Domestication, Evolution, and Regulation of Key Traits in Agricultural Organisms, including yield, quality, resistance, and nutrient efficiency

3) Innovation in Agricultural Cell Engineering and Biotechnology

4) Advances in Biological Breeding Technology

5) Development of Green and High-Quality Agricultural Biological Varieties and Seed Engineering

6) Green and efficient agricultural production systems

7) Quality, Safety, and Nutritional Value of Agricultural Products

8) Evaluation of Horticultural Crop Resources and Gene Discovery, Germplasm Creation and Genetic Improvement,  and Quality Formation and Regulation

Major Fields of Basic Biology, and Biomedical Science & Health:

1) Multidimensional genomics

2) Modification of biological macromolecule

3) Organelle biogenesis and communication

4) Organ development and morphogenesis

5) Interactions between biological and non-biological entities and the environment

6) Photobiology

7) Photobiochemistry

8) Artificial Photosynthetic Nitrogen Fixation

9) Biological nitrogen fixation

10) Neurobiology

11) Nutrition & Health

12) Zoonotic Diseases and Public Health

13) Immunology

14) Epidemiology

15) Toxicology

16) Medicinal botany

17) Biopharmaceuticals

Major Fields of Information Technology & Intelligent Agriculture:

1) Big Data Analytics in Biology, Agriculture, Health

2) Artificial Intelligence (deep learning, image processing, natural language processing, knowledge graph, sensors, large models)

3) Cybersecurity

4) Intelligent Agriculture (crop production, global climate change and macro agriculture, animal breeding, aquaculture facilities, horticulture facilities, intelligent agricultural machinery, and agricultural robots and engineering applications)

5) Green Food Processing & Quality Assurance

Major Fields of Ecological Environment & Green Development:

1) Safe Production of Agricultural Products

2) Interactions between Animals, Plants and Microorganisms

3) Agricultural Biological Health Production

4) Animal (including aquatic species) Breeding & Healthy Breeding

5) Prevention and Detection of Animal and Plant Diseases

6) Development of Veterinary Medicines and Pesticides

7) Post-Harvest Biological Technology

8) Landscape Plants

9) Cultivation & Utilization of Forestry Resources

10) Protection & Management of Agricultural Ecological Environment

11) Landscape Architecture Theory and History

12) Landscape Planning and Ecological Restoration

13) Landscape Architecture Design and Theory

14) Landscape Architecture Engineering and Technology

15) Protection and Utilization of Natural and Cultural Heritage

16) Technology & Equipment for Agricultural Biomass Conversion & Utilization

17) Horticulture for Health Living

Major Fields of Humanities & Social Sciences:

1) Marxist Theory

2) Food Economy and Management

3) Agriculture & Rural Economic Development

4) Agricultural Resources & Environment Economics

5) Agricultural Business Management

6) Digital Agriculture Economy

7) Agricultural Industry & Technology Economics

8) Land Economics and Policy

9) Land Resource Management

10) Spatial Computing and Land Use

11) Computational Social Science and Public Policy

12) Rural Revitalization & Rural Governance

13) Social Transformation & Social Governance

14) Urban and Rural Public Governance

15) Rural Poverty Reduction & Social Development

16) Social Security & Basic Public Services

17) Development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt

18) Rule of Law in China

19) News dissemination

20) Chinese Language and Literature

21) Foreign Literature (including English and French)

22) Foreign Linguistics and Applied Linguistics

23) Translation studies

24) Country and Regional Studies

Major Fields of Interdisciplinary Science and Biotechnology:

1) Synthetic Biology and Biotransformation Technologies

2) Protein Design and Engineering

3) Omics Technologies

4) Gene Editing Technologies

5) Bioinformatics

6) Biostatistics

7) AI-driven Biology (language models, diffusion models, multimodal analysis, time series)

8) General Biotechnology (biomolecule detection, analysis, and manipulation technologies)

9) Interdisciplinary Biotechnology (biological imaging, optical imaging)

10) Applied Biotechnology (agriculture, crops, livestock, poultry, aquatic organisms)

11) Mathematical Biology

12) Physical Biology

13) Chemical Biology

4. Recommended Applicants  

1) Young scholars who are leaders among their peers, with significant, impactful scientific achievements and the potential to become outstanding scholars and educators in their field;

2) Leading scientists from prestigious universities or research institutes with distinguished teaching, research experience, and significant original academic achievements, demonstrating substantial academic influence;

3) High-end equipment developers and technicians with strong professional expertise, team-work spirit and a service-oriented mindset.

5. Development Support

We warmly invite like-minded scholars to join us in our pursuit of academic excellence at Shishan and contributing to the advancement of our era.

1) Leading and outstanding talents will be appointed as professors, following the standards of top global universities, and will be recognized as PhD and master's supervisors. Start-up funding, lab space, and salaries will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis. On-campus housing will be provided.

2) Young researchers will be integrated into the postdoctoral management system, joining a mentor's team with a primary focus on scientific research, supplemented by teaching skills training. Young researchers may be promoted to associate researcher or researcher, with competitive salaries. Exceptional postdoctoral researchers will receive additional support beyond the current salary structure, with apartment housing arranged and priority consideration for faculty positions at the university.

3) High-end equipment developers will be hired as formal staff in relevant technical positions, enjoying corresponding salaries and access to the "Outstanding Engineer" promotion track. Exceptional candidates may receive individually negotiated compensation.

6. Methods of Application

Method 1: The organizer will directly invite potential candidates based on development needs.

Method 2: Please scan the QR code below to complete the online application (registration for sub-forum is open at any time, while registration for the main forum must be completed by December 1st). The organizer will promptly confirm candidates for academic reports in time and send invitations in batches.

Application by phone

We warmly welcome scholars from home and abroad to visit our campus, exchange ideas, and enjoy a leisurely stroll through the picturesque surroundings. For those invited to participate in the main and sub-forums, we will reimburse those who invited to participate in the main and sub forums for round-trip travel expenses between international and domestic cities (economy-class airfare or second-class train ticket); In principle, the travel expenses for domestic scholars should not exceed 5000 RMB, and those for overseas scholars should not exceed 12000 RMB. Board and lodging arrangements will also be provided. (During the main forum, accommodation and meals will be arranged centrally. For the sub-forum, the school will cover travel and accommodation costs, while the respective college will provide meal arrangements).

7. Contact Information

Pang Pai, Fan Binyao, Zhou Xi, Human Resources Department

Phone: +86（27）8728-0957, 87285113

Email: rcb@mail.hzau.edu.cn

Institution contacts information

8. Brief Introduction to HZAU

Founded in 1898, HZAU has, over its 126-year history, upheld the values of "enhancing agricultural science and promoting national glory," embodying the HZAU spirit centered around "learn and practice, achieve and help achieve". It has forged a unique path of development, establishing itself as a distinctive research-oriented university and securing a place among China’s "Double First-Class" universities.

Here, disciplinary strengths are pronounced and diverse.

HZAU has achieved coordinated development across a wide ranges of disciplines of agriculture, science, engineering, humanities, law, economics, management, and the arts.

Currently, fourteen disciplines have ranked among top 1% of ESI, including Plant Science & Zoology, Agricultural Science, Biology & Biochemistry, Molecular Biology & Genetics, Microbiology, Environmental Science & Ecology, Chemistry, Engineering Science, Pharmacology & Toxicology, Material Science, Immunology, General Social Sciences, and Geographic Sciences, with Plant Science & Zoology and Agricultural Science ranking the top 1‰.

Here, the educational system is comprehensive.

Upholding the principle of nurturing talent as the foundation, we strive to make Shishan Campus a golden cradle for top-tier individuals.

Currently, there are 17 colleges (departments), offering 63 undergraduate programs, 27 first-level disciplines authorized for master's degrees, 16 categories of professional master's degrees, 15 first-level disciplines authorized for doctoral degrees, 4 categories of professional doctoral degrees, and 16 postdoctoral research stations.

Here, scientific and technological strengths are robust.

By enhancing organized research, we are committed to transform Shishan Campus into a hub of innovation and creativity.

We currently have three national key laboratories: the National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, the National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbial Resource Exploration and Utilization, and the National Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization for Fruit and Vegetable Horticultural Crops. Additionally, there are three national engineering (technology) research centers, one national innovation platform for integration of production and education in biological breeding, one frontier science center of the Ministry of Education, fourteen international scientific and technological cooperation bases, and 97 provincial key laboratories, centers, bases, or observation stations.

Hubei Hongshan Laboratory focuses on the field of biological breeding, with the overall goal of providing food that is healthy for both human and the earth. It pools together strengths and integrates innovative resources to serve as a crucial force in revitalizing the seed industry and ensuring food security, striving to become a national leader in seed industry innovation.

The "one college and three places" High-Level Talent Training Base and Technological Innovation Platform.

1) Institute of Interdisciplinary Science: Focuses on exploratory research into interdisciplinary, forward-looking, foundational, and strategic scientific and technological issues.

2) Shennongjia Science and Technology Innovation Center: Co-established with the Shennongjia Forest District Government of Hubei Province, this center promotes the development of emerging interdisciplinary fields related to ecological environment and green development.

3) Xiangyang Institute of Modern Agriculture: Co-established with the Xiangyang Municipal Government of Hubei Province, it serves as a key base for training talent and advancing modern agricultural research to strengthen and modernize agriculture.

4) Shenzhen Institute of Nutrition and Health: Co-established with the Shenzhen Municipal Government of Guangdong Province, this institute focuses on talent recruitment and development, technological innovation, corporate R&D services, technology transfer, and business incubation, aiming to become a market-driven new research institute and a world-class research institution.

Here, respecting talent is a prevailing trend.

We always embrace the philosophy of "seeking advice from scholars in academia and listening to both teachers and students in education." 

HZAU adheres to a talent-first strategy, emphasizing both recruitment and cultivation. We practice "attracting talents with talents, gathering talents with talents, and nurturing talents with talents," ensuring precise recruitment of talents, meticulous cultivation of them, and sincere utilization of their capabilities. Upholding the talent development perspective of "Gather outstanding talents from all directions to promote sustainable development." we open wide the path for talented individuals and welcome elites from around the world. Our approach to personnel management is based on the principle of "appointing the right person for the right job, at the right time, and utilizing their full potential," enabling everyone to excel. we establish a support system for talent growth with the belief that "everyone can become a Sage like Shun or Yao,"

Here, the campus environment is uniquely blessed.

We've crafted a Shishan campus where "Scenery with intellectual depth, ambiance fused with emotion."

HZAU is located in one of the major urban areas of Wuhan, Hubei province. Situating in Shizi Mountain and being surrounded by the South Lake, HZAU takes pride in its nine kilometers lake shoreline, five square kilometers campus with picturesque scenery, ten kilometers “trails in forests”, six kilometers lakeside greenway. Our campus, known as a “natural oxygen bar”, or garden-like school, has been consecutively honored as a National Civilized Unit since 2008, and was awarded the title of First National Civilized Campus in 2017, which it proudly retained in 2020. The living facilities, hospital and gymnasiums on campus are well-equipped. Its affiliated kindergarten, primary and secondary schools rank the top level among educational institutions in Wuhan. Adjacent to the Central Ring and subway lines, the campus is surrounded by commercial centers and well-known educational and scientific research institutions. Its convenient transportation and quiet environment make it an ideal place to work and live in.

Looking forward to meeting you at Shizi Mountain!