On the eve of the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between China and Italy, the Politecnico di Milano and Tsinghua University hosted the China – Italy University Presidents’ Forum. Southen University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) Council Chairperson Yurong GUO was invited to deliver a keynote speech at the Forum.

With the theme “Innovation for Shared Future,” the Forum gathered online over twenty heads from leading higher education institutions in China and Italy to celebrate the fruitful partnership between the two countries.

In Chairperson GUO’s speech, she shared her understanding of innovation based on the previous experience of SUSTech. She said that “Innovation is a series of chain reactions,” the process includes knowledge creation, technology transformation, and industrial upgrading. The institutions and universities are an important connector in this process.

As “Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship” are three pillars of SUSTech, the University aims to drive technological reformation through innovations and knowledge creation and promote social development across the country. Innovation requires cooperation among governments, enterprises, universities, and society, and extensive exchanges between universities and countries. Chairperson GUO looks forward to strengthening exchanges and close collaboration with universities and higher education institutions worldwide for innovation and science and technology advancement.