President Bai Chunli issues certificate to a newly-elected foreign CAS academician. [Image from china.org.cn]

On May 28, Bai Chunli, President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), wrote a letter to foreign CAS academicians who attend the meeting, hoping they could help CAS join hands with more international outstanding talents in making scientific dreams come true.

Dear foreign CAS academicians,

First of all, I’d like to welcome you on behalf of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) to attend this year’s academician conference as a foreign member.

Since the launch of its opening up 40 years ago, China has fast integrated itself into the globalization process and made great achievements in development. Today, the country is leading the world to create a new order for win-win development, with increasing open-mindedness and inclusiveness. CAS has always aspired to become a world-class international research institution, with the aim to work with the world’s top innovative talent in science and technology to explore the most advanced fields that remain unknown to mankind and address the scientific challenges facing human beings.

As a national institution integrating research, education and think-tank functions, CAS boasts approximately 70,000 researchers and is home to more than 80 percent of China's large scientific facilities. The academy, always at the forefront of research and developments in various scientific disciplines, has proved to be the cradle of new technological changes brought by interdisciplinary interactions. CAS has ascended to a new peak of scientific findings with the discovery of a third neutrino oscillation mode, and also nurtured Lenovo, one of the world’s tech giants. The academy has been working to unravel the mysteries of the universe, the Earth and the evolution of human beings, and has successfully opened the door to future application of quantum communications, nuclear fusion and stem cells. CAS will provide global talent with a first-class innovative environment and unlimited development opportunities.

The President’s International Fellowship Initiative (PIFI) is a special program providing support to talented people from across the world that come to CAS for exchanges, cooperation, studies and work. So far, the program has facilitated visits to CAS by nearly 3,400 accomplished scientists from more than 90 countries, and provided financial aid to about 900 graduate students pursuing a degree at CAS. I hope you will recommend this talent plan to other eminent scholars and young scientists who are interested in conducting research cooperation with China and in this way help CAS join hands with more outstanding talent in making scientific dreams come true!

CAS will also work to further improve services for its foreign members. Currently, we’re actively cooperating with relevant departments in a bid to provide more convenient and more favorable visa service to our foreign members. I hope you will be able to visit China more frequently and provide valuable assistance to the innovation-driven development of China’s science and technology.

Sincerely yours,

Bai Chunli

President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences

Source: CAS