Sowing expertise to reap food security

Over the past two years, more than 600 teachers and over 3,000 students from the university have voluntarily connected with 17 cities and prefectures in Hubei, leveraging their scientific and educational strengths to carry out activities including technological services, talent training, theoretical lectures and thematic investigations, supporting the high-quality development of agriculture in rural areas in Hubei.

As China's agricultural landscape continues to evolve, the country has increasingly turned to fueling international agricultural cooperation and promoting food security.

Li, who sought further education in the United States in the 1990s, stressed the importance of international exchanges in agricultural science.

During Li's university years, China was in the initial period after it carried out its reform and opening-up policy in 1978, and had just started to participate in international exchanges.

One day, while attending an academic presentation, a professor, who had recently returned from a visit to the US, delivered a lecture on biotechnology and cloning. As the professor presented various photos, Li was struck by how much biotechnology could transform agricultural development.

"Seeing these things from the outside world that I had never imagined before was truly astonishing. This experience inspired me to pursue further education abroad, with the goal of contributing to the rejuvenation of my homeland," Li says.

In 1995, he started to pursue his doctoral degree in Auburn University, Alabama, and four years later initiated his postdoctoral studies in North Dakota State University. Of his experiences there, Li adds, "Studying abroad has had a profound impact on me, promoting the formation of ideas through exposure to different environments and cultures."

Over the past five years, Huazhong Agricultural University has invited five Nobel laureates to deliver lectures, organized 128 international academic conferences, and sent 2,384 students abroad on educational exchanges.

In December, the university co-organized the Global Food Security Forum for Young Scientists, aiming at bringing together scientists, scholars and innovators from different academic areas to discuss their research findings and exchange innovative ideas on all aspects of global food security.