2025 Global Food Security Forum for Young Scientists Held in Shanghai

From October 20 to 22, the 23rd Conference on International Exchange of Professionals was held in Shanghai. State Councilor Shen Yiqin addressed the opening ceremony via video link and declared the conference open. With the theme "Gathering the Global Talents, Pursuing Win-Win Cooperation," the conference brought together over 2,600 experts from more than 110 countries and regions. 

The 2025 Global Food Security Forum for Young Scientists was held concurrently as a sub-forum of the conference. The forum fostered interdisciplinary discussions on global food security governance through eight academic seminars and talent exchange sessions, including a launch event, keynote speeches, lightning talks, roundtables, and project roadshows. Experts and scholars from Huazhong Agricultural University, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), the University of Göttingen, Leibniz University Hannover, the University of Lincoln, and other international organizations, domestic and foreign universities, and research institutions participated in the event, engaging in in-depth academic discussions and idea exchanges. Yu Jiadong, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and Nie Shengkui, Director-General of the Foreign Experts Services Department of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, visited the forum for guidance and exchange.

Yu Jiadong, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, attended for guidance and exchange.

Nie Shengkui, Director-General of the Foreign Experts Services Department of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, visited the project roadshow.

The forum opened on the morning of the 21st. Yang Shaobo, Member of the University Party Standing Committee and Vice President, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech, extending a warm welcome to the attending experts and scholars on behalf of Huazhong Agricultural University. He stated that food security is vital for human survival and underpins world peace and development, noting that China has contributed significantly to safeguarding global food security. He expressed hope that young scientists worldwide would strengthen cooperation and dedicate themselves to addressing critical global challenges such as food supply, nutrition and health, and agricultural sustainable development, working together to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

Professor Xiong Hang from the College of Economics and Management released the Agricultural Large Agent Model for Policy (AgLAMP).

Professor Li Jian released the Grain Market Prediction and Early Warning System.

Following the opening ceremony, the launch event for achievements in digital-intelligent governance for global food security was held. Professor Xiong Hang from the College of Economics and Management released the Agricultural Large Agent Model for Policy (AgLAMP). This model constructs a "knowledge-data" dual-drive framework, enables multi-dimensional individual decision simulation, and provides a precise ex-ante evaluation tool for agricultural policies. Professor Li Jian released the Grain Market Prediction and Early Warning System, which integrates multi-dimensional data to achieve accurate prediction of the yield and price of grain crops, primarily corn. The evening news broadcast of China Central Television (CCTV) on the 21st featured coverage of the forum's launch event.

CCTV News broadcast reported scenes from the forum's launch event.

During the two-day forum, keynote speeches were delivered by Hope Webber, Researcher at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA); Professor Yu Xiaohua from the University of Göttingen; You Liangzhi, Senior Research Fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI); and Felix Dapare Dakora, President of the African Academy of Sciences and Foreign Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. The reports covered the important role of tropical agriculture, the application prospects of machine learning technology, the production impact of climate-related risks, and the multifunctional roles of rhizobia in cropping systems, proposing new ideas and approaches to solving global food security challenges.

Hope Webber, Researcher at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), delivered a keynote speech.

Professor Yu Xiaohua from the University of Göttingen delivered a keynote speech.

You Liangzhi, Senior Research Fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), delivered a keynote speech.

During the lightning talk session, seven scholars explored the threats, challenges, opportunities, and solutions for global food security from interdisciplinary perspectives, showcasing their latest research findings. The topics covered wheat breeding technology, threats from geopolitical conflicts, opportunities within the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor framework, global integrated pest management projects, ecological governance and food security, as well as education, training, and support for empowering young scientists.

The conference also provided a diverse exchange platform for young scientists, facilitating deep integration of theory and practice through formats such as senior-young scholar dialogues, industry-academia-research roundtables, interdisciplinary dialogues, and project roadshows. During the dialogue session, senior experts and young scholars jointly explored the constraints, historical achievements, and future prospects of food security. The industry-academia-research roundtable focused on the promotion, application, and development prospects of Calotropis gigantea in Africa. The interdisciplinary dialogue discussed future development paths for agricultural science technology and support systems. In the project roadshow session, Huazhong Agricultural University's independently developed black rice varieties, multi-functional cotton, high-yield and high-protein corn suitable for mechanical harvesting, and citrus large-scale cultivation technologies were showcased. Their technological innovation and application potential garnered high attention and positive feedback from the attending guests.

Senior-Young Scholar Dialogue

Interdisciplinary Dialogue

The Global Food Security Forum for Young Scientists is an international forum jointly initiated and organized by Huazhong Agricultural University, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), and the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO). It aims to pool the wisdom of young scientists worldwide to jointly explore and address global food security challenges. Through keynote speeches, roundtable dialogues, project roadshows, and other formats, participants work together to tackle global food security challenges, injecting youthful energy into building a sustainable global food security system.

Attending scholars learned about the black rice varieties developed by Academician Zhang Qifa's team at the roadshow site (All above photos taken by Reporter Yan Huahua).

Source: Huazhong Agricultural University