The 2024 Beijing International Youth Innovation and Development Forum was successfully held at the Zhongguancun International Innovation Center on April 28. This event, serving as a parallel session to the 2024 Zhongguancun Forum, focused on the talent sector with the theme "Gathering Youth Power and Promoting Innovation Development."

Approximately 400 participants, including representatives from relevant government departments, international organizations, distinguished scientists, entrepreneurs, scholars, outstanding foreign experts working in Beijing, and international student representatives, attended the forum and discussed innovation and development.

You Jun, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee and head of the Organization Department of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee, pointed out that the forum is a concrete practice of Beijing's efforts to build a global platform for youth exchange and promote global youth talent cooperation and innovation.

Beijing has introduced a series of new talent policies, implemented comprehensive supporting measures, and tackled issues related to talent evaluation, talent utilization, scientific research management, and commercialization of research achievements, aiming to reduce the burden on and unleash the potential of talents. Meanwhile, Beijing has been continuously optimizing its innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, which has helped attract talents and resources from around the world.

Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, emphasized that in the face of global issues and challenges, original and disruptive technological innovations are needed to generate new industries and new models, bringing greater benefits to people around the world. It is suggested that innovation will play a leading role in fostering and developing new quality productive forces; youth will be the mainstay in building a highland of talents for innovation and entrepreneurship; and sharing will have a guiding role in creating an open ecosystem for innovation.

Zhang Xiangchen, deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization, said in a video speech that, youth, especially youth leaders, should possess a sense of mission and a global perspective, observing, studying, and resolving issues from a global and historical standpoint. Youth from all countries should pay more attention to meeting challenges with knowledge and innovation, daring to explore unknown territories, continuously enriching their knowledge reserves, and daring to break through traditional thinking patterns. The whole of society should provide a more favorable environment and more opportunities for the innovation and development of youth, sharing the trial and error costs of youth innovation.

Didier Queloz, winner of the 2019 Nobel Prize in physics and professor of physics at the University of Cambridge and ETH Zurich, said in a video speech that it’s crucial to strengthen scientific and technological exchanges. The youth are the future of the Earth and the creators of our future society; they should seize every opportunity to exchange ideas with other scientists, getting to know those who have spent much time studying how the world operates and those who will contribute to the future of society.

At the forum, Fang Fang, vice president of Peking University, Olli Suominen, education and science counsellor at the Embassy of Finland in China, Norman Sze Nung Chi, vice chair of Deloitte China, Biljana Jelacic, executive vice president of human resources at Mercedes-Benz Group China, and Gan Lu, secretary-general of BIC EURONOVA Greater China, delivered keynote speeches, sharing their insights on innovation research and development, education equality, and youth development.

The forum also featured a "Youth Talk" segment, during which five young representatives from China and abroad shared their experiences and insights on the theme of "Key Elements of Youth Innovation and Development," reflecting on their involvement in innovative development and cross-cultural exchanges.

During the forum, the Contact Beijing · Global Network for Innovation Services (GNIS) was launched. As a vital component of "Contact Beijing", GNIS will focus on youth talents, employ precise services, and construct a global platform for innovation resource cooperation. The China Scholarship Council, the Beijing Overseas Talents Center, and Steinbeis University Berlin (SIBE) signed an MOU on the joint cultivation of international talents. Peking University's Institute of Area Studies released the "2024 Global Youth Science and Technology Innovation Development Report", providing a comprehensive overview of the current state of global youth science and technology innovation development, and analyzing the ecological environment, driving mechanisms, and feasible paths leading and promoting global youth science and technology innovation development.

The forum was organized by the Beijing Municipal Human Resources Bureau, China Daily, the Beijing Overseas Talents Center, and the Talent Work Leading Group of the Haidian District Committee.