Dr. Jenn-Chuan Chern, a full member of the Club of Rome and CEO of the Tang Prize Foundation, was invited to attend the club's first-ever international conference held in China. The two related meetings took place from November 2–4 and November 5–7. They were hosted by Shanghai University of Engineering Science (SUES) and sponsored by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
The first symposium, a pre-session held in Shanghai, was titled “Symposium on Ecological Civilization: From the ‘Two Mountains’ Concept to Global Action Strategies.” It explored the development of ecological civilization in mainland China, examining the theory that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets (or ‘golden mountains and silver hills’),” and discussing Chinese wisdom and the world's pathways. In the panel of “Inter-City Transport and Sustainability—Air and High Speed Rail: Competition and Cooperation,” Dr. Chern delivered a presentation on “How to Combine the Strength of Various Sectors to Reconstruct a Sustainable and Resilient Transportation System after a Major Disaster.”
The second symposium, titled “International Conference on Earth-Humanity Reconciliation: Towards Ecological Civilisations through Plural Pathways,” was held in Suzhou. Its purpose was to bring together global wisdom, promote the practical transformation of the ecological civilization concept, and explore feasible paths to achieve common well-being for all humanity within ecological safety boundaries. Both conferences were led by the two Co-Presidents of the Club of Rome, Paul Shrivastava and Silvia Zimmermann del Castillo, and attended by members from various countries, with reports delivered by key project leaders. Dr. Chern participated in the forum titled “Regenerative Transformation of Industries, Cities, and Mobility: Exploring Development Cases from Around the World,” where he presented his views on “Post-Disaster Reconstruction with Consideration for Sustainability and Humanity.”
The conference was held just before COP30 in Brazil, allowing for heated discussions on constantly evolving global climate change disasters, regional conflicts, energy and resource issues, and carbon reduction, with a particular focus on global ecological well-being, prosperous equity, regenerative transformation, and international cooperation. The famous scientist Jørgen Randers, co-author of The Limits to Growth—a book that developed a dynamic model for future prediction—delivered a fascinating special address at the closing session of the main conference on the theme “International Cooperation in Pluralistic Societies.” His talk, titled “The World Towards 2072: What Will Happen? What Needs to Be Done?” reviewed the current state of the world and offered forward-looking suggestions for future development. The Tang Prize, which features a "Sustainable Development" award, shares the same core focus as the Club of Rome's initiatives. Attendees—all experts, scholars, or NGO CEOs who have long cultivated this field—used the platform for excellent interaction and exchange.
