Chinese President Xi Jinping has been stressing the important roles of teachers and education in shaping China's future development, as shown by his speeches at meetings and during his inspections to schools.
China Media Group (CMG) has published a collection of his speeches at such meetings and during his inspections ahead of the country's Teachers' Day, which falls on Sept. 10.
"What does the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation depend on? It depends on the highly-civilized spirit of the Chinese nation, with education as its basis," said Xi during an inspection to a middle school in Suide County of northwest China's Shaanxi Province on Sept. 14, 2021.
"Teachers are a mirror reflecting the students' growth in ethics. To become a good teacher, one must abide by ethics and have lofty ideals. Teachers' influence on students is based on the teachers' knowledge and ability, and even more on their values on principles of behaving and engaging with the world, on the country and the people, and on public interests and personal interests. Today's students are the major driving force for realizing our Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Teachers are dream builders, undertaking the mission to forge a 'dream team'," said Xi during a visit to Beijing Normal University on Sept. 9, 2014.
"Being a teacher for the people is glorious beyond compare," Xi said at a national education conference in Beijing on Sept. 10, 2018.
Xi highly values teachers, education
About 800 interdisciplinary experts from China and around the world convened in Beijing on Friday at the 2024 World Agrifood Innovation Conference (WAFI 2024), advocating a low-carbon transition in agrifood systems through sci-tech innovation to address climate change.
The conference, themed "Climate Change and Agrifood Systems Transformation," highlights the urgent need for innovation in the agricultural sector.
Experts at the conference acknowledged the numerous challenges facing agrifood system transformation and the need for global collaboration to share experiences and results through ongoing dialogue.
"One of the major highlights of the conference is multidisciplinary [observations]. Entrepreneurs and scientists are all on one platform. What we particularly emphasize is the dialogue among scientists, entrepreneurs, and investors, which is very crucial. How can a scientist's research results be transformed into productivity? This transformation necessitates industrialization, wherein businesses must leverage their technological innovations," said Fu Wenge, director of the MBA Education Center, at China Agricultural University.
During the conference, scientists, educators, entrepreneurs and investors from over 70 countries and regions will discuss various topics including smart agriculture, AI-driven breeding, transformations in livestock and aquatic food systems, genetic resources and germplasm innovation, as well as food nutrition and security.
David Nabarro, a World Food Prize laureate, highlighted that achieving sustainable agriculture requires not only national policy development but also international cooperation across industries, disciplines and stakeholders.
"This conference is about finding ways that innovation can help agriculture and food in China and beyond meet the needs that we're going to see now and in the decades to come. Well, this is a country that contains some of the world's brightest scientists who not only are good at doing the science, but also applying it and sharing it with others," said Nabarro.
Alongside the gathering of experts, the event is hosting the 2024 World AgriFood Technology Expo, showcasing cutting-edge achievements, advanced technologies, advanced models, high-quality projects, and innovative products in the global agricultural sector.
Initiated last year, WAFI aims to serve as a world-class platform for advancing global agrifood innovation. The conference is co-organized by the local government of Pinggu District of Beijing, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China Agricultural University and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.
Global experts in Beijing explore strategies to realize low-carbon agrifood systems
