"China has always upheld the principle of openness and cooperation in science and technology to serve the common good of humanity. By pursuing a mutually beneficial strategy of opening up, China contributes its wisdom and strength to addressing global challenges and advancing human development and progress."

This is what Chinese Vice Minister of Science and Technology Chen Jiachang said at the International Forum on Science and Diplomacy during the 2025 Zhongguancun Forum held in Beijing on March 31.

Themed "Promoting International Sci-tech Cooperation and Building an Open Innovation Ecosystem," the forum brought together global experts to discuss pathways for international innovation, explore collaborative models, and strategize on accelerating progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Chen emphasized that strengthening openness and cooperation in science and technology is not only a universal aspiration but also a vital pathway to driving global innovation.

He made four key proposals: 

· To deepen open cooperation and forge closer partnerships in science and technology;

· To promote open science and jointly tackle major global sci-tech challenges;

· To enhance people-to-people exchange and build bridges for young scholars worldwide to collaborate and share knowledge; 

· To optimize the open environment to create a fair, inclusive, and dynamic innovation ecosystem.

As an international hub for scientific and technological innovation, Beijing draws strength from innovation and vitality from openness. Xu Xinchao, deputy secretary-general of the Beijing Municipal People’s Government, said the city is committed to enhancing mechanisms for international sci-tech exchange and cooperation. It will continue to participate in global sci-tech collaboration, support the establishment of international cooperation platforms, and contribute to promoting sci-tech innovation to better benefit humankind.

Speakers from various countries shared insights from their own experiences in international cooperation, underscoring the crucial role of openness in scientific diplomacy.

Guo Huadong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), said “openness” is a shared language in global science diplomacy. He cited China’s shared practices, such as the Alliance of Sustainable Goals Satellites, a non-profit and academic group working on scientific research and technological innovation and providing data services and sci-tech support for the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the CAS Earth Big Data Science Project as examples to highlight China’s commitment to working with international organizations to jointly shape the future of digital technologies in driving scientific progress.

Benoit Dubuis, academicianand president of Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences, emphasized that the majority of challenges facing humanity today can be addressed only through collective action and joint innovation.

Diana Boraschi, former acting director of the Institute of Protein Biochemistry at Italy’s National Research Council, echoed this view, stressing that open scientific exchange is essential for the future of humanity and a cornerstone for achieving the SDGs. “All the SDGs should advance in parallel because they are equally important, and they should advance in parallel across all regions of the world.”

The roundtable sessions focused on two key themes:"Deepening global sci-tech cooperation, jointly promoting sustainable development" and "Advocating the spirit of open science, building a global science and technology community."

Experts and scholars from China, the U.S., the UK, Egypt, Iran, Tanzania, and other nations unanimously agreed that the spirit of open science is foundational to global collaboration. By deepening international partnerships and leveraging the diverse strengths of each country, the international community can accelerate sustainable development and collectively address the pressing challenges of our time.

The event was co-hosted by China’s Ministry of Science and Technology and the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, and organized by the China Association for International Science and Technology Cooperation, and the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission.

It was attended by representatives from over 20 foreign diplomatic missions in China, young scientists, national government departments, universities, research institutions, and enterprises.