On August 24, at the invitation of Professor Li Yu, Dean of the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, and Professor Nian Yanyun, Professor Chen Min, Dean of the School of Geography, Nanjing Normal University, visited the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. The two schools held a thematic symposium focusing on geographical discipline development, digital-intelligent geography advancement, and talent cultivation. The symposium was held in Conference Room 1408, Guanyun Building, Chengguan Campus, and was chaired by Professor Li Yu. Key faculty members of the School's Department of Information Geography attended the meeting.
This symposium aimed to strengthen inter-university academic exchanges between the two geography programs, align with the development trends of geographical science and information geography in the new era, and focus on the intersection of artificial intelligence and geography. In-depth discussions were conducted on topics including teaching reform and innovation, collaborative research efforts, and inter-institutional resource sharing and co-construction. The goal was to establish a long-term and stable cooperation platform between the two colleges, jointly address key challenges in discipline development, talent cultivation, and research innovation, and promote the high-quality coordinated development of geography-related disciplines at both universities.
During the symposium, Dean Li Yu delivered the opening remarks, extending a warm welcome to Dean Chen Min. He briefly introduced the current status of the geography discipline at the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, the foundational strengths of the information geography program, and the talent cultivation framework. He expressed the hope that this symposium would serve as an opportunity to strengthen multi‑level exchanges between the two colleges, expand practical areas of cooperation, and achieve complementary advantages and mutual progress.
In the thematic discussion session, participants engaged in full exchanges on several core issues. They shared experiences and exchanged ideas on topics such as teaching reform and curriculum iteration in the context of AI‑empowered digital‑intelligent geography, the construction of a practical education system for geography and the enhancement of talent cultivation quality, frontier research innovation in geography and the development of young faculty teams, and mechanisms for regularized co‑construction and resource sharing between the two geography programs. Addressing the core concerns of young faculty members regarding research growth and project proposal applications, Professor Chen Min, drawing on his profound experience in research management and his cutting‑edge academic vision, provided highly targeted and instructive guidance, answering questions with specific and actionable advice.
At the conclusion of the symposium, both sides summarized the outcomes of the exchange, further clarified the direction of future cooperation, and agreed to continue promoting regularized exchange mechanisms between the two colleges in areas such as joint talent cultivation, collaborative course development, joint research efforts, and academic visits, ensuring that the various cooperation initiatives are effectively implemented.
This thematic symposium established a productive inter‑university exchange platform, broadened the faculty's perspectives on disciplinary development, and injected new ideas into the quality improvement of the information geography discipline, teaching model innovation, and optimization of talent cultivation models. It holds significant importance for promoting mutual benefit, win‑win outcomes, and coordinated development between the geography programs of the two institutions.
