Southeast Asia Information Port (www.dnyxxg.com) – The 5th Conference on Sustainable Development of the Central Ridge of China in the Beautiful China initiative, jointly organized by the UNESCO International Centre for Space Technology on Natural and Cultural Heritage, the International Research Center for Big Data for Sustainable Development, and the International Society for Digital Earth, was held in Lintong District, Xi'an City, from October 30th to 31st.
The "Conference on Sustainable Development of the Central Ridge of China in the Beautiful China" serves as an academic exchange platform aimed at exploring solutions to the imbalance and inadequacy in development between eastern and western China. Regarding this issue, from June 2015 to December 2020, Academician Guo Huadong led a five-year, two-phase thematic study, "Strategic Research on Breaking the 'Hu Huanyong Line' and Narrowing the Development Imbalance Between Eastern and Western China," a consulting and evaluation project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, proposing strategic development recommendations for the "Central Ridge of China in the Beautiful China" to the nation.
Zhou Dejin, from the Bureau of Academic Affairs of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, stated in his address that China is currently at a crucial stage in promoting high-quality development, and promoting coordinated regional development and narrowing the gap between the east and west are urgent and of great significance. The construction of the "Beautiful China Central Ridge Belt" is not merely a connection of geographical space, but a comprehensive synergy and revitalization of the economy, society, ecology, and culture.
This conference included opening and closing ceremonies, keynote forums, thematic forums, roundtable discussions, and a forum for young experts. The conference also released the blue book, "Research on High-Quality Development of the Beautiful China Central Ridge Belt," and featured investment environment presentations from several local governments along the Beautiful China Central Ridge Belt.
Thematic forums covered topics such as heritage protection and sustainable development theories and technologies, urban-rural integration and coordinated regional development, deep integration and high-quality development of cultural, tourism, and commercial industries, new productive forces contributing to regional beautiful development, ecological barrier construction and national ecological security, and the path to building Lintong into a "world-class tourist destination."
Academicians Guo Huadong and An Zhisheng delivered invited reports entitled "Digital Silk Road and the Beautiful China Central Ridge Belt" and "Aiming at the Semi-Arid Green Development Belt to Strengthen the Western Ecological Barrier Security," respectively.
Guo Huadong stated that the technological accumulation and international cooperation model of the "Digital Silk Road" International Scientific Program (DBAR) have provided innovative scientific solutions and data support for addressing the development imbalance on both sides of the "Hu Huanyong Line." Meanwhile, the practice of the "Beautiful China Ridge Belt" provides a Chinese case study for the application of DBAR in a wider area. In the future, the coordinated advancement of both will have a profound impact on achieving the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative.
An Zhisheng proposed that the semi-arid belt, located between the humid eastern region and the arid western region with an annual precipitation of 200-500 mm, is a crucial ecological barrier for the west and a breakthrough point for strengthening the construction of the western ecological barrier in the new era. He suggested elevating the green development and ecological protection of the semi-arid belt to a major national development strategy, studying the impact of climate change and human activities on the semi-arid belt and corresponding adaptation strategies, scientifically formulating overall plans, developing a green circular economy and new productive forces, and leading the high-quality development of the western ecological barrier construction.
In the keynote report, "The 'Hu Huanyong Line' and the 'Beautiful China Ridge Belt': The Scientific Basis for Existence and the Evolution of Production Modes," Wang Xinyuan, Deputy Director of the UNESCO International Centre for Space Technology for Natural and Cultural Heritage, pointed out that the differences in population, economy, society, and even culture between the eastern and western regions on both sides of the "Hu Huanyong Line" reflect a long-standing trend formed by a traditional agricultural country. Today's China needs new concepts to guide new development. The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the realization of the Chinese Dream require crossing the "Hu Huanyong Line"—not only a physical leap, but also a leap in thinking and a change in development strategies and methods—to achieve faster and greater development in the west.
It is reported that the first "Beautiful China Mid-Range Sustainable Development Forum" was held in Chengdu, Sichuan Province in June 2021. From 2022 to 2024, three more "Beautiful China Mid-Range Sustainable Development Conferences" were held in Aihui, Heilongjiang Province; Tengchong, Yunnan Province; and Changshou, Chongqing, respectively, promoting the growing influence and increasing cohesion of this academic exchange platform. (End)
