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These past two days, my wechat Moments has been very lively, all flooded with a major piece of news – the new district signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Nanjing University. In the agreement, the expectations and aspirations of both sides are practical and specific. They aim to jointly build campuses, create platforms, establish transformation carriers, and expand industrial cooperation.
It can be seen that both sides are taking concrete actions to further deeply integrate the “research” of top universities with the “production” of the national-level new area, and better shoulder the historical mission of implementing the grand proposition of deeply integrating scientific and technological innovation with industrial innovation.
Returning to the cooperation itself, there are still many meanings worth our deep consideration.
From the perspective of the new district, this cooperation represents a significant upgrade of the regional innovation ecosystem. According to the cooperation agreement, Nanjing University will promote the collective settlement of the biochemical and pharmaceutical discipline cluster in the new district, which will be highly consistent with the industrial direction of the new district and provide full-chain support from basic research to technology development for the regional biomedical industrial cluster.
As a national-level new area, Jiangbei New Area is fully committed to building a modern industrial system, and the intellectual support of high-level universities is the key. Therefore, the new district has always maintained a deep friendship and far-reaching cooperation with universities.
For instance, since last year, renowned universities both within and outside the region, such as Dongda University, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing University of Technology, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, and Tianjin University, have successively reached strategic cooperation agreements with the new district. Batch after batch of innovative achievements from laboratories have successively focused on Jiangbei.
For instance, the Nanjing Biomedical Branch Center, the first national university regional technology transfer and transformation center jointly established by Jiangsu Province and the Ministry of Education, is located in the Biomedical Valley of the New District, serving as a powerful “symbol” connecting the new district with high-quality resources from universities across the country.
From the perspective of Nanjing University, joining hands with Jiangbei is also a powerful move for leapfrog development. Colleges and universities shoulder the heavy responsibility of scientific and technological innovation. Top universities are all laying out emerging disciplines to create more diverse growth points. This cooperation is no different for Central South University.
In the future, Nanjing University will establish several new colleges and physical research institutions in the new district, vigorously introduce outstanding talents from home and abroad, systematically carry out undergraduate and postgraduate training, and build an innovation highland in the fields of chemical engineering and biomedicine.
Behind this cooperation lies a significant transformation in the relationship between universities and cities. In the “handhand” between the new district and Nanjing University, “integration” is the main theme – the biomedicine industry in the new district is strong, and Nanjing University has newly established a biochemical and pharmaceutical discipline cluster here, an innovative node integrated into the urban fabric.
A virtuous cycle of “innovation – application – re-innovation” will be formed here.
Imagine such a scene: In the laboratory of Nanjing University, researchers are working hard on cell therapy technology. The biopharmaceutical company next door is transforming these technologies into products. Not far away, in the Longwang Mountain Scenic Living Room, scientists and entrepreneurs are exchanging ideas in a coffee shop… This innovative ecosystem is precisely the core of regional competitiveness.
It is worth mentioning that this cooperation takes place at a crucial time when the high-quality development of Jiangbei New Area is ushering in a new upturn. Since last year, The State Council has approved the “Nanjing Municipal Territorial Space Master Plan (2021-2035)”, clearly defining the positioning of the new main urban area in the north of the Yangtze River. The provincial committee and the provincial government have issued the “Opinions on Supporting the High-Quality Construction of Nanjing Jiangbei New Area”, and the municipal committee and the municipal government have formulated the “Implementation Plan” for implementing the provincial support opinions.
Major positive news has been happening one after another on this fertile land.
This collaboration between the new district and Nanjing University marks a new chapter in the joint progress of the university and the city. When the innovative genes of Nanjing University are infused into the development hotspots of Jiangbei New Area and when the industrial demands of Jiangbei drive the research directions of Nanjing University, a surprising chemical reaction is bound to break out.
Let’s look forward to the new story of No. 8 Xuefu Road in the future together.
