On September 4th, the work promotion conference · collaborative Innovation forum of Collaborative Innovation Center on Modern Tourism Development was held at Nankai University. At the conference, the opening ceremony of Collaborative Innovation Center on Modern Tourism Development Co-sponsored by Province and Ministry (hereinafter referred to as the Center) was officially held, being the first and the only collaborative innovation center on tourism of the discipline in China at the present.

The spokesman of the conference was Chen Jun, vice president of Nankai University and academician of Chinese Academy of Science; while to send their letters of congratulations there were Bai Haili, deputy director of Tianjin Municipal Education Committee; GONG Ke, chairman of the Center; Zheng Xinli, director of Academic Committee and former deputy director of Policy Research Office; Wang Zhifa, vice chairman of the Center and former deputy director of National Tourism Administration; Du Ping, vice chairman of the Center and former executive deputy director of State Information Center. Besides, former vice minister of Ministry of Commerce, Wei Jianguo, and former deputy secretary-general of the National Development and Reform Commission, Fan Hengshan.

Other attendees at the conference were representatives of the cooperation units, including Bao Jigang, vice president of China Tourism Association; Zhao Hong, vice mayor of the People's Government of Changshu; Li Guojun, vice president of Chongqing Technology and Business University; Zhang Guohong, lead researcher of People's Cultural Tourism Think Tank; Liu Sen, director of the second research department of the Policy Research Office; Shu Zhan, director of Tencent Cultural Tourism Research Institute; Qu Xiangdong, chairman of Beijing Xingzhi Exploring Culture Development Group Corp.,Ltd; Jin Caijuan, deputy secretary of Tongcheng Network Technology Co., Ltd; and Xu Ying, deputy director of strategy department of Gansu Culture Tourism Group.

Over the past years, to promote regional collaborative Innovation, the Center has worked on the co-construction of the cultural tourism collaborative platform with Chongqing Municipal Cultural Tourism Committee and Chongqing Technology and Business University in western areas; the collaborative platform with Changshu City and Tongcheng Network Technology Co., Ltd in the Yangtze River Delta, and the collaborative platform with Shenzhen Research Institute and local governments in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area; in response to the national strategic collaborative innovation, the Center has formed a Silk Road tourism collaborative platform with Gansu Culture Tourism Group and Gansu Cultural Tourism and Science Education Union for further strategic cooperation; in order to empower the future through technology, the Center has worked on intelligence cultural tourism collaborative platform with Tencent Cultural Tourism Research Institute and Artificial Intelligence Development Strategic Institute of Nankai University.

The nation needs tourism, people need tourism, because it Is on the tourism industry that is based the life of our people. Therefore, we need stronger support of the thinking tank, higher quality of tourism education, policy and production innovation said GONG Ke, who suggested that  the Center will take hold in reality while working on the systematic promotion of tourism undertakings.

Zheng Xinli expressed his congratulations on the official opening ceremony and his hope for a vigorous expansion of the Center, giving him its contribution for Chinese civilization improvement.

Wang Zhifa said in order to better respond to the national strategy and meet the major demands of tourism, it is necessary to embroider on high quality development of culture and tourism based on a theoretical framework of modern tourism.

Du Ping suggested built on the innovative platform, the Center has served as a thinking tank and a leading role of national tourism development. Bai Haili said the layout of collaborative innovative center has had some positive impact for the construction of Double First-class universities. He also declared that Tianjin Municipal Education Committee will support the development of Nankai University unswervingly, in hope that the Center will contribute to the talent cultivation and platform construction.

On behalf of President Cao Xuetao, Chen Jun expressed his welcome to the attendance of the guests and gratitude to the support for Nankai tourism discipline development. He hoped the Center could improve itself and contribute to the construction of a tourism power through Nankai intelligence.

On the afternoon of the conference, a tourism collaborative Innovative forum was held with the theme of Happiness and Health, Empowering the Future with Technology. Professor Shi Peihua, director of the Center, released Its latest achievements, Guidance on Public Health Prevention and Control and Health Tourism.

Led by Nankai University, jointly guided by State Information Center and Sun Yat-sen University, The Center was established in 2015 and certificated by the Ministry of Education in September 2019. It is hoped that the Center can serve as a tourism thinking tank highland with decision support, a tourism academic highland with major International Impact, a research and development base of modern tourism industry generic technology, a leading role of the cultural inherence and innovation and tourism innovative development and to be a transformation platform of industry-university-research integrated development. Over the past five years, the Center has worked on meeting the demands of major strategies of the nation and achieved great innovative results in happiness industry, all-for-one tourism, toilet revolution, red tourism, Silk Road tourism, the Tea Road Collaborative, national parks, national tourism image, pro-poor tourism,  village tourism, marine tourism, integration of culture and tourism, tourism diplomacy, coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, tourism  MTA education etc. Furthermore, the Center has published 12 thinking tank writings of the National Tourism Thinking Tank Series.

(Reported by  Jingqiu Hao, Translated by Guangyu Zheng , Photographed by Qiqi Zong , Edited by Davide Francolino and JianjingYun)