Recently, ITP Director Prof. Yao Tandong and Deputy Director Prof. Gao Xing were interviewed by Prof. Lu Yongxiang, CAS President. They reported on the recent progress achieved at ITP in terms of academic research and involvement in social and economic development of the Tibetan region. Prof. Lu acclaimed ITP’s achievements and development trend thus far.
He also showed his support for ITP’s further development, recognizing the significance of studying the Tibetan Plateau for not only the region, but also for East Asia and the global community at large. Lu proposed that such an important field necessitates the organization of Chinese scientists to study the following three Tibetan Plateau related issues: 1) the plateau formation, 2) environmental changes on the Tibetan Plateau, and 3) preservation and utilization of biodiversity and genetic banks of organisms adapted to the radical environment induced by the Plateau uplift.
Next he emphasized the importance of international cooperation in the study of the Tibetan Plateau. Approving of ITP’s current active moves in collaborating with American and German scientists, he also encouraged ITP scientific staff to collaborate with Japanese, Indian and Nepalese academic communities, so as to not only take advantage of the technological edges in developed countries but also acquire necessary scientific resources in neighboring countries. By creating a situation whereby ITP is wholly engaged in international cooperation, ITP can bring China’s Tibetan Plateau research into the focus of the international academic community.
Concerning ITP’s future development, he proposed the following objectives :1) to incorporate more research fields by expanding upon fundamental studies in an effort to better serve the national and regional development needs; 2) to optimize the academic structure of multidisciplinary studies and increase the depth of research while controlling the expanding scale of these multiciplinary research subjects; 3) to set up a holistic and unique Tibetan observation and research platform by utilizing all relevant national policies; and 4) to better serve regional development through research endeavors into issues such as plateau uplift and mineralization on the Plateau, Tibetan environment and land surface processes, and regional climate and in situ observations through collaboration with local meteorological services. He also asked ITP to organize seminars by CAS academicians for Tibetan administrative staff and students on Tibetan Plateau environment study. His hope is that making recent scientific findings more accessible will help drive home the message of the importance of solar power utilization and human health issues related to global warming.
