On the afternoon of April 26, Dr. Niels Peter Thomas, President of Springer Nature Greater China, Janet Cen, Director of Institutional and Corporate Partnerships of Nature Portfolio, Dr. Li Yan, Editorial Director for Humanities/Social Sciences & Regioncal Director China, and their delegation visited HUST. Vice President Chen Jianguo and the heads of relevant departments such as the Office of International Affairs, the University Library, the Research Development Office, and the Office of Development & Planning met with the guests at the Wutongyu Academic Exchange Center. Nie Ming, Assistant President and Director of the University Library moderated the meeting.

Chen Jianguo extended a warm welcome to the delegation from Springer Nature and briefly introduced HUST. He said that as the publisher of the world’s most influential journals, Springer Nature is committed to advancing discoveries to address the world’s urgent challenges and plays a significant role in promoting international academic exchange. Chen pointed out that HUST and Springer Nature share a common goal in advancing education, research and innovation. He also proposed that both sides should further extend exchange and collaborations on joint academic conferences, academic journals and jointly break new ground in academic research.

Dr. Niels Peter Thomas expressed his gratitude. He stated that HUST and Springer Nature have very compatible mission which is to achieve sustainable development goals through science and technological innovation. He mentioned that Springer Nature aims to serve as a bridge between the East and the West in research collaboration to ensure that latest research results are communicated as fast and widespread all over the world. Thomas also expressed his desire for further cooperation so as to bring HUST’s knowledge to the world and bring the world’s knowledge to HUST.

Subsequently, statistics concerning past cooperation between both sides were shared, including the usage of literature in different disciplines, book publications, the institutional ranking of Nature Index, and the publication of Nature and its sub-journal series.

Chen Jie, Director of the Office of International Affairs, Liu Wei, Vice Dean of the Research Development Office, and Gao Yan, Deputy Director of the Office of Development & Planning, further discussed cooperation with Springer Nature in building HUST’s brand awareness & engagement, raising profile & reputation, showcasing achievements, supporting researchers and recruiting talent.

Written by: Chen Shuangshuang

Edited by: Shi Can, Chang Wen, Peng Yumeng