On April 23, to thoroughly implement Xi Jinping's diplomatic thought, military-strengthening thought, and the spirit of the important speech delivered by General Secretary Xi Jinping during his inspection and research at Renmin University of China（RUC）, the School of Peace and Development(SPD) and the International Joint Research Center for Polar and Deep-Sea Strategies of RUC(IJRC-PDSS) were officially inaugurated.
Zhang Donggang, Secretary of the Party Committee of RUC, Lin Shangli, President of RUC, Liu Jiaping, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Dong Zhiyong, Vice-President of Peking University, and leaders from relevant departments such as the National Development and Reform Commission, the National International Development Cooperation Agency, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the Ministry of Natural Resources attended the event. Zheng Xinye, Vice-President of RUC, presided over the launching ceremony. Zhang Donggang, Lin Shangli, Chang Min, and Meng Ran jointly inaugurated SPD and IJRC-PDSS.
SPD will closely focus on national sovereignty, security, and interests, actively expand disciplinary areas, and prospectively lay out research on major topics such as space and low-altitude, polar, and deep-sea areas. It is committed to building a high ground for military soft science, a demonstration center for defense economy and strategic teaching and research, and a first-class military-high-end think tank for peace and development.
IJRC-PDSS is established under SPD. It integrates the strength of advantageous disciplines, focuses on areas such as the sustainable utilization of polar and deep-sea resources, industrial development, and global governance, and deeply explores the key facts and important relationships of polar and deep-sea strategies, providing a decision-making basis for the country's polar and deep-sea strategies and global governance.
Zhang Donggang pointed out that establishing SPD is a proactive action to serve the country's strategic needs and cope with the complex international situation. The university should implement the military strategic guidelines in the new era, promote the construction of the "school + think-tank" model, and build a world-class military-high-end think-tank.
Dong Zhiyong said that the establishment of SPD conforms to the trend of the times. It is an important measure to promote the cultivation of talents and the construction of disciplines in emerging fields, and will inject impetus into national decision-making and industrial development.
Liu Jiaping mentioned that the polar and deep-sea areas are new fields of international competition and cooperation. The Polar Architecture Research Institute hopes to work together with the research center to integrate governance, science, and technology, and contribute wisdom to the peaceful use of the polar regions by mankind.
In the result-release and discipline-discussion session, the research team of SPD released the report Chasing the Dream of the Star-Sea: Ten Characteristics of China's Blue Economy Innovation. The report points out that as a strategic emerging industry, the blue economy is an important field for developing new-quality productivity. It is recommended to accelerate the establishment of an input-growth mechanism to release the innovation potential.
Subsequently, experts and scholars such as Zuo Shiquan, Sui Jun, Xu Song, Xu Xiwei, Li Zheng, Ni Hongfu, and Liu Dahai expressed their views on polar and deep-sea research from aspects such as clarifying strategic goals, strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration, enhancing the innovation level, key directions of industrial development, integration of scientific and technological innovation and industry, the significance of economic disciplines, and strategic opportunities and challenges, providing multi-perspective thinking and suggestions for the development of related fields.
