ECOSF participated as a Major Contributor to the 4th Teenager Maker Camp and Teacher Workshop held in Chongqing, China
Go Back
Children & Youth Science Center (CYSC) of China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) co-sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Technology, People’s Republic of China (MOST) and CAST organized the virtual 4th Belt and Road Teenager Maker Camp and Teacher Workshop with strategic support of ECO Science Foundation (ECOSF), InterAcademy Partnership Science Education Program (IAP SEP), and Network of African Science Academies (NASAC) was held during the months of October 2020 and concluded on 24 November 2020. The closing ceremony of the camp and workshop was held in Chongqing, China which was broadcasted live to over 5 million viewers spread across 53 countries.
It is an annual event but this year’s event was organized virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the camp was to strengthen cross-cultural exchange, promote international understanding, inspire innovation in young generation and also for all scientists and science teachers to promote mutual learning and fulfill their responsibilities in science education career.
It was widely participated by elite young makers, science teachers, and officers of science and education administrations, that totalled 2000 from 53 countries/regions and international organizations, covering Asia, Europe, Africa, the Americas and Oceania. 350 participants from seven ECO countries viz., Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Turkey also attended the Camp. ECOSF wholeheartedly congratulates all the winners and participants.
President of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations, Foreign Academician of the Russian Academy of Astronautics, Executive Dean of the Chinese Academy of New Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Strategy Gong Ke; Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Academic Vice President of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences Prof. Wu Yueliang; former Inter-Academy of Sciences Organization Science Education Project (IAP SEP) ) Chairman Academician Dato Lee Yee Cheong; ECO Science Foundation President Prof. Manzoor Hussain Soomro, African Academy of Sciences Executive Director Ms. Jacqueline Alice Akinyi Olang and other international organizations attended the event online; whereas, Ms. Xin Bing, Director General of CYSC; Ruan Xiangping, First Inspector of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Science and Technology; Ling Fan, Deputy Director of the General Office of Chongqing Municipal Government, and Wang Heqing, Secretary of the Party Group of Chongqing Association for Science and Technology, and Executive Vice Chairman Wang Heqing attended the closing event offline.
In his message, Huai Jinpeng said that adolescence is a key stage for the formation of creativity. He hoped that everyone would promote the spirit of science, keep scientific curiosity forever, insist on seeking truth, questioning, openness, and cooperation, and cultivate the potential of scientists from an early age. The CAST is very happy to build a communication platform and a display stage for everyone to collide with the sparks of wisdom and forge innovative thinking, he affirmed. He also hoped that the experience of the maker camp would light up everyone’s scientific dreams and become a treasure in memory.
President ECOSF in his remarks said that the world facing a deadly pandemic of Covid-19 since the end of last year, which has severely affected our daily lives and education is probably the most affected sector. He further said, that despite the difficulties, CYSC and CAST together with Chongqing Association for Science and Technology made it happen; thus, the leadership and management of CYSC, CAST and all the organizers deserve sincere congratulations. He further said that he believes, this is an ideal space and opportunity for all of us, especially for the young students to bring innovative ideas and work together to foster scientific and technological innovation, peace and harmony among young students and promote cooperation and cultural integration among the countries along the Belt and Road. He also said that if we provide our children, the leaders of tomorrow, with the opportunity to discover themselves and inculcate the concept of inquiry and questioning, they would be better citizens, more responsible and critical thinkers. He also mentioned that the collaboration between the ECOSF and CYSC/CAST was established in 2017, since then, the collaboration has grown stronger and more avenues have opened to work together, especially in the field of youth engagement and science education and innovation.
At the closing event, the winners of the Best Maker Award, Best Presentation Award, and Best Team Award were also announced. The event provided students the opportunity to cooperate with the best of their age at international level, to share ideas and study cutting-edge knowledge in science labs of top schools in China through hands-on experience and teamwork under the guidance of experienced teachers.
In the era of COVID-19, the methods of epidemic prevention and control, two scientific and technological courses viz., health education and engineering design for special anti-epidemic content, preparation of new coronary pneumonia protection guidelines and the design of shelter hospital models were included in scientific tasks.