From November 28 to December 1, Prof. BAI Chunli, Founding President of ANSO, led a delegation to Turkey to attend the CAS-TÜBİTAK Bilateral Funded Projects Academic Conference, reinforce collaboration with ANSO founding member The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK), and visit key institutions including Istanbul Technical University (ITU), Izmir University of Economics, and Turkey’s University-Industry Collaboration Platform (USIMP).

CAS-TÜBİTAK Cooperative Project Launched at Istanbul Technical University

The delegation participated in the CAS-TÜBİTAK Bilateral Projects Conference hosted by ITU. ITU Rector Prof. Hasan Mandal delivered a welcome address, noting that during his tenure as TÜBİTAK President, he had advanced and deepened collaboration between ANSO and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). He also voiced hopes for ITU’s future ANSO membership.

Prof. Bai thanked Prof. Mandal for the warm hospitality, recalled their joint efforts in advancing China-Turkey cooperation, congratulated the official launch of the CAS-TÜBİTAK bilateral project, and recognized Prof. Mandal’s strong support for ANSO’s initiatives. WEI Xiaodong, Consul General of China in Istanbul, attended and addressed the conference, expressing optimism about the future of China-Turkey science and technology cooperation.

The conference officially launched the CAS-TÜBİTAK co-supported SMART-BAT joint project, which focuses on developing next-generation safe energy storage solutions using advanced quantum materials. This initiative marks a major milestone in bilateral scientific collaboration. The delegation also toured the quantum applications laboratory helmed by the project’s Turkish principal investigator.

Seminar with Izmir Partners to Foster Industry-Academia Synergy

In Izmir, the delegation convened a thematic meeting with the University-Industry Collaboration Centers Platform of Turkey (USIMP), with participation from experts and scholars from more than a dozen Turkish universities.

Prof. Bai highlighted that the delegation sought to deepen cooperation with Turkish partners in key fields like materials science and energy storage through this exchange, working together to build a green and safe future. Prof. Fazilet Vardar-Sukan,Vice President of USIMP Executive Committee, outlined the platform’s work and expressed eagerness to enhance collaboration with Chinese counterparts in areas such as technology transfer and commercialization. The meeting featured detailed briefings on Turkey’s tech innovation ecosystem and China-Turkey/Europe-Turkey cooperative support programs. Representatives from the Institute of Chemistry, CAS, ANSO, and the International Technology Transfer Network (ITTN) delivered thematic presentations on their respective developments, international cooperation frameworks, and potential collaboration avenues.

Additionally, the delegation held discussions with Prof. Yusuf Hakan ABACIOĞLU, Rector of Izmir University of Economics, exchanging insights on specific directions and approaches to further deepen bilateral cooperation.