On May 30, 2025, DOU Xiankang, President of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) met with Professor Chennupati Jagadish, President of the Australian Academy of Science (AAS), and Ms. Anna-Maria Arabia, CEO of AAS.

President DOU highlighted the remarkable progress that China has made in science and technology, particularly in fundamental research, for the part decades, with NSFC playing a pivotal role. Supported by the central government, NSFC has advanced reforms in its funding system, improving talent support mechanisms, optimizing funding structures, refining peer review procedures, and enhancing international collaborations to provide stable support for fundamental research. He emphasized that international cooperation on science and technology is essential for addressing global challenges and improving the well-being of people, benefiting both China and Australia as well as the broader global community. He expressed hope for working with AAS to further promote broader and more in-depth scientific exchanges between excellent scientists in both countries.

President Jagadish provided an overview of AAS and Australia’s research funding system. He noted that collaborations in fundamental science and exchanges of next-generation scientists are vital for the economic and social development of both countries. AAS has maintained long-standing and close partnership with China’s scientific community, and will continue engaging with NSFC to explore potential paths to facilitate academic exchanges between scientists from the two sides.

During the meeting, Dr. FAN Yingjie, Director General of Bureau of International Cooperation of NSFC, briefly introduced NSFC’s international cooperation and its partnership with Australia. The two sides then had in-depth discussions on establishing cooperative mechanisms, supporting research talent development and advancing S&T exchanges between China and Australia.