On December 22, 2025, Professor Dou Xiankang, President of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), met with Professor Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, Director General of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA).

President Dou Xiankang extended a warm welcome to Schellnhuber. He noted that NSFC had attached great importance to the cooperation with IIASA. He highlighted that China’s membership level in IIASA would be upgraded from 2026. Dou expressed his expectation for deeper engagement and greater decision-making influence within IIASA’s governance structure. As from 2026, NSFC will officially launch the "NSFC Global Science and Cooperation Conference" initiative, aimed at establishing a core framework for a series of high-level international academic conferences. He sincerely invited Schellnhuber to join the conference’s advisory board to lend expertise to the conference’s long-term development and strategic planning.

Schellnhuber expressed his gratitude for NSFC’s commitment to strengthening cooperation with IIASA. He acknowledged China’s rapid progress in recent years in basic scientific research and key technological fields and responded positively to NSFC’s proposals regarding the enhancement of participation in governance. Schellnhuber expressed willingness to co-host a session of the "NSFC Global Science and Cooperation Conference" , bringing together top global scientists including Nobel laureates for in-depth discussions on cutting-edge scientific topics, in commemoration of NSFC’s 40^th anniversary.

Experts from Tsinghua University and Peking University accompanied the visit and participated in discussions on the establishment of an IIASA Global Change and Health Center. Also present at the meeting were Fan Yingjie, Director General of NSFC’s Bureau of International Cooperation, and staff from the Division of Asia, Africa, and International Organizations.