On April 29, 2024, Zhao Bing, Dean of the School of Architecture at Southwest Minzu University, led a delegation to visit the Institute for Global Health Development at Peking University (GHD). Liu Guoen, Dean of GHD and Boya Distinguished Professor at the National School of Development of Peking University, hosted the exchange. Some GHD faculty and students participated in the meeting, engaging in in-depth discussions on topics such as discipline construction, academic development, student training, and scientific research.

Liu Guoen welcomed Zhao Bing and his delegation on behalf of GHD. He provided an overview of the institute's development and progress in discipline construction and research projects over the past four years. Liu highlighted three key projects conducted by the institute: the Economics Experiment Project on Targeted Health Poverty Alleviation in Liangshan, funded by the Natural Science Foundation, SMART (Medical Robotics Health Technology Assessment Cohort Survey), and the Planetary Health Coordinates Program.

Liu Guoen emphasized that "the health and survival of modern humans are closely related to the indoor and outdoor health conditions of cities. The layout of the urban ecological environment and the design of indoor environments need to increasingly incorporate considerations of low carbon, health, and recycling to better promote the sustainability of human health development."

Following this, Zhao Bing introduced the discipline construction, academic development, student training, and scientific research at the School of Architecture of Southwest Minzu University. He highlighted the school's work and achievements in areas highly relevant to health, such as rural residential, and urban biological environments.

Zhao Bing stated, "The impact of urban and indoor environments on health is indeed an academic area with significant research potential. It represents an innovative research field that combines architectural science and health science, offering substantial academic and practical value. Southwest Minzu University's strengths in architecture, ethnology, agricultural studies, and other fields can complement GHD. There is considerable room for collaboration between the two parties."

Lastly, the participants engaged in discussions on how to further improve discipline system construction, enhance the quality and quantity of research projects, and optimize talent training.

(Interpreted by Waverly Shi)