Photo: Dignitaries at the signing ceremony, including President Degen Wang of the West Hope Tequ Group, Vice President Baotain Pan of Lanzhou University, Professor Peidong Yang and Dean Douglas Clark of the College of Chemistry, UCB; General Secretary Mu of Meishan Govt.; and, Mayor Jiaming Luo and Vice Mayor Madam Cao of Meishan Govt
For immediate release
Berkeley, CA
The College of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, the People’s Government of Meishan, Lanzhou University, and the West Hope Tequ Group have signed a memorandum of agreement to explore the development of a new graduate institute in Meishan, China on September 4, 2019. The College of Chemistry’s participation would be to offer strategic advice to Lanzhou University and faculty on this new graduate institute.
The signatories at the signing ceremony included Dean Douglas Clark, College of Chemistry, UCB; Mayor Jiaming Luo, People’s Government of Meishan; Baotian Pan, VP Lanzhou University; and, Degen Wang, President of the West Hope Tequ Group. The memorandum is meant to allow for an exploration of approaches to the development of a new graduate institute.
Planning is ongoing and more information will be available at a later date regarding the institute’s academic program.
About the College of Chemistry, UC Berkeley
Made up of the Departments of Chemistry and Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, the College of Chemistry was initially established in 1872 by a decree of the California State Legislature. Consistently ranked as the #1 College of Chemistry globally, the College provides outstanding coursework and its faculty and graduates have won numerous awards, including the Wolf Prize, the National Medal of Science, the National Medal of Technology, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, as well as fourteen Nobel Prizes.
About Meishan Municipal People’s Government (Meishan)
Located in Sichuan Province, Meishan has a population of 3.4 million people. Meishan is located halfway between Chengdu and Leshan on China’s “golden tourist route” and is bordered by Ziyang on the east and Yaan in the west. China has a documented history of over 5,000 years and Meishan prefecture has been in existence for some 2,300 years. Meishan is home to ancient literary giant Su Dongpo and is where over 100 "intangible cultural heritages" have been passed down.
About Lanzhou University
Founded in 1909 as the College of Law and Politics, Lanzhou University (LZU) has grown to house 35 colleges and schools with a total of 3,718 faculty. LZU was one of the first universities authorized in China to confer bachelor, master and doctoral degrees. Considered to a have strong science program, the Department of Chemistry was established in 1946. It became the College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering in 1998. LZU’s faculty is focused on enhancing new talent to spur scientific innovation and service to society, making it an outstanding academic location in western China.
About the West Hope Tequ Group
The West Hope Tequ Group was founded in 1999. In 2007 they started to establish educational facilities in China. Currently they are responsible for more than 100,000 students and 7,500 teachers in a series of university, college and vocational schools. Their vision is to continue to develop colleges, universities and vocational programs based on excellence in education with an outcome of cultivating high-quality professional and technical personnel.
For more information contact:
Camille Olufson, colufson@berkeley.edu