The Academic Committee of the Institute of Hydrobiology (IHB) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences convened its first meeting of 2026 on January 30, 2026. (Credit: IHB)

The Academic Committee of the Institute of Hydrobiology (IHB) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences convened its first meeting of 2026 on January 30, bringing together leading scientists to discuss the institute's strategic direction for the upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan period.

IHB director MIAO Wei delivered a comprehensive report on the institute's work, outlining major research progress and achievements from 2025, as well as the results of organized scientific strategic research deployment. His presentation focused primarily on the institute's planning concepts for the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030).

Committee members engaged in extensive discussions on strategic priorities for the coming years. They offered constructive recommendations on strengthening cutting-edge interdisciplinary research, leveraging artificial intelligence to empower scientific innovation, achieving breakthroughs in key technologies, and better serving major national strategic needs.

In his concluding remarks, committee chair CHEN Yiyu emphasized the importance of building on IHB's distinctive strengths while pursuing innovative development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

"We must uphold fundamental research excellence while pursuing innovation," Chen said. "By building on our traditional disciplinary advantages, we should focus on cultivating new growth areas in emerging interdisciplinary fields. We must continuously enhance our capacity for original innovation to solve critical technical challenges and strive for greater breakthroughs in addressing major scientific questions and serving national strategic needs."

"We will systematically review and incorporate the committee's recommendations into our 15th Five-Year Plan," Miao said. "Through optimizing resource allocation and strengthening collaborative innovation, we aim to lay a solid foundation for a strong start to the 15th Five-Year Plan period."