5th Digital Belt and Road Conference Held in Beijing

From September 6 to 7, 2021, the 5th Digital Belt and Road Conference (DBAR 2021) was successfully held in Beijing. The conference was hosted by the Digital Belt and Road Program (DBAR), co-organized by CBAS and the Big Earth Data Science Engineering Program (CASEarth). More than 320 experts from over 50 countries joined this event physically and virtually.

The theme of DBAR 2021 is "Digital Belt and Road International Partnership", and 62 oral and 27 poster presentations were released, focusing on activities of scientific data centers in the Belt and Road region, water resource security and efficient utilization under global change, agriculture and food security, environmental dimensions of sustainable development goals (SDGs), Big Earth Data for disaster risk reduction and SDGs, sustainable development of world heritage, Big Earth Data and sustainable cities, Big Earth Data for sustainable development and management of coasts and seas, and Big Earth Data for sustainable development in High Mountain Asia and the Arctic region. Participants discussed the key role of science, technology, and innovation, characterized by big data, in promoting the sustainable development of the Belt and Road. They also discussed building a Belt and Road technology cooperation network. It was highlighted that the collaboration and cooperation to promote the SDGs can be enhanced through good partnerships. In-depth scientific and technological cooperation is needed to better provide solutions for sustainable development challenges. Technological innovation and big data applications will turn the sustainable development of the Belt and Road into practice.

On September 7, Prof. Guo Huadong, Director of CBAS and Chair of DBAR, chaired the DBAR Science Team Meeting and delivered the opening remarks. He said that sustainable development is an international theme requiring all parties to work together. As a practice of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism, Big Earth Data has played an important role in promoting the realization of SDGs and has shown great potential applications in sustainable development research for the Belt and Road region. After five years of development, DBAR has built a Big Earth Data Platform, established nine Working Groups, and established eight International Centers of Excellence (ICoEs) around the world. With the establishment of CBAS, DBAR will have much stronger support to play a critical role for facilitating SDGs for the Belt and Road region.

The co-chairs of DBAR Working Groups and ICoEs attended the meeting and reported progress. The DBAR Scientific Committee reviewed the conclusions and recommendations of the external evaluation result for the preparation phase of DBAR, and accepted the application of a new ICoE in Ghana.

The Digital Belt and Road Conference is an important annual DBAR event. This series of conferences has established an international academic exchange platform for scientists and decision-makers. DBAR 2021 was held during the International Forum on Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals, building a broader exchange platform for DBAR.

Group photo for the 2021 DBAR Science Team Meeting in Beijing.

2021 DBAR Science Team Meeting.