Source: Office of International Cooperation and Exchange
Written by: Office of International Cooperation and Exchange
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

On the morning of April 1, 2016, a delegation led by Prof. Didier Viviers, Rector of the Free University of Brussels (abbreviated to ULB, based on the French Université Libre de Bruxelles), visited Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU). Prof. Luo Jun, President of SYSU, led the reception for the ULB delegation, which also included Vice-Rector Serge Jaumain, Vice-Rector Jean-Michel De Waele, Faculty of Sciences Dean Muriel Moser, School of Engineering Dean Gérard Degrez, and Prof. Vanessa Frangville, Chair of Chinese Language and Culture at ULB’s Department of Languages and Letters. Joining President Luo on the SYSU side were Prof. Guo Xianping, Vice Dean of the School of Mathematics and Computational Science; Prof. Wang Wei, Assistant Dean of the School of Physics; Prof. Guo Bingru, Assistant Dean of the Department of Chinese; and Ms. Xu Yao, Deputy Director of the Office of International Cooperation and Exchange.

President Luo opened the meeting by extending a warm welcome to Rector Viviers on his first visit to SYSU. He briefly introduced a variety of SYSU’s international collaborative projects and expressed great confidence in the future of relations between ULB and SYSU. Rector Viviers echoed President Luo’s sentiments, remarking that the visit was a crucial step in the continued strengthening of ties between the two institutions.

Following the reception, the various members of the ULB delegation continued on to further in-depth meetings across SYSU’s Guangzhou South Campus. ULB’s Dean Moser and Dean Degrez engaged in talks with SYSU’s School of Physics and School of Atmospheric Sciences on avenues for deepening collaboration, while ULB’s Vice Rector Jaumain and Vice Rector De Waele met with SYSU’s Graduate School to discuss the possibility of a Joint-Ph.D. program. Rector Viviers continued on to SYSU’s Department of History, where he delivered a lecture on his field of research, Ancient Greek History, to a group of students and professors.

The Free University of Brussels (ULB) was founded in 1834, and boasts a long and decorated history. ULB is a comprehensive institution, covering an extensive range of disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. It is also a world-renowned research university, with a first-tier profile of research strengths; members of the university’s faculty have won three Nobel Prizes, along with many other prestigious scientific awards. ULB has particular strengths in medicine, economics, mathematics, sociology, politics, artificial intelligence, and physics, among many other disciplines.