Over 100 BRAUIC member representatives, experts, scholars, and entrepreneurs across 40 universities and enterprises in 12 countries gathered to provide insights and advice for expanding a high-level, distinctive development platform, building a comprehensive international talent training system, and creating a new high ground for quality development.
The conference, themed “Together in Architecture, Building Prosperity for All”, included the Preparatory Meeting, the 2024 BRAUIC Conference, the Presidents’ Forum, along with four sub-forums.
The 2024 BRAUIC Conference & Forum venue
On the morning of October 19, the 2024 BRAUIC Conference was held. Attendees included HUANG Chunyan, Vice President of the Tianjin People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries; ZHENG Yu, Chairman of the University Council of BUCEA; CHEN Hongbing and YANG Jianwei, Vice Presidents of BUCEA; SHI Qingwei, Secretary of CPC Committee of TCU; WANG Zhongliang, President of TCU; CHEN Zhihua and YANG Jing, Vice Presidents of TCU; Margarita Imandossova, President of the Kazakh Leading Academy of Architecture and Civil Engineering; Bakhtiyar Sabdenaliyev, Vice President of the Kazakh Leading Academy of Architecture and Civil Engineering; Canbay Turkyilmaz Cigdem, President of the Samarkand State Architecture and Construction University, Uzbekistan; Kayumov Juramirza, Vice President of the Samarkand State Architecture and Construction University, Uzbekistan; Zoran Tomić, President of the University of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina; YU Dehu, President of Shandong Jianzhu University; Abraham Debebe Woldeyohannes, Vice President of Addis Ababa Science and Technology University, Ethiopia; LI Zao, Vice President of Anhui Jianzhu University; LI Qi, Vice President of Changchun University of Architecture and Civil Engineering; YAO Bing, Vice President of Hebei University of Architecture; SUN Yuzhou, Vice President of Henan University of Urban Construction; Goi Bok Min, Vice President of Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia; LEI Peng, Vice President of Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology; YAN Lijin, Chairman of China Silk Road Group Ltd; WANG Hongzhuan, Secretary General of the Beijing International Peace Culture Foundation; SONG Meng, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Committee and Chairman of the Trade Union of China First Highway Engineering Co., Ltd.; and LI Zhongbao, Assistant President of Glodon Company Limited. Additionally, representatives and faculty from various institutions, including Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece; Beijing University of Technology; Chongqing Jiaotong University; Industrial University of Tyumen, Russia; Inner Mongolia Technical College of Construction; Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology, Indonesia; Jilin Jianzhu University; Nanchang University; Northeastern University; Moscow Institute of Architecture (State Academy), Russia; Russian Academy of Architecture and Construction Sciences; Shenyang Jianzhu University; Beijing University of Science and Technology; the University of Kitakyushu, Japan; Qingdao University of Technology; the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Bulgaria; the University of Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina; the University of Novi Sad, Serbia; and the University of South Wales, the UK, also participated. In total, over 600 attendees were present at the conference.
ZHENG Yu, Chairman of the University Council of BUCEA, extended warm congratulations on the seventh anniversary of BRAUIC on behalf of BUCEA, which is the Chairman’s Unit. He expressed sincere gratitude to TCU, the 2024 Acting Chairman’s Unit. He noted that over the past seven years, BRAUIC has expanded to include 91 universities and enterprises from 30 countries, established five professional committees, and gradually become an important platform for promoting innovative talent cultivation and cultural exchanges in the construction and engineering fields among Belt and Road participating countries. This year, BRAUIC members have signed over 20 bilateral agreements, organized more than 10 large-scale cooperative exchange activities, facilitated over 70 mutual visits among members, and exchanged over 300 faculty and students. These efforts have created new opportunities for in-depth collaboration in innovation among higher education institutions and enterprises in the region. ZHENG Yu stated that we should leverage this event as an opportunity to discuss new concepts, pathways, and models for internal and external cooperation within BRAUIC, striving to establish BRAUIC as a new benchmark for serving the high-quality development of the Belt and Road participating countries and promoting high-level educational openness, thereby advancing global higher education in architecture to new heights.
ZHENG Yu, Chairman of the University Council of BUCEA, delivering a speech on behalf of the Chairman’s Unit
SHI Qingwei, Secretary of CPC Committee of TCU, the 2024 Acting Chairman’s Unit of BRAUIC, stated that 2024 marks the seventh anniversary of BRAUIC, which has developed into an important platform for promoting innovative talent cultivation and cultural exchanges in the architecture and engineering fields among the Belt and Road participating countries.
SHI Qingwei, Secretary of CPC Committee of TCU, delivering a welcome speech
Zoran Tomić, President of the University of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, delivering a speech on behalf of BRAUIC members
YU Dehu, President of Shandong Jianzhu University, delivering a speech on behalf of BRAUIC members
HUANG Chunyan, Vice President of the Tianjin People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, stated in her address that the 2024 BRAUIC Conference & Forum provides a platform for representatives from universities and enterprises of various countries to exchange ideas, share experiences, and explore collaboration, showcasing Tianjin’s international image.
HUANG Chunyan, Vice President of the Tianjin People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, delivering a speech
BRAUIC initiatives to promote collaboration
The conference unveiled the updated BRAUIC logo, which emphasizes the prominence of the swift in the design. The swift symbolizes the strong connections among Belt and Road participating countries while integrating ecological and cultural connotations into BRAUIC, representing an open and inclusive attitude that transcends borders.
The event unanimously approved the establishment of five professional committees: Urban and Rural Planning and Architectural Design, Civil Engineering and Smart Construction, Resources, Environment and Renewable Energy, Smart City and Intelligent Transportation, and Robotics and Artificial Intelligence.
Expanded BRAUIC network across six continents
Since its establishment in October 2017 by BUCEA, BRAUIC has significantly grown over the past seven years. The conference reviewed and approved the addition of seven new members, which include Addis Ababa Science and Technology University, Ethiopia; Inner Mongolia Technical College of Construction; Kazakh Leading Academy of Architecture and Civil Engineering; Northeastern University; Samarkand State Architecture and Construction University, Uzbekistan; Glodon Company Limited; and China First Highway Engineering Co., Ltd. With this expansion, BRAUIC now comprises members from 30 countries and 91 institutions worldwide, further broadening its collaborative scope across six continents.
Signing ceremony for new BRAUIC members
Presentation of membership certificates to new members
The representatives present unanimously agreed that the Kazakh Leading Academy of Architecture and Civil Engineering will host the 2025 BRAUIC Conference.
Handing over of the BRAUIC flag
Deepening discussions for collaborative development
The Presidents’ Forum, themed “Opportunities, Challenges, and Sustainable Development: Educational Cooperation Among Architectural Universities under the Belt and Road Initiative” taking place at the conference venue.
The conference also featured a Presidents’ Forum and sub-forums, where over 20 university leaders and business executives from 12 countries delivered keynote speeches.
ZHANG Dayu, President of BUCEA, presented a keynote address at the Presidents’ Forum. He highlighted BUCEA’s proactive engagement in the global education reform movement, establishing an international open cooperation mechanism to serve the capital’s international exchange functions and to jointly build a Belt and Road architectural education community. He also emphasized BUCEA’s efforts in expanding international innovation collaboration, creating various cooperative platforms, and achieving significant breakthroughs such as being the only university in Beijing to establish a joint laboratory for international cooperation approved by the Ministry of Education, as well as the Beijing International Innovation Center for Architectural Heritage Protection and Development in the Belt and Road Region.
ZHANG Dayu, President of BUCEA, delivering a keynote address at the Presidents’ Forum.
WANG Zhongliang, President of TCU, and Margarita Imandossova, President of the Kazakh Leading Academy of Architecture and Civil Engineering, also delivered keynote addresses.
WANG Zhongliang, President of TCU, delivering a keynote address.
Representatives from BRAUIC member institutions engaging in dialogues during the forum.
The four sub-forums focused on themes such as urban and rural cultural heritage, green cities, urban renewal, and artificial intelligence and intelligent manufacturing.
GAO Weijun, Foreign Academician of the Engineering Academy of Japan, delivering a keynote academic report
CHEN Zhihua, Vice President of TCU, presenting a keynote academic report.
Building a global competition platform to share an academic and cultural feast
During the event, awards were presented to the winning faculty, students, and institutions of the 2024 Belt and Road International Student Competition on Digital Architectural Design. This year’s competition, themed “Protection, Renewal & Revitalization of Historical Buildings Along the Belt and Road”, attracted participation from 79 universities across 11 countries and regions, with over 1,700 faculty and students involved. The final results included 2 first prizes, 3 second prizes, 10 third prizes, and 21 honorable mentions, along with several Organizational Achievement Awards and Outstanding Supervisor Awards.
WANG Zhongliang, President of TCU, presenting awards to the representatives of the first prize winner
YAN Lijin, Chairman of China Silk Road Group Ltd, awarding the second prize representatives
WANG Hongzhuan, Secretary General of the Beijing International Peace Culture Foundation, presenting awards to the third prize representatives;
LI Zhongbao, Assistant President of Glodon Company Limited, awarding the honorable mentions
CHEN Hongbing, Vice President of BUCEA, presenting the Outstanding Supervisor Awards
YANG Jianwei, Vice President of BUCEA, awarding the Organizational Achievement Awards.
List of BUCEA Winners
The second prize：
PULSATION, Community center design: The capital functional core area community reconstruction
The third prize：
ANCIENT BRICK·NEW LANGUAGE——Beijing Ancient Brick Museum
Honorable mentions：
Plaza Renewal Design of a historic district, An intergenerational model for the renovation and renewal of hutong courtyards, Exploration of New Models for Translator Talent Apartments, Nature’s Canvas: The South City Park Blueprint, Digital Intelligence – Renewal Study of the Yu’er Hutong Area in Nanluogu Lane, Beijing, Intersection of Time and Space: New Chapter of Ancient Rhyme
Outstanding Supervisor Award：
SHANG Qian, MENG Fanlei, LI Chunqing, CHEN Li, QI Ying, ZHANG Dayu, XU Chao, OUYANG Wen, HAO Shimen, ZHANG Jianqin, JIANG Jie and HE Junxiao
Organizational Achievement Award：
BUCEA
On October 18, the preparatory meeting for the 2024 BRAUIC Conference & Forum was held. TCU President WANG Zhongliang delivered a speech at the meeting, while YANG Jianwei presented the 2024 work summary on behalf of BRAUIC and proposed the work plan for 2025. The attendees discussed the BRAUIC work plan and reviewed the admission applications of seven new BRAUIC members, Proposal for the Establishment of Five Professional Committees, Including the Urban-Rural Planning and Architectural Design Professional Committee, the new BRAUIC logo, the agenda for the 2024 BRAUIC Conference and Forum, and the location for the next BRAUIC Conference.
YANG Jianwei, Vice President of BUCEA, chaired the preparatory meeting for the 2024 BRAUIC Conference and Forum.
BUCEA actively engages in supporting China’s Belt and Road Initiative by leveraging its unique strengths in architectural disciplines. The university initiated the establishment of BRAUIC, contributing a remarkable “BUCEA plan” to the vision of making the Belt and Road a pathway for cultural exchanges and mutual learning.
Looking ahead, BUCEA will use this BRAUIC conference as an opportunity to develop a distinctive international talent cultivation and technology cooperation brand that reflects BUCEA’s characteristics. It aims to build a Belt and Road architectural education community and continue to serve as a bridgehead in the process of supporting China’s Belt and Road development.
