Tsinghua President Qiu Yong and President of the University of Washington Ana Mari Cauce held a virtual meeting on Thursday.

Tsinghua President Qiu Yong said that he was pleased to meet President Cauce again, and thanked her for her strong commitment to working together with Tsinghua through the Global Innovation Exchange (GIX) and in all the shared efforts to innovate for the future.

“Over the past 6 years, we jointly witnessed the fast development of GIX from its establishment to a globally renowned program which exemplifies a ‘next-generation’ university collaboration, with strong support from industry partners,” he said. “From Beijing to Seattle and Bellevue, I am happy to see that our friendship shines through, along with the collaboration between Tsinghua and UW.”

President Qiu expressed his confidence that, with the inspiring visions from both sides, the two universities would set up a long-term partnership with more fruitful outcomes and make greater contributions for the world innovation in the years ahead.

“In two weeks' time, China will celebrate the spring festival in the lunar new year, the year of the Tiger. In Chinese culture, tiger symbolizes bravery and strength. I wish you all a very prosperous new year, and hope GIX will continue to thrive and flourish in the year of Tiger,” he said.

President Qiu also extended a warm welcome to new GIX Executive Director Sean Carr.

“I believe that with your profound experiences and inspiring vision, you would become the accelerator of our mission and vision, enlightening our students to bring their love of technology and their drive to truly make a difference to the world,” he added.

Ana Mari Cauce, President of the University of Washington said that her university was grateful for the friendship with Tsinghua University and for the spirit of cooperation and the commitment to GIX between the two universities.

She said that the outbreak of the pandemic showed how interconnected the world is and that the works the two universities are doing under GIX are more important than ever before.

She expressed delight in welcoming Sean Carr as the new Executive Director of GIX, saying that she has confidence in him to bring a new level of energy and a new vision to GIX.

“I really do think that we will continue to do great things together and that we can use this as an opportunity to be more creative than we have been in the past,” she said. “I really look forward to seeing where this goes and believe me we will stand out.”

Vice-Provost for Global Affairs of the University of Washington Jeff Riedinger hosted the meeting. Li Jinliang, Dean for International Affairs, also attended the meeting.

GIX Executive Director Sean Carr said that he was truly honored to join GIX, and to meet Tsinghua President Qiu for the first time.

He also said that he was excited to work together with Tsinghua to explore new areas of cooperation for the future of GIX.

He pointed out that he would approach his new role at GIX in the spirit of cooperation and friendship and the original vision for GIX.

“Not only are we all interconnected, but there is no more important time that I can think of when technology and innovation can be brought together to address the kinds of challenges we are facing, whether the global health crisis or crisis of any other kind. GIX is just the kind of platform the world needs to bring together industry, academia, even governments to solve big problems through innovative ideas of our young professionals,” he said.

Liu Yunhao, Dean of Tsinghua GIX Institute, said he was hopeful that GIX with Sean Carr as its new Executive Director would have more impact in the world. He shared an update on GIX activities at Tsinghua with University of Washington representatives and underscored the need to include more partners around the world into GIX to spur global innovation.

Global Innovation Exchange Institute, or GIX, is a multi-culture and open education-research platform co-created by two of the world's leading research universities: Tsinghua University and the University of Washington. GIX locates on Seattle, Washington, U.S., dedicating itself to the cultivation of leaders with global vision and innovation sprits, exploring a series of global challenges such as smart hardware, medical health, smart education, and clean energy.

Writer: Sangeet

Editor: Li Han