In order to thoroughly implement the "dual carbon" strategy and broaden the international horizons of teachers and students, on May 14, the Central Plains Carbon Valley Development Forum (Ninth Session) of our school invited Professor Yuan Xiaojun from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University to give a special report. This forum was sponsored by the Institute of Climate Change and Carbon Neutrality of our school and the Henan International Joint Laboratory of Climate Change and Carbon Neutrality, and undertaken by the School of Management. Jiang Dongmei, the academic vice president of Zhengzhou University of Technology, Su Yu, the director of the Scientific Research Department, and Wu Yujuan, the deputy dean of the School of Management, attended the meeting. The forum was presided over by Deputy Dean Wu Yujuan.
The lecture centered on the structure, functions, and evolutionary trends of the polar cryosphere within the context of global climate change. Professor Yuan highlighted that the ongoing melting of land ice has emerged as the primary driver of global sea-level rise. Simultaneously, the decline in sea ice has substantially diminished the Earth's albedo, thereby intensifying the polar amplification effect. By integrating decades of satellite observation data, Professor Yuan conducted a detailed analysis of the substantial reduction in Arctic sea ice extent and the accelerated basal melting of Antarctic ice shelves. Drawing upon observational evidence from Greenland and Antarctica, she systematically elucidated the changing trends of ice sheets across four dimensions: an increase in melt days, accelerated ice flow velocity, reduced surface elevation, and mass loss.
In conclusion, Vice President Jiang Dongmei delivered closing remarks. She encouraged the attending students to actively participate in high-level academic lectures, courageously explore research directions of interest, identify academic entry points at an early stage, and ignite the spark of academic enlightenment.
The forum not only delivered an intellectually enriching academic feast with substantial content and grand perspectives for teachers and students, but more significantly, within the macro-context of global climate change, it guided young scholars to engage with cutting-edge scientific issues and contemplate humanity's future development pathways. (Text/Photos: Chen Wenting)
