07/18/2023
How has the scientific literacy in Hangzhou been continuously improving?
Recently, Hangzhou held the 2023 National Scientific Literacy Work Conference and released the latest data. According to the 12th Chinese Citizen Science Literacy Survey, the proportion of citizens in Hangzhou with scientific literacy reached 19.6% in 2022. Is this number high or low?
According to the same survey, the proportion of Chinese citizens with scientific literacy in 2022 was 12.93%, and in Zhejiang Province, it was 15.89%. Hangzhou continues to maintain its leading position in the province and ranks relatively high nationwide.
Scientific literacy is an indicator closely related to urban innovation. Cities with higher rankings in scientific literacy are also cities with better innovation capabilities and development of high-tech industries. In recent years, the proportion of citizens in Hangzhou with scientific literacy has shown a rapid upward trend. How was this achieved?
The "Hangzhou Action Plan for Improving the Scientific and Cultural Literacy of the Whole People (2021-2025)" proposes that by 2025, the proportion of citizens in the city with scientific literacy will reach 22%, and a strong scientific and technological cultural city with a rich atmosphere, complete facilities, and an improved innovation system will be preliminarily established.
To achieve this, Hangzhou has promoted a series of science popularization activities. For example, the third week of May is designated as "Hangzhou Science and Technology Week," the third week of September is "Hangzhou Science Popularization Week," and the third week of October is "Hangzhou Social Sciences Popularization Week," during which science popularization activities are organized with different themes.
At the same time, Hangzhou also organizes various scientific and technological competitions to stimulate the scientific exploration abilities of young people of all ages. Currently, the Hangzhou College Student Science and Technology Innovation Competition has been held for the ninth time, and activities such as the Hangzhou Youth Science and Technology Innovation Competition, Hangzhou Primary and Secondary School Information Technology Creation Competition, and Hangzhou Ecological Civilization Little Anchors Competition are ongoing.
In addition to specific science popularization activities for different groups, Hangzhou also focuses on creating a city's humanistic environment that respects and venerates science.
In the middle section of Mashijie Street in Shangcheng District, Hangzhou, there is a narrow lane called Xiaoying Lane. Walking along the mottled bluestone road, you will reach Qian Xuesen's former residence. Outside the residence, there is a 110-meter-long relief wall. The first 10 meters of the relief wall depict 10 academicians from Hangzhou, represented by Qian Xuesen, while the remaining 100 meters record 82 academicians, represented by Zhu Kezhen, who have worked and lived in Hangzhou. Walking along this road, you can have a rough understanding of the scientific heritage of this city. This lane is called "Academicians' Lane" and was selected as one of the first batch of "Scientific Spirit Cultivation Bases" by the China Association for Science and Technology in 2021.
In addition to Academicians' Lane, Hangzhou has also built cultural symbols of urban science and culture such as the Botanical Garden "Academicians Road," Xianghu Lake "Academicians Island," and Tonglu "Fuchun Academicians Village," cultivating a city culture that takes local scientists as role models. In 2022, Hangzhou invited academicians in Hangzhou, scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, to enter campuses and science venues to conduct popular science lectures and spiritual promotion activities, with more than 50 sessions held.
Furthermore, Hangzhou has incorporated the construction of science popularization facilities into its economic and social development planning, increased public investment, and continuously updated the forms and content of science popularization. Hangzhou Low Carbon Science and Technology Museum, Xiaoying Jiangnan Hongxiang, and many other science popularization venues and platforms have been selected as the National Science Education Bases for the period from 2021 to 2025.
After years of constructing a strong scientific and technological cultural city, Hangzhou has gathered a number of universities, laboratories, technological innovation centers, and leading technology companies with world-class levels. They actively join the science popularization army, timely popularizing new scientific discoveries and technological innovations to the public, and promoting Hangzhou to become a "preferred place for technology transfer" and a "city with international influence in innovation vitality."
For example, Zhejiang Lab periodically opens to the public, showcasing the latest research results and future developments of the laboratory, allowing the public to understand the specific project progress and research purposes. Beihang Hangzhou Innovation Research Institute has established "Weekend Open Days" to provide free access to the public to experience aerospace science in their exhibition halls. Zhejiang University's Science Education Base combines scientific research with science popularization, comprehensively showcasing a series of advanced scientific and technological achievements ranging from agricultural biology and artistic archaeology to artificial intelligence and technological innovation.
Currently, science popularization work has entered the era of industrialization, and Hangzhou has formulated many measures to promote the development and operation of the science popularization industry.
In terms of preferential policies, Hangzhou has included the science popularization industry within the scope of preferential policies for high-tech industries, creative industries, and cultural industries. The development of science popularization exhibitions, exhibits, films, new media science popularization products, and other related industries receives multi-faceted policy support.
At the same time, Hangzhou promotes the growth and strengthening of the science popularization industry by expanding and improving the industrial ecology. It develops emerging industries such as science popularization tourism, science popularization exhibitions and conferences, science popularization in arts and literature, science popularization animation, and science popularization game planning. Based on this, Hangzhou focuses on guiding the formation of industrial alliances in science popularization creation and dissemination, study tour tourism, science popularization exhibition and teaching products, science popularization publishing, and other industries.
To broaden the scope of industrial alliances, Hangzhou encourages social capital investment in the science popularization industry and encourages enterprises, social organizations, or individuals to participate in the research, development, creation, and operation of science popularization products. It encourages professional research and development centers, large-scale science popularization venues, and other institutions to play the role of "think tanks," enhance industrial innovation capabilities, and promote the scientific development of the science popularization industry.
In the future, Hangzhou will further integrate its science popularization work with scientific and technological innovation by leading various regions in creating national science popularization demonstration zones and counties (cities), establishing "one unit, one brand," advocating for private high-tech enterprises to open science popularization windows, and other measures. Hangzhou aims to transform its advantages in scientific and technological resources into advantages in innovation, talent, and development, pushing forward the construction of a strong scientific and technological cultural city and providing scientific literacy support to become a model for the creation of a Chinese-style modern city.