Online international conference for aerospace innovation held in Xi’an

The Belt and Road Aerospace Innovation Alliance (BRAIA) 2020 Council Meeting and General Assembly was held online on October 20, with the aim of further promoting aerospace innovation and development.

Jointly hosted by Northwestern Polytechnical University (NPU), which is headquartered in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, Northwest China, and Pakistan National University of Science and Technology, the meeting attracted the participation of some 130 representatives of 61 universities, enterprises, and research institutes from 19 countries and international organizations.

During the meeting, the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, Zhengzhou University, Yanshan University, the East China University of Technology, the Institute of Future Astronautics, and the Global Center for Disaster Management and Decision Making of Cameroon, were reviewed and approved by all member units to become new members of the alliance.

To date, BRAIA has 69 members from 22 countries on six continents.

The Military Technical College, Egypt became the BRAIA regional development center for Africa, following BRAIA’s first regional development center in South Asia.

To further promote substantial joint research cooperation among BRAIA members, and generate more fruitful scientific research output, NPU, as BRAIA Permanent Secretariat, initiated the BRAIA Joint Research Seed Fund Program this year. Five international scientific teams consisting of 13 BRAIA member universities from seven countries had applied for projects in areas like composite materials, microsatellites and aerodynamics. These projects were approved by the BRAIA Academic Committee.

Since its establishment in 2017, BRAIA has organized a series of student activities, academic exchanges and managerial meetings, which have improved the international reputation and global impact of both NPU and BRAIA members.

BRAIA has thus become an important platform for multilateral international cooperation and exchange. It is making continuous efforts to explore better ways of strengthening international cooperation and benefiting all of its members, in spite of the global impact of COVID-19.