On September 5, the 2025 International Conference on the Cooperation and Integration of Industry, Education, Research, and Application (Northeast China Region) took place in Harbin. Wu Yan, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China; Zhang Qixiang, Vice Governor of Heilongjiang Province; and Chen Jie, Party Secretary of Harbin Institute of Technology and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches. President Song Wenlong of Northeast Forestry University (NEFU) also participated and signed a student exchange agreement with Sankt-Peterburgsky Gosudarstvenny Lesotechnichesky Universitet im. S.M. Kirova (St. Petersburg State Forest Technical University).

With the theme “Linking the World, Empowering Innovation – International Industry-Academia-Research-Application Cooperation Driving Northeast Revitalization,” the conference established 36 sub-forums across universities in the three northeastern provinces and one autonomous region. The topics included new materials, next-generation information technologies, artificial intelligence, and ship and marine engineering mechanics. Nearly 400 experts, scholars, and industry representatives from 17 countries, such as China, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia, gathered to discuss how technological and industrial innovation could promote the comprehensive revitalization of Northeast China in the new era.

During the opening ceremony, NEFU’s President Song Wenlong and Vice President Dobrovolski of St. Petersburg State Forest Technical University signed the “Student Exchange Agreement between Northeast Forestry University and St. Petersburg State Forest Technical University.”

NEFU actively promotes the deep integration of international industry-academia-research-application cooperation. Relying on various international collaboration platforms, the university continues to expand the scope and depth of its partnerships. The signing of this agreement aims to create a regular and systematic student exchange channel between the two universities, offering students various opportunities for learning exchanges, including short-term visits and semester exchanges. Both institutions are dedicated to developing high-quality talent with an international outlook.