NEW PRESIDENT OF PEKING UNIVERSITY

Optical expert Gong Qihuang becomes the new president of Peking University （PKU）.

Born in Putian City， Fujian Province， Gong started working as a lecturer after getting his Ph.D. from PKUs School of Physics in 1989. In 1995， he became a professor. Before his new appointment as PKUs president， he was its vice president and dean of its graduate school.

Also an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a member of the World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries， Gong has been working on nonlinear and quantum optics， micro-and nanophotonics， heading several national research projects and teams.

He has published more than 500 papers in journals such as Nature Photonics and Nature Physics.

Sheltering New Graduates

Guangzhou Daily June 22

Every year fresh college graduates encounter many new headaches and finding an affordable apartment to rent may be the biggest one， especially in big cities.

Difficulty in finding rental properties not only places strain on graduates， but also affects city development. Competition among cities includes competition for highly qualified employees， and resolving these basic living difficulties helps the cities attract and retain talent， injecting new blood and vitality for further growth.

The problem is not just high rents， but also a chaotic rental market. Housing agencies may charge these young graduates much higher commissions than they deserve， landlords may suddenly decide to raise the rent， or the graduates may be misled by false rental adverts.

Some cities have produced policies to support new graduates， such as rental subsidies and reduction or relief of rental deposits. More importantly， the rental market must be standardized and brought under strict control so that young graduates will have a safe place to stay in the early days of entering the workforce， with or without a job.

High-Quality Belt and Road

Outlook Weekly June 20

Originating in China， the Belt and Road Initiative belongs to the whole world. In the past eight years， the initiative has entered a period of high-quality development by creating up the largest platform for international cooperation in the world and contributing Chinese wisdom.

New areas of cooperation are emerging and the Digital Silk Road is adding to global economic growth by empowering high-quality development， thus offering a new road for cooperation and bringing peoples along the Belt and Road closer together.1273ACDE-7190-479D-98AA-89AA8B3957B9

So far， China has provided hundreds of billions of items to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic to 153 countries and 15 international organizations， and its provision of COVID-19 vaccines to the international community has exceeded 2.2 billion doses. China has also launched an Initiative for Belt and Road Partnership on COVID-19 Vaccine Cooperation， as well as a telemedicine service system along the Belt and Road. By building the Silk Road of Health， China aims to expand the space for cooperation on vaccines， healthcare， biopharmaceuticals and other areas.

Currently， the world is undergoing a oncein-a-century pandemic as well as dramatic geopolitical changes. The world economy is being battered by regional conflicts， sanctions and decoupling， energy and food crisis. Developing countries， in particular， now face increasing uncertainties.

Chinas high-quality and sustainable development that benefits all of its people is going hand in hand with equally high-quality Belt and Road progress， contributing to world peace and development.

Opening Parks to the Public

Yangcheng Evening News June 22

In response to residents requests for more ways to connect with nature， Guangzhou Forestry and Landscape Bureau is opening up additional greenspaces within the city.

While many residents are applauding the bureaus responsiveness， early trials are leading to more work for individual parks as visitors are leaving rubbish behind and also engaging in activities that damage the grass.

In the past， many parks and green spaces in Guangzhou， capital of Guangdong Province， have been closed to the public in order to avoid these kinds of issues and many park authorities view opening them as a risk. Closing parks to avoid damage is seen as unfairly disadvantaging responsible users； however， protecting the parks must also be a priority.

The solution to this contradiction is likely to be time and education. As peoples exposure to these green areas increases and an understanding of how to use them responsibly grows， the damage caused by opening parks to the public will decrease. Opening these parks to the public is a great start， and proper management， not only of the parks but also of the people who enter them， will ensure they remain open in the future.

SONGWRITER QIAO YU PASSES AWAY AT 95

One of Chinas most renowned songwriters， Qiao Yu， died at the age of 95 in Beijing on June 20.

Born in Jining， Shandong Province， Qiao， whose real name was Qiao Qingbao， had a career that spanned seven decades， making him a household name in China. He wrote over 1，000 songs， some of which are still performed today and have gained popularity among audiences of all ages. He also published poems， wrote movie scripts and composed songs for different Chinese operas.1273ACDE-7190-479D-98AA-89AA8B3957B9

For more than three decades， Qiaos Unforgettable Tonight has been the closing song for the annual Spring Festival Gala， a televised variety show broadcast on China Central Television on Chinese New Years Eve.

He managed the China National Opera and Dance Drama Theater as well as heading the Chinese Music Literature Association.

“We advise certain countries not to continue adding fuel to the fire to serve their own geopolitical self-interests， not to mention force other countries to take sides and thereby intensify division and antagonism within the international community.”

Dai Bing， Chinas Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN， at a Security Council briefing on Ukraine on June 21

“Through a so-called legal way， the U.S. is trying to create‘forced unemployment in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and push for a worldwide decoupling from China.”

Wang Wenbin， spokesperson for Chinas Foreign Ministry， at a daily news conference on June 21

“Multilateralism and cooperation are the only way to deal with global challenges， especially as economic globalization hit headwinds from the pandemic， the geopolitical conflict and rising protectionism.”

Tu Xinquan， Dean of the China Institute for World Trade Organization （WTO） Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing and WTO Chair， at the university on June 22

“China has always played a constructive role in our region and shares stable and dynamic bilateral relations with every country we represent.”

Mohamed Ali Hassan， Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Djibouti， during the First China-Horn of Africa Peace， Good Governance and Development Conference on June 201273ACDE-7190-479D-98AA-89AA8B3957B9