To deepen interdisciplinary research in the field of environmental and life health, enhance the cultivation of doctoral students' innovative capabilities, and promote the in-depth integration of engineering master's and doctoral education with scientific and technological practice, the 3rd Interdisciplinary Doctoral Student Innovation Academic Forum on Environment and Life Health and the Second Engineering Master's and Doctoral Frontier Forum were successfully held at the School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, from June 16 to 17, 2025. The forum was hosted by the Graduate School of Harbin Institute of Technology and co-organized by the School of Environment and the School of Life Sciences and Medicine. It received support from the State Key Laboratory of Urban-rural Water Resources and Water Environment and the National Engineering Research Center for Urban Water Resources Development and Utilization (North China). The event was attended by distinguished guests including, Li Jun, Vice Dean of the Graduate School and Director of the Training Office; Liang Heng, Dean of the School of Environment; Zhang Xinping, Party Secretary of the School of Environment; Yu Guang, Party Secretary of the School of Life Sciences and Medicine; Nie Huan, Deputy Director of the School of Life Sciences and Medicine; Liu Bingfeng and Wei Liangliang, Vice Deans of the School of Environment; Yu Hongxia, Deputy Party Secretary of the School of Environment; and other distinguished guests.

This forum established 19 sub-forums covering topics such as environmental science, life science, materials chemistry, and energy science. Topics covered water quality assurance technology, environmental biotechnology and ecological security, green low-carbon technology, biomedical health, and biomedical engineering. The program included academic sessions such as doctoral thesis proposals, doctoral mid-term assessments, and master's mid-term assessments, attracting over 280 master's and doctoral students from the School of Environment and the Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine. The subforums concentrated on cutting-edge directions including “water pollution control,” “green low-carbon technology,” and “biomedical engineering.” Through academic presentations, poster displays, and photography exchanges, they showcased innovative achievements in interdisciplinary research.

Wei Liangliang, Vice Dean of the School of Environment, presided over the opening ceremony. Liang Heng, Dean of the School of Environment, Yu Guang, Party Secretary of the School of Life Sciences and Medicine, and Li Jun, Vice Dean of the Graduate School and Director of the Graduate Education Office, delivered speeches in sequence. They emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and engineering practice in cultivating innovative talents, encouraging faculty and students to deepen exchanges through the forum platform. Subsequently, four experts—He Shixin, Zhang Yan, Yang Kuikun, and Zhang Jing—delivered keynote presentations respectively, sharing cutting-edge progress in interdisciplinary research. Their report titles were “Learning from Nature: The Ecological Role and Potential Contributions of Algae in Water Purification”,“AI + Bioinformatics for Screening Novel Epigenetic Markers”,“Applications of Polymeric Nanocarriers for Drug Delivery and Disease Diagnosis”,“Selective Chemical Oxidation”. Outstanding doctoral student representatives — Ding Kaixin (Class of 2021, School of Life Sciences and Medicine) and Zhao Xiaona (Class of 2021, School of Environment) shared their research experiences journeys and growth insights under the themes “Reaching for the Stars While Keeping Feet on the Ground” and “Broad Observation, Selective Absorption; Deep Accumulation, Gradual Release,” showcasing the academic commitment of HIT students.

The closing ceremony of the forum was hosted by Nie Huan, Deputy Director of the Division of Life Sciences and Medicine. Zhang Fugui, Vice President of Longjiang Environmental Protection Group, and Dr. Wu Chuandong, Chairman of Harbin Institute of Technology Water Resources National Engineering Research Center Co., Ltd., delivered presentations titled “National Water Supply and Drainage Industry Planning and Reflections on Heilongjiang Province's Current Status” and “Water Services Development and Technological Innovation,” respectively. Drawing from engineering practice, they shared insights on cutting-edge industry trends. Subsequently, the forum presented awards for outstanding oral presentations, posters, photographic works, and scientific research practice cases.

Zhang Xinping, Secretary of the Party Committee of the School of Environment, delivered a concluding speech, affirming the forum's role in advancing interdisciplinary collaboration and fostering academic innovation. He encouraged faculty and students to deeply integrate research outcomes with national needs, tackling international academic challenges and critical bottleneck technologies through cross-disciplinary collaboration and university-enterprise integration.

This forum showcased the latest research and practical achievements in environmental and life health fields through multidisciplinary academic exchanges and industry engineering experience sharing. It broadened the academic horizons of master's and doctoral students while advancing the virtuous cycle of “education-technology-talent.” The successful forum holds significant implications for cultivating high-level talents with interdisciplinary innovative thinking and serving the national strategic needs for ecological environmental protection and life health.