26th CSS - EEST

Dec. 2nd, 2024

Dear Students, Professors, and Staff members,

On behalf of the Campus Asia Plus Energy-Environment (CA-EEST) Consortium, I warmly welcome all graduate students from Kyushu University (KU), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), and Pusan National University (PNU) to the 26th Cross Strait Symposium on Energy and Environment (CSS).

This year marks the 26th CSS, highlighting the fact that we have successfully hosted this international conference annually in rotation for the past 26 years. As the name suggests, the CSS was originally established to facilitate the exchange of graduate students' research achievements in the field of energy and environment across the straits between Korea, Japan, and China. In recent years, however, the symposium has expanded to include UTM, transforming it into a four-country academic conference. In 2021, I indeed proposed renaming the symposium to the Cross Ocean Symposium to better reflect this broader collaboration.^^ Moreover, the CSS stands out as a unique academic event, in which graduate students actively participate in its operation by serving as session chairs, unlike other international conferences.

I am pleased to announce that nearly 100 students, faculty, and staff members are gathering at PNU, including 51 members from PNU, 14 from KU, 26 from SJTU, and 8 from UTM. I would like to express my warmest thanks to all of you for participating, especially during this busy academic season.

I am also delighted to announce another important event: the signing ceremony og the formal agreement for master's double degree program between UTM and PNU. Following this CSS, we will have the necessary framework in place to officially start the mutual exchange of double degree students between the two universities. To mark this event, VIP members, including vice presidents or deans from the three foreign universities will meet with the PNU president, vice president, the dean of College of Engineering, the director of PNU International.

Students, please practice your presentations thoroughly to deliver the best possible performance to the audience. Try to show the valuable research results that you have achieved through your dedicated efforts over time. Please actively participate in the Q&A sessions of other students' presentation. We all understand that it can be challenging for you to fully understand researches from other fields that are somewhat different from your own. However, it is perfectly fine if you don't completely understand everything. Instead, use this opportunity to taste new areas and appreciate the diversity within the fields of energy and environment.

I hope this CSS becomes a memorable event for all of you. Looking forward to seeing you soon!