The list of 2023 Qingdao Science and Technology Award winners was recently unveiled in the Qingdao Science and Technology Innovation Conference. The list comprises 109 award-winning projects or individuals, including 1 individual honored with Qingdao Supreme Science and Technology Award, 14 projects with Qingdao Natural Science Award, 5 projects with Qingdao Technical Invention Award, 84 projects with Qingdao Scientific and Technological Advance Award, 4 individuals with Qingdao Award for International Cooperation on Science and Technology and 1 project with Qingdao Contribution Award for Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements.

Many achievements in the list are internationally advanced, spearheading cutting-edge innovation in multiple domains. According to statistics, Qingdao led or participated in 62 of the projects winning the Technical Invention Award and the Scientific and Technological Advance Award, accounting for 69.7%. 71 projects in the sectors that are prioritized in Qingdao received awards, representing 68.9% of 103 award-winning projects in total. Among the 103 projects, 54 projects involved cooperation between colleges and universities, scientific research institutions and enterprises. 61% of the projects winning the first prize were related to industry-university-research cooperation. Award winners are aged 42.7 in average, 77% of whom are 45 years old and younger, in a sign that young science and technology practitioners have become the mainstay in Qingdao’s scientific and technological innovation-driven development.   (Geng Tingting)

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