As part of the 40th anniversary celebrations of Tsinghua School of Economics and Management (Tsinghua SEM) and the 70th anniversary of Science Press, the Risk Sciences Symposium and the launch ceremony of the international journal Risk Sciences took place on June 17. Jointly hosted by Tsinghua SEM and KeAi, the event brought together experts and scholars from various fields, with over 200 attendees and 60,000 viewers tuning in online. The symposium was chaired by FENG Runhuan, a chair professor at Tsinghua SEM and the founding Executive Editor-in-Chief of Risk Sciences.

In his opening remarks, Vice President of Tsinghua University, Professor YANG Bin, emphasized that managing the risks and uncertainties associated with technology's rapid development has become an urgent problem that needs to be solved as new technological advancements continue to emerge, such as artificial intelligence, big data, clean energy, biotechnology, and financial technology. Risk science is an interdisciplinary, cross-industry, and cross-national research field, and risk management is an era proposition that the whole society and all humanity should jointly consider and participate in.

YANG Bin addresses the symposium.

It is believed that the establishment of the international journal Risk Sciences will largely fill the gap in the field of risk-related research, and it is hoped that the journal can promote Tsinghua University's academic research on the impact of emerging risks and disruptive technologies in many interdisciplinary fields.

Professor BAI Chong-En, the Dean of Tsinghua SEM, stressed the impact of risks and uncertainties on social and economic development in the era of globalization. He believes that Risk Sciences will provide a broader and deeper platform for exchange and will become a leading journal in the field of risk-related comprehensive science. Bai expressed the college's commitment to serving as a bridge between humanities and science, theory and practice, technology and business, and China and the world, and hopes that, scholars from China, Asia, and around the globe will utilize Risk Sciences to study the risks faced by Asian communities and the world.

BAI Chong-En addresses the symposium.

Professor XUE Lan, Dean of Schwarzman College, pointed out that various factors such as technological disruptions, climate change, and geopolitical issues have brought about diverse risks in recent years. Risk Sciences provides a theoretical foundation and practical tools for analyzing and responding to these challenges. He emphasized that the establishment of Risk Sciences in China is an important bridge for Chinese and international scholars to exchange ideas in the field of risk sciences.

XUE Lan addresses the symposium.

MA Yue, Deputy General Editor of Science Press, highlighted the significance of establishing a high-level international journal on risk science from the perspective of national needs. He expressed hope that the domestic academic community will provide more support for domestic journals and encourage researchers to publish their important findings in English journals published by domestic institutions.

MA Yue addresses the symposium.

The unveiling ceremony was presided over by Professor HU Jia, a chair professor of both Tsinghua SEM and the Schwarzman College, and was witnessed by representatives from Tsinghua University, including YANG Yongheng from the School of Public Administration, HE Ping, a Vice Dean of Tsinghua SEM, LI Jinliang, Director of the Institute for Industrial Innovation and Financial Research, and LI Daokui from the School of Social Sciences. Representatives for the journal included MA Yue, Steven Kou from Boston University, Steven Vanduffel from the Université Libre de Bruxelles, and FENG Runhuan.

The unveiling ceremony

FENG Runhuan and JIANG Lei, Director of Publishing at KeAi, introduced the journal's background and publishing plans. BI Jun, a former Dean of the School of Environment at Nanjing University, ZHANG Haibo from the School of Government at Nanjing University, and LI Daokui delivered keynote speeches, which were chaired by Associate Professor LIU Xiao from the Department of Economics at Tsinghua SEM.

Roundtable discussions on "Financial Hotspots in China and the World" were conducted by LI Jinliang, LU Yao from Tsinghua SEM, Sabino Martinez, Minister-Counsellor from the Economic and Financial Affairs Section of the European Union Delegation to China, and Ian Duncan from the University of California. ZHU Yingzi, the Chair of the Department of Finance at Tsinghua SEM, moderated the discussion.

Steven Kou and LU Xin from the National University of Defense Technology, YANG Hailiang from Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Steven Vanduffel, Michalis Anthropelos from the University of Piraeus, CAI Wenjia from the Department of Earth System Science at Tsinghua University, Peng Shi from the University of Wisconsin, and XU Maochao from Illinois State University spoke on a wide range of risk topics from climate change to pension investments. ZHANG Lihong from Tsinghua SEM and WEI Chenyang from the PBC School of Finance at Tsinghua University moderated the invited talks.

Other area editors present at the event included WEI Jiuchang from the University of Science and Technology of China, ZHU Jianming from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, JIA Ruo and XU Jianhua from Peking University, and ZHOU Ming from Renmin University. They were joined by Editorial Board Members, including ZHENG Wei from Peking University, XIE Yuantao from the University of International Business and Economics, XU Xian from Fudan University, ZHANG Ning from Hunan University, CHEN Xiaowei from Nankai University, ZENG Xudong from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, LIU Hong from Renmin University, CHI Yichun from the Central University of Finance and Economics, ZENG Yan from Sun Yat-sen University, and LI Danping from East China Normal University.

Group photo of some Editorial Board members

The establishment of Risk Sciences will greatly advance the ecosystem of risk sciences and cultivate an open and innovative research community, as well as contribute to the development of a high-level scientific platform that serves the country's strategy of achieving self-reliance and high ground in science and technology. The journal is expected to hold further scholarly events to better reflect the trending research interests of the community that it aims to serve.