From November 8 to 9, 2018, the 213th Shuangqing Forum of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) was held in Shenyang. The theme of this forum was “Key Scientific Issues of Demand-Oriented Forestry Science”. The forum was co-sponsored by the Department of Life Sciences, the Department of Chemistry and the Policy Bureau of NSFC, and organized by the Institute of Applied Ecology (IAE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). Academician ZHANG Shouqi and Academician JIANG Jianchun of the Chinese Academy of Forestry (CAF), and Prof. ZHU Jiaojun of IAE jointly served as the chairman of the forum. More than 40 experts and scholars from CAS, CAF, universities or other research institutions attended the forum.

The forum was consisted of keynote talks, section talks and free talks. Academicians JIANG Jianchun, Prof. ZHU Jiaojun, Prof. ZENG Qingyin, and Prof. FANG Shengzuo gave keynote talks, respectively, entitled ‘Key Issues and Countermeasures for Comprehensive Utilization of Forest Biomass’, ‘Innovative Forest Management Theory, Methods and Techniques are the Demands of Forestry Development of a New Age’, ‘Modern molecular Breeding based on Population Functional Genomics is the Future Development Direction of Forest Genetics and Breeding’, and ‘Thoughts on the Theory and Technology Researches on Directional Cultivation of Forest Plantations’. Thirty-six experts, including Prof. CHU Fuxiang, gave section talks on four areas: important traits of forest trees, forest cultivation, forest management and protection, and comprehensive utilization of forest biomass. The attendees conducted in-depth discussions and exchanges on key scientific issues of these four areas.

The forum clarified the current and future national needs for key basic research in forestry, proposed a number of key scientific issues that need to be addressed urgently. These key issues include ‘specific traits and molecular mechanisms synthesizing important metabolites of forest trees", ‘forest plantation productivity and regulation mechanism", ‘the outbreak mechanism of major forest pests and its control’, ‘wood structure interpretation and wood quality improvement’ and so on.

FENG Xuelian, deputy director of the Life Science Department of NSFC, YU Sheng, Deputy Director of the Policy Bureau of NSFC, and comrades from the Policy Bureau and the Life Science Department Division II participated in the forum.