On November 4th, a delegation from the University of Wollongong (UOW), Australia, led by its President, Prof. Max Lu AO, visited Wuhan University of Technology (WUT). Meng Fangbing, Secretary of the CPC WUT Committee, met with the delegation and conferred the honorary professorship on President Max Lu AO. Vice President Mai Liqiang presided over the meeting.

Meng Fangbing warmly welcomed President Max Lu AO and the delegation. He then provided an overview of WUT’s overall development landscape, highlighting its integrated reform in education, science and technology, and talent development, and the latest progress of the “4310” International Action Plan. He indicated that President Max Lu AO’s appointment as an Honorary Professor signifies the continuation and expansion of the strong mutual friendship, a positive start for deepening cooperation between the two universities, and a practice in implementing the internationalization strategy and attracting top talent to promote high-quality development. He expressed hope that this visit would mark a fresh start for establishing a broader platform for bilateral communication and enhancing comprehensive and in-depth cooperation with UOW. The goal is to jointly cultivate high-quality talents with international perspectives, conduct world-class scientific research, build academic teams with global influence, and advance Sino-Australian educational collaboration to a new level.

President Max Lu AO gave an overview of UOW and its future development plans. He stated that the University of Wollongong regards WUT as its most important partner in China. He expressed his expectation to work closely with WUT to enhance cooperation and strengthen exchanges across various fields and forms, thereby building a closer collaborative partnership.

President Max Lu AO was subsequently invited to deliver a keynote speech for the 2025 WUT High-Quality Development Seminar and Special Training on Strategic Planning and Management Capacity for middle management. University leaders, mid-level cadres, and representatives of young faculty attended the event. In his address, titled “University 4.0: A New Paradigm for Skills and Creativity in the Age of AI”, he systematically explained the core concept of the University 4.0 paradigm and analyzed the reshaping of skill demands in the AI era as well as the challenges AI poses to academic integrity and learning assessment. Measures for educational innovation practices in Chinese and Australian universities were discussed during the meeting. His insights provided valuable insights for the university to better cultivate top-notch innovative talent who can adapt to and lead future development. This aligns with the university's goals for connotative, high-quality, and sustainable growth during the nation's 15th Five-Year Plan period.

Written by: Yang Mengxi, Yu Yan

Rewritten by: Mei Mengqi

Edited by: Li Huihui, Li Tiantian

Source: International Office, Organization Department of the CPC WUT Committee