On May 9, the press conference for the League of Tropical Universities (LTU) 2026 Summit was held in Haikou. Luo Qingming, member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and President of HNU, announced at the conference that the LTU 2026 Summit will take place in Haikou from May 19 to 22, 2026.

The LTU was initiated in November 2023 by Hainan University, in collaboration with 7 other leading global universities and institutions in the tropics, including the Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Cairo University (Egypt), Universiti Malaya (Malaysia), Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (Malaysia), the University of São Paulo (Brazil), Bandung Institute of Technology (Indonesia), and Chulalongkorn University (Thailand). Currently, the LTU has expanded to include 115 universities and research institutions from 48 countries and regions.

With the theme of “Intelligent Connectivity, Shared Future: The Mission and Innovation of Universities in the Digital Era”, the summit serves as a platform for universities and research institutions in the tropical regions to strengthen collaboration in the fields of digital education, tropical agriculture, marine science and technology, One Health, mutual learning among civilizations, and marine engineering materials. The event aims to address critical challenges in the development of tropical regions and offer “tropical solutions” to global problems.

The agenda of the 2026 summit includes the LTU Council Meeting, the Opening Ceremony, and the Presidents’ Forum themed “Digital Transformation in Education”. It also features five parallel sessions on Science and Technology for a Sustainable Tropical Palm Industry, AI for One Health, Tropical Marine Ecology and Sustainability, Cultural Exchange and Tropical Region Collaboration, and Tropical Marine Engineering Materials and Energy Materials. On the sideline of the summit, a joint student information session and an employer-partnered outreach session will be held. In addition, arrangements will be made for attending delegates to visit Haikou, Danzhou, Sanya, where they will conduct themed discussions and field investigation activities.

This high-profile event will bring together a wide range of participants: representatives of government bodies from countries in tropical regions, officials of the aforesaid countries’ embassies and consulates based in China, delegates from member institutions of the LTU, and representatives of international organizations such as UNESCO, the Association of African Universities (AAU) and the Coconut International Community. All attendees will pool their wisdom to boost the development of education, technology and talent cultivation in tropical regions.

Translated by Liu Ying

Proofread by Chen Chuanxian