On June 17th, the Chinese Academy of Science and Technology for Development (CASTED), in conjunction with Microsoft Corporation (China), co-hosted the Symposium on "Empowering the Growth of Women in STEM " in Beijing. On the eve of the 30th anniversary of the Beijing World Conference on Women ("Beijing+30"), the symposium delved deeply into the opportunities and challenges facing women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in the new era, shared cutting-edge concepts and successful practices, and focused on jointly charting a new blueprint for the development of female STEM talent. Over 60 participants from international organizations, research institutes, universities, enterprises, and other institutions attended. The meeting was chaired by Feng Chujian, Vice President of CASTED.

During the keynote speech session, Liu Dongmei, Party Secretary of CASTED, presented a keynote speech titled "Growth of Women in STEM: Policy Evolution and Innovation." She provided a systematic analysis of the crucial role of women in technological innovation, the bottlenecks they face in career development, and the evolution of China's policies supporting women's participation in science and technology innovation.

Keynote speeches were also delivered by Shahbaz KHAN, Representative and Director of the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia; Liu Di, Programme Manager of UN Women China Office; and Mike Yeh, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft. They shared international experiences from the perspective of UNESCO and UN Women in promoting women's participation in science and technology innovation, as well as practices from the technology industry in empowering women in STEM.

During the roundtable discussion, participating experts from the Women's Studies Institute of China (ACWF), Peking University, Beijing Academy of Science and Technology, State Grid Energy Research Institute, Elsevier, Alibaba, Tencent, Institute for New Economic Development, and Microsoft engaged in discussions on topics including "How to Create a Supportive Environment for Female S&T Talent Participation in Innovation" and "Female Representation in the Field of Artificial Intelligence."

CASTED has long been doing research on the development of female S&T talent, supporting relevant government departments in the formulation of key documents such as the Guidelines on Strengthening the Development of Female S&T Talent and Several Measures to Support Female S&T Talent in Playing a Greater Role in Scientific and Technological Innovation. This symposium represents a significant effort by CASTED to build a dialogue mechanism bridging research, policymaking, and practice in this field. CASTED will continue to conduct a series of research projects supporting the development of female S&T talent, providing support for the refinement of related policies.