This year, the commencement ceremony of Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) fell on June 8th, marking a significant milestone for the graduates embarking on new journeys from this "tropical rainforest" of learning.
With the theme “rooted in rainforest, branches to all directions”, the celebration brought together more than 200 participants, including teachers, students, alumni, and family members.
The celebration started from 9:00 AM with a symbolic tree-planting ceremony in the student forest. The outgoing graduates in their academic gowns and their teachers planted a tree of Goniothalamus cheliensis, a critically endangered species of the Annonaceae family. The tree-planting tradition, initiated in 2006, has continued for 21 years.
At 3:00 PM, graduates and their mentors walked a red carpet in academic regalia and signed their names on a commemorative wall. The ceremony officially commenced with the national anthem of China. It was presided over by Prof. Zhang Jiaolin, CPC secretary and deputy direcrtor of XTBG.
Prof. Xing Yaowu, director of XTBG, reflected the 40-year graduate education in the garden. He encouraged the graduates to uphold the spirit of “perseverance in seeking truth and harmony in nature”. He expected the graduates to remain true to their core values with integrity and embrace the world with an open and inclusive mind, and contribute to rainforest conservation, resource utilization, ecological civilization, and international cooperation.
As teacher representative, Prof. Zhang Yumei shared her views of work and life: grow iteratively in thinking, learn diligently and improve constantly at work, and mature gently in life.
Alumni representative Zhang Yongjiang, drawing on his own experience, highlighted three strengths that tropical rainforests instill in researchers: wild growth, cooperative symbiosis, and the courage to embrace failure.
Doctoral graduate He Yunyun, master’s graduate Tian Ziyue, and international graduate Myo Thant (Myanmar) delivered speeches reviewing their academic journeys. “What we love often lies in those ‘one more tries’,” said He Yunyun, adding that XTBG taught them to stay curious in a complex world, resilient in the face of difficulties, and humble before the unknown.
Representing current graduate students, Wang Minghui summarized life at XTBG with three words: inclusiveness, warmth, and vastness, and extended best wishes to the graduates, vowing to follow their example and remain true to the original aspiration of scientific research.
At the degree awarding ceremony, Prof. Xing Yaowu turned the tassels for each graduate one by one, drawing warm applause from the audience in celebration of their academic success.
The degree awarding ceremony closed with all participants singing Our Garden, Our Home.
The graduation celebration ended with a farewell party in the conference hall.
Tree planting ceremony.
Graducation celebration.
Xing Yaowu turned the tassels for each graduate one by one
Participants pose group photos.
