Academician Zhang Bolli Advocates Digital Platforms as Key Drivers for TCM Industrialization, Standardization, and Globalization

Zhang Boli, Recipient of the National Honorary Title of “People’s Hero,” Vice President of the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies, and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering

On October 24, 2020, the 2nd World Conference on Internet Industry of Traditional Chinese Medicine (WCIICM2020) grandly opened in Jinan. Themed “Hometown of Bian Que • Healthy Jinan: Development of the Internet-Enabled Big Health Industry for Traditional Chinese Medicine in the Post-Pandemic Era,” the conference provided an integrated platform for cooperation, exchange, and application discussions encompassing industry, academia, research, and clinical practice. Top experts, scholars, industry leaders, and industrial representatives from around the world participated both online and offline, jointly exploring the high-quality integrated development of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and the internet industry, promoting global innovation in the TCM sector, and cultivating new drivers for TCM development.

Zhang Boli, recipient of the national honorary title “People’s Hero,” academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and Vice President of the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies, attended the opening ceremony online and delivered a speech. The main contents of his address are as follows:

As an outstanding representative of Chinese civilization, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a medical science that has gradually taken shape and been continuously enriched through thousands of years of production, daily life practices, and the struggle against diseases among people of all ethnic groups in China. It is a gem of ancient Chinese science, a key to unlocking the treasure house of Chinese civilization, and an indispensable force in the future construction of a Healthy China.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) belongs to China and to the world. The inspiring call made by General Secretary Xi Jinping to strengthen cultural confidence and promote the global reach of TCM serves as a powerful mandate. To bring TCM to the world, it is essential to thoroughly explore the essence within the TCM treasure trove, and effectively inherit, develop, and utilize this precious legacy bequeathed by our ancestors.

It is the perfect time to carry forward, innovate, and develop Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)! Centering on hot topics such as the inheritance of TCM in the post-pandemic era and the development of the TCM and internet industries, this conference invites global TCM industry leaders, top experts, scholars, and partners to jointly discuss the integration of global TCM resources. This will play a positive role in promoting the establishment and growth of TCM industrial resources across countries worldwide.

The newly established World Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Materials Internet Trading Center focuses on quality control at the source of medicinal materials, serving all supply and demand parties across the industrial chain. It provides integrated online services for quality control, trading, payment, settlement, and regulation, thereby establishing a digital TCM service system that makes the entire supply chain more agile, efficient, and intelligent. The World TCM Materials Quality Inspection Center is building a full-process traceability system for TCM quality “from the field to the patient,” which helps promote the establishment of international standards for TCM. The establishment of these two centers will provide strong leverage for advancing the industrialization, standardization, and innovative international development of TCM.

Promoting the global reach of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to better serve its mission of “preserving the essence, upholding integrity, and fostering innovation” is not only the contemporary mandate for all TCM practitioners but also a historical test confronting them today. We look forward to your active discussions in exploring “new pathways” for the high-quality development of TCM.