An awarding ceremony of the Fourth S.-T. Yau High School Girls' Mathematics Contest was held by Yau Mathematical Sciences Center at Tsinghua University under the support of the China Children and Teenagers' Fund (CCTF) and the Tencent Foundation in Beijing on October 27.

The S.-T. Yau High School Girls' Mathematics Contest was launched by internationally renowned mathematics master Professor Shing-Tung Yau at Tsinghua University in 2021 to further stimulate the enthusiasm of schooling girls worldwide toward mathematics, strengthen their love of and confidence in fundamental sciences, and foster more women scientists. So far, it has drawn the participation of nearly 2,000 girls.

In her speech at the ceremony, Huang Xiaowei, Vice-President and First Member of the Secretariat of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF), extended heartfelt congratulations to award-winners and gave her thumbs-up to all contestants on behalf of Chinese State Councilor and President of the ACWF Shen Yiqin.

Huang said that since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has attached great importance to the work on education, science and technology, and talent cultivation, bringing with tremendous opportunities to the further development of mathematics and other fundamental sciences. 

Huang introduced that the ACWF is committed to the cultivation of women sci-tech workers and the further enhancement of girls' sci-tech literacy. She said that under the strong support of Professor Peng Liyuan, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) special envoy for the advancement of girls' and women's education, and a special envoy for the Spring Bud Project to promote girls' education in China, the Spring Bud Project has taken additional efforts to promote girls' education and their all-round development and helped over 4 million schooling girls in the continuation of their academic studies.

Noting that the joint organization of the S.-T. Yau High School Girls' Mathematics Contest by the CCTF and the Tsinghua University's Yau Mathematical Sciences Center is an innovative approach taken by the Spring Bud Project — Dream of Future Action to promote girls' sci-tech literacy in a new cycle, Huang emphasized that the ACWF will work together with all social sides to further promote girls' digital and sci-tech education, carry out the project, and help all girls embrace a bright future.

Huang called on students to bear in mind the country, hold lofty ideals, retain strong interest in mathematics, grow into talents, and make unique contributions to building China into a strong country and achieving national rejuvenation on all fronts by pursuing Chinese modernization.

Professor Yau, also Chairman of the S.-T. Yau High School Girls' Mathematics Contest, winner of the Fields Medal and foreign academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), said that the world needs women in mathematics and that many women mathematicians have made lots of breakthroughs in their research. He asked more schooling girls to take Emmy Noether (1882-1935), a globally renowned woman mathematician, as an example, better appreciate the special charm of mathematics, and become more confident and braver in the pursuit of truth and beauty on the mathematical path.

Yau said that he believed there will be more women rising stars in the field of mathematics, who are expected to make differences to the further development of the discipline, hoping that more girls will take part in the building of China into a mathematical powerhouse, undertake world-class research and further enhance the level of the country's mathematical research.

Song Li, Member of the Secretariat of the ACWF, Xie Weihe, former Vice-President of Tsinghua University, and other attending guests presented awards to winners in the contest.

(Source: CCTF/Women of China)

Editor: Wang Shasha