Seeing social power in scientific charity: life choices, diverse exploration and resilience

China News Service, Shanghai, November 12 (Reporter Zheng Yingying) The "Social Power Support Basic Research Conference" jointly sponsored by Tianqiao Brain Science Research Institute (China) and the "Chinese Philanthropist" Impact Philanthropy Research Institute was held on the 11th at the Shanghai Science Hall. At this conference, stories about science and charity surged warmly.

On November 11, the "Social Power Support Basic Research Conference" jointly sponsored by Tianqiao Brain Science Research Institute (China) and the "Chinese Philanthropist" Impact Philanthropy Research Institute was held at the Shanghai Science Hall. (Photo courtesy of the organizer)

The real regret is that you haven’t even tried it.

"After becoming financially free, I experienced a period of 'impermanence in life'. I asked myself: If I were to leave this world tomorrow, what should I have done but not do that I would regret?" Yang Jinfang, a member of the Tsinghua University Education Foundation Fangtang Research Fund Management Committee, shared his story as a representative of individual donors.

That experience taught him to let go of things that were not closely related to the meaning of life.

In 2023, Yang Jinfang donated to establish the Tsinghua University Education Foundation Fangtang Research Fund.

"Before making the decision, I prepared for the worst: I would invest a lot of time and money and get nothing in the end. But I told myself that if I didn't even try, that would be the real regret at the end of my life," he said.

Cross boundaries and step out of comfort zones

Xue Tian, chair professor at the University of Science and Technology of China, talked about the value of social forces supporting basic research from the perspective of a funded scientist.

“Social funding provides diversity, which leads to creativity, a breakthrough ‘from 0 to 1’ that is difficult to plan, and more importantly, resilience,” Xue Tian said.

In his view, continued funding from social forces pushes scientific researchers out of their research comfort zones and expands the boundaries of knowledge.

"Diversity is the only controllable certainty facing an uncertain future. When the scientific research paradigm changes, many of the 'sparks' that have not been eliminated may originate from the diversity exploration carried out by social forces with the support of government entities." Xue Tian said.

Xue Tian is also a New Cornerstone researcher. The New Cornerstone Researcher Project is a new basic research funding project launched in 2022; Tencent has invested 10 billion yuan in 10 years to provide long-term and stable support for a group of outstanding scientists to devote themselves to basic research. It has currently funded a total of 139 New Cornerstone Researchers in 3 phases, with an average age of 46 years old.

Three “Hearts” and Ten Years’ Journey

In 2016, the founders Chen Tianqiao and Luo Qianqian invested US$1 billion to establish the Tianqiao Brain Science Research Institute. Now it has established a system that combines donations, self-research, and ecology.

Yang Yang, deputy director of the Tianqiao Brain Research Institute (China), used three "hearts" to summarize the institute's ten years at the meeting: curiosity gives science depth, compassion gives science warmth, and empathy gives science breadth.

He said that social forces can play two unique roles in supporting basic research: first, to tolerate failure, encourage innovation, and use own funds to support directions that are “likely to fail”; second, to give full play to the unique perspective of entrepreneurs.

Yang Yang announced that in the new decade, the Tianqiao Brain Research Institute will continue to support basic research in China, with the first batch of RMB 200 million planned to be invested in two new programs: one is to incubate a mental health technology enterprise in the Public Benefit Corporation model; the other is the Tianqiao Scholars Program to fund scientific research-based clinicians who have both excellent clinical and scientific research capabilities and are committed to using new technologies to promote medical research.

At this meeting, the first report in China that systematically describes the landscape of social forces supporting scientific research, the "Basic Portrait of Science Philanthropy in China," was officially released, "scanning" science philanthropy from multiple dimensions such as foundations, social service organizations, charitable trusts, joint funds, and equity donations.

Lu Zhenya, president of "China News Weekly" and "China Philanthropist", said that a multi-carrier, multi-entry Chinese science philanthropy ecosystem is taking shape. This ecosystem is still in the early stages of being identified, understood, and organized. Professional funding capabilities are still accumulating, and more patience is needed for the most basic subjects. (over)