The United Nations Consultative Committee on Open-Source Innovation, initiated by the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST), was officially established in Beijing recently. The inaugural ceremony and the committee's first plenary meeting were attended by Chen Rui, deputy director of the China Center for International Science and Technology Exchange; committee chair Wang Jianmin; vice chairs Chen Zhong, Hu Chunming, Jiang Tao and Du Junping; and all committee members. The meeting was chaired by Zhang Yanchuan, executive vice chair of the committee and vice president and secretary general of the China Institute of Communications.

Participants agreed that the establishment of the committee will serve as an important bridge connecting China's open-source capabilities with global resources. They emphasized that open source is not only a technological concept but also a spirit, a culture and a set of shared values. As a "new blue ocean" market with strong potential, open source represents a promising area for future development.

Experts noted that the committee should unite efforts and make full use of its consultative platform. They stressed the importance of aligning the committee's work with the United Nations' 2030 sustainable development goals and the principles outlined in the Global Digital Compact, while upholding the spirit of policy openness, technological openness through open source and pioneering innovation. The objective is to build international consensus on the values of open source and contribute Chinese perspectives to global open-source development and governance. 

The committee aims to actively participate in open-source science and technology governance under the U.N. framework. It seeks to promote the use of open-source principles to support global sustainable development, advance the growth of a global open-source ecosystem, foster open collaboration and scientific innovation, and enhance China's contribution and influence in the international open-source governance system.