On the afternoon of November 26th, teachers and students from the Department of Hydraulic Engineering and the Weiyang College of Tsinghua University visited the China Three Gorges Corporation. Leaders and experts from many departments of Three Gorges Corporation attended the event, including those from the Strategic Development Department, the Human Resource Department, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Shanghai Investigation, the Design & Research Institute Co., Ltd., the Yangtze River Eco-Environmental Engineering Research Center, the Three Gorges Technology Co., Ltd., the Science and Technology Research Institute, the Yangtze Power Co., Ltd., the Three Gorges Ladder Communication Center, the River Basin Hub Operation Management Center, and other departments.

Deputy Director Chong Li of the Yangtze River Eco-Environmental Engineering Research Center hosted the event and delivered a welcome speech, showing the developing history and brilliant achievements of the Three Gorges Corporation since its establishment in 1993 through a short video. Through a remote video system, Hui Cao, Director of Reservoir Dispatching of the Water Resources Department of the Ladder Communication Center, and Long Xing, Deputy Director of the Reservoir Management Department of the Basin Hub Operation Management Center, introduced the overall operation of the Three Gorges Project and the operation and dispatch of the Three Gorges Reservoir, respectively. Director Xianzhong Guan from the Organizational Planning Division of the Human Resources Department introduced the general situation of the group’s workforce and the recruitment of the graduates. Afterward, some Tsinghua alumni working in the Three Gorges Group discussed with the visiting students.

As an important equipment of the country, the Three Gorges Project has achieved huge comprehensive benefits in flood control, power generation, and shipping since its completion. It has become increasingly important in the Yangtze River Economic Zone and protected the safety of the river basin. At 8:20 am on November 15th, 2020, the annual power generation capacity reached 103.1 billion kWh, breaking the previous world record for the annual power generation capacity of a single hydropower station of 103.098 billion kWh created by the Itaipu Hydropower Station in South America in 2016.

After nearly 30 years of striving, the Three Gorges Corporation has achieved outstanding successes in construction and management, power production, international investment and project contracting, wind power and solar energy development, comprehensive development and utilization of water resources, and related professional technical consulting services of hydropower projects. The Three Gorges Corporation has become the world’s largest hydropower development company and the largest clean energy group and expanded its business along the Silk Road Economic Belt to countries within Europe, Asia, and South America. While developing business, Three Gorges Corporation actively undertakes social responsibility. In the effort of protecting the Yangtze River, the Three Gorges Corporation has innovated and developed new models, establishing the Yangtze River Eco-Environmental Protection Group, the Yangtze River Eco-Environmental Engineering Research Center, the Yangtze River Eco-Environmental Protection Industry Alliance, the Yangtze River Green Development Investment Fund, and the Yangtze River Protection Special Fund, etc. These groups have formed a Yangtze River protection business platform. The platform has actively participated in poverty alleviation and charity works, with a total investment of over 11.1 billion yuan, benefiting more than 80 counties (districts) in 31 provinces across the country.

When inspecting the Three Gorges Project, General Secretary Jinping Xi pointed out that “The Three Gorges Project has been an important symbol of our country’s development since the reform and opening up to the world. It is a model of the superiority of our country’s socialist system in concentrating its efforts on major issues, a model of the wisdom and creativity of the Chinese people, and a model of Chinese people moving towards prosperity.”

In the forum session, Tsinghua alumni Wubin Wang, chairman of Shanghai Survey and Design Institute Co., Ltd., recalled the regret-free choice of giving up graduate school opportunities and decisively participating in constructing the Three Gorges Project. He used his own striving experiences to explain the focus and persistence, the pattern and vision, and the responsibility and mission of constructing the Three Gorges Project. Tsinghua alumni Xianjun Yin, deputy general manager of Three Gorges Technology Co., Ltd., recalled the teachings of Prof. Guangzhou Zhang, Prof. Guanglun Wang, Academician Chunhan Zhang, and the life enlightenment given by many seniors during their studies at Tsinghua University. Tsinghua alumni Xianjun Yin encouraged students to establish firm ideals and beliefs and learn professional knowledge in a down-to-earth manner. Tsinghua alumni Junyi Yan, director of the New Energy Technology Innovation Center of the Insititute of Technology, and Zhiwu Liu, deputy director of the Research Center for Water Resources Efficient Utilization Technology, emphasized the importance of cultivating learning ability, thinking style, and communication skills during the conversation with the students. They also hoped the students could feel the cultural heritage of Tsinghua University, observe with sincerity, and learn modestly. Tsinghua alumni Kaili Sun from the class of 2012 shared her practical experience in protecting the Yangtze River after graduation. Tsinghua alumni Chong Li encouraged the students to clarify their goals, stick to their original aspirations, improve their capacities, and accomplish successes in the final summary.

On behalf of the visiting teachers and students, Prof. Danxun Li, head of the Department of Hydraulic Engineering, expressed sincere gratitude to the Three Gorges Corporation for the strong support to the department and genuine admiration for the outstanding achievements of the Three Gorges Corporation. He also hoped that the new generation of young students would inherit the dedication of their predecessors while maintaining their high enthusiasm for learning, steadily learn professional knowledge, and strive to become the pillars of the industry and contribute to national development and national rejuvenation.

This event was the first collective visit that teachers and students of the Department of Hydraulic Engineering have made to the industry’s top units under the requirements of normalization of epidemic prevention and control. Chunhong Wang, vice chairman of the labor union of the College of Civil Engineering of Tsinghua University, Yaqi Luo, assistant teacher of Weiyang 01 Civil Engineering class, and Yuan Li from the Environmental Planning Office of the Ministry of Environmental Protection of the Three Gorges Corporation specifically organized this event.

Group photo taken at the event