Tsinghua set sail, Qinghai-Tibet dedication
- Speech at the 2024 Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony
Zhang Fan, a 1994 alumnus of the School of Environment
Dear teachers and students, hello everyone!
It is a great honor to be invited to participate in this graduation ceremony as an alumni representative. For me, today has a very special meaning because my child has also successfully completed four years of Tsinghua University and is sitting in the audience as an undergraduate graduate. Here, on behalf of the Tsinghua alumni who are struggling in their respective positions, and as a parent of the students, I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to the Class of 2024! I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the hard-working teachers of my alma mater!
Here, I would like to share three insights:
First, we must adhere to Tsinghua University, the common spiritual home of everyone. In the future, no matter where we are, no matter how big or small our achievements are, we should remember the nurturing grace of our alma mater. I was admitted to the Department of Environment of Tsinghua University in 1994, and was selected for the "4+2" pilot program in my sophomore year to obtain the qualification of bachelor's and master's degree, and after graduating with a master's degree in 2000, I went to the United States to study abroad, and after graduating with a doctorate in 2005, I entered the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States. Since returning to China in 2009, he has been engaged in scientific research at the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Although it has been 24 years since I left Tsinghua University, those days in Tsinghua Park will always be the warmest memory in my heart.
I would especially like to thank my master's supervisor, Professor Xiang Liu. With his selfless help and full support, I was able to complete my master's program and dissertation in just two years. I still remember that when I was building the water treatment experimental system, I didn't have enough hands, and Mr. Liu personally helped me tighten the interface screws; When I got married in my second year of graduate school, the research group also organized a celebration for me. The excellent teaching team of Tsinghua University and the teachers' teaching in accordance with their aptitude have laid a solid foundation for my future scientific research work.
After returning to China, I took root in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and worked with my team members to conduct high-altitude positioning monitoring and numerical simulation research, gradually understanding the pattern and change mechanism of water, sediment and water environment on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and providing a scientific basis for decision-making for the protection and utilization of regional water and land resources. In 2023, I won the China Young Women Scientist Award, which is not only a recognition of my personal efforts, but also an affirmation of our team's common efforts. These are inseparable from the cultivation of Tsinghua University.
The second is to keep in mind the school motto of unremitting self-improvement and virtue. Self-improvement cannot deviate from the goal of strengthening the country, and virtue must be rooted in the feelings of the family and the country. "Fifty years of working for the health of the motherland" is the wish of our alma mater in the hearts of each and every one of us at Tsinghua University. Before going abroad, my husband and I had already planned to return to China after completing our studies and accumulating some work experience.
In 2009, when I was interviewing at the Qinghai-Tibet Institute, the then director, Academician Yao Tandong, told me earnestly that the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is the birthplace of many major rivers in Asia, and that an in-depth understanding of its hydrological processes is of great significance to the use of water resources in mainland China and even Asia, and my professional background is highly compatible with it. I was deeply moved by his words, and although there was still a gap between the salary and living conditions in China and abroad at that time, I chose to return to China without hesitation.
However, the hypoxic environment of the plateau was a challenge for me. When I first set foot in Tibet in 2010, I fainted due to severe altitude sickness, and my relatives and friends were very worried about me. In the past ten years, I have been to many large and small rivers on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, from the Brahmaputra River to the Babao River, to the glacier runoff of Kuoqionggangri, and each field trip has given me a deeper understanding of the plateau rivers. When the results of the scientific expedition were selected for the national "13th Five-Year Plan" scientific and technological innovation achievement exhibition, as a member of the scientific expedition team, I deeply experienced the happiness of personal growth and the development of the motherland at the same frequency.
Third, we must let go of the burden of excellence. Entering a new stage of study and work, we must be mentally prepared to start from scratch, always remind ourselves to do every little thing in a down-to-earth manner, constantly accumulate professional knowledge, improve practical skills, and steadily harvest growth; Don't look at yourself in terms of income, job title, or title, but focus on inner growth, ability improvement, and value realization. At the same time, we must also let go of our sense of superiority as a student of Tsinghua University. In today's hyper-connected society, no one can achieve long-term success alone. We need to find our place in the team, play to our strengths, and learn to appreciate and learn from the strengths of others. Only by having a tolerant heart, accepting one's own shortcomings, and accepting the differences of others, can we go happier, smoother, and more relaxed on the road in the future.
Finally, at this moment full of emotion and expectation, I sincerely wish you all a healthy and happy study and work in the future, and I hope that you can listen to your inner voice and sublimate the "small self" in the achievement of the "big self" in your own way. Let us work together to add glory to our alma mater and dedicate our enthusiasm and strength to the prosperity of the motherland!
Source | Tsinghua University WeChat public account
Photography: Yang Yanbin
Typesetting & Editor|Yuan Jie
Audit|Xu Liang
All rights reserved by Tsinghua University
Contact email: [email protected]
Selected from previous issues
Class of 2024, set sail!
@清华本科新生, your first gift is ready!
Tsinghua University's first fully blind graduate student, graduating this year!