Welcome to ISAEW 2023

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the International Research Center for Animal Welfare (IRCAW), we wish to extend an invitation to you to attend the 2023 International Symposium on Animal Environment and Welfare (ISAEW 2023), which will be held on October 23-25 in a hybrid format with a physical venue in Rongchang, Chongqing, China.

ISAEW is a biennial event with a goal to bring together researchers, industrial leaders, and policy makers to share information, knowledge, and ideas. The symposia have provided a convergence platform for multi-disciplinary researchers from various parts of the world to jointly address global grand challenges in livestock farming through exchange of recent research findings, identification of current challenges and future research directions, and formation of synergistic focal groups to efficiently and effectively conduct translational research; inspire next-generation scientists and leaders; and promote on-farm adoption of technologies. The characteristics of the symposia in terms of global relevancy of the subject matters addressed, innovative and cutting-edge nature of the research, quality of the presentations and publications, and unparalleled hospitality of the hosts have established the symposium one of the must-attend academic symposia that address livestock farming issues, both nationally and internationally. The symposia have proven to be impactful in terms of advancing scientific knowledge, developing technologies applicable for adoption by farmers worldwide, training future leaders and workforce, and providing a roadmap for developing smart or digital livestock farming that will be critical to sustainably feed the world for generations to come.

ISAEW is organized by the International Research Center for Animal Environment and Welfare, which is headquartered in Chongqing Academy of Animal Sciences (CAAS) in Rongchang, Chongqing, China, and consists of 20 institutional members representing 11 countries, including China, the United States of America, Canada, the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, Italy, Croatia, Germany, Australia, and Brazil. In the past 12 years, the symposia have attracted thousands of academic scientists, graduate students, industry leaders and professionals, and government officials from more than 20 countries in six continents. 

Although the COVID-19 situation is improving to various degrees globally, it remains uncertain for overseas participants to travel to China to attend the symposium in person. Therefore, the symposium will offer a hybrid format (in-person and online) to accommodate the attendees who may have difficulty to travel to China.

Qiang Zhang, Symposium Co-chair  Professor University of Manitoba, Canada	Baoming Li, Symposium Co-chair Professor China Agricultural University, China