On November 24, the International Science Program on Fusion Burning Plasma, initiated by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was officially launched, alongside the release of the Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak (BEST) Research Plan, at a ceremony in the BEST Hall of Hefei Future Science Town.
At the ceremony, international partners, including the ITER Organization, the European Fusion Energy community, and fusion research institutes from multiple countries, jointly signed the Hefei Fusion Declaration, reaffirming their commitment to deeper global collaboration in fusion energy research.
The Hefei Fusion Declaration highlights that decades of international cooperation have enabled the global fusion community to achieve major breakthroughs and make a historic transition from scientific exploration to engineering-oriented research. It also notes that significant engineering and physics challenges remain, requiring the shared wisdom and joint efforts of scientists worldwide. The Declaration calls for openness, knowledge sharing, and win-win collaboration, encouraging researchers from around the world to join Hefei' s efforts in advancing fusion energy and the broader vision of clean energy for humanity.
With ITER and new burning-plasma experimental devices such as BEST advancing rapidly, fusion energy research is entering a new stage. Led by the Institute of Plasma Physics, the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP), the Program aims to integrate international resources, attract global talent, and promote collaboration on frontier topics including multi-scale turbulence and alpha-particle transport.
Through the Program and the open access to its major fusion devices, ASIPP seeks to accelerate progress toward realizing practical fusion energy.
Global representatives join hands following the signing of the Hefei Fusion Declaration. (Image by ASIPP）
An aerial shot captures ongoing construction at the BEST facility. (Image by ASIPP）
