In December 2011, during the AGU Fall Meeting in San Francisco, a group of young Chinese professionals in water-related sciences came together to form the International Association of Chinese Youth in Water Sciences (CYWater). Their mission was clear: to promote cooperation in water sciences between Chinese professionals abroad and those in China, and to advance water-science research and education worldwide.
First AGU Town Hall — 2012
In December 2012, CYWater organized its first AGU Town Hall meeting, titled “Water Security Challenges in East Asia.” The keynote talks were delivered by Prof. Dawen Yang (Tsinghua University) and Prof. Taikan Oki (University of Tokyo), establishing CYWater's presence on the international stage.
First Best Paper Award — 2012
Also in 2012, CYWater established the Young Scientist Best Paper Award — which has been presented every year since, recognising outstanding contributions to water sciences by first authors under 35. The award ceremony is held annually during the AGU Fall Meeting.
First Summer Meeting — 2013
In August 2013, CYWater held its first Summer Meeting in Beijing. Laifang Li received the Best Paper Award at the AGU gathering that December in San Francisco. This established the annual rhythm that continues to this day: a Summer Meeting in China and a winter gathering at AGU.
Since 2013, the Summer Meeting has been hosted by universities across China — from Beijing to Zhuhai, Nanjing to Xi'an — and has grown from a local gathering into a truly international conference drawing participants from over 30 countries.