Apply Now! Young Leaders at the GYLD Annual Forum 2025
Are you a visionary young leader eager to harness AI and emerging technologies to address pressing global challenges? Do you aspire to drive innovation, empower entrepreneurial talent, and foster meaningful cross-cultural collaboration?
The Global Young Leaders Dialogue (GYLD) program invites exceptional young professionals aged 18–45 from diverse backgrounds across the globe to participate in the Global Young Leaders Dialogue (GYLD) Annual Forum 2025, to be held in Beijing, China, on November 18–20, 2025, under the theme “Young Leaders: Decoding the Future.”
Applications should be submitted through this Google Form, no later than 11:59 PM (Beijing Time) on Wednesday, October 8, 2025. Please find further details below.
CONCEPT NOTE
I. Context and Significance
Breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, frontier technologies, and the digital economy are unlocking unprecedented opportunities—transforming industries, powering smarter cities, and reshaping how people learn, work, live, and connect across borders.
In this fast-evolving landscape, young people are not simply participants but key architects of the future. Their ability to combine vision with agility, creativity with entrepreneurial drive, positions them to shape responses to pressing global challenges such as AI governance, climate resilience, inequality, and sustainable digital transformation.
China’s rollout of the K-Visa in October 2025, designed to facilitate the entry of international STEM talent, signals a further step toward openness and greater global exchange. Against this backdrop, the Global Young Leaders Dialogue (GYLD) Annual Forum 2025, under the theme “Young Leaders: Decoding the Future,” will convene emerging leaders from around the world to connect, exchange perspectives, and co-develop solutions for a better, more inclusive future.
II. Forum Overview
The GYLD Annual Forum is the flagship event of the GYLD program—a unique international platform established by the Center for China and Globalization (CCG) and the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies (ACCWS) to empower young achievers from diverse regional, cultural, and professional backgrounds to engage in global governance.
Since its launch in 2020, the forum has brought together exceptional young leaders, senior experts, entrepreneurs, and policymakers from across the globe to engage in dialogue on critical global issues ranging from international relations and climate change to AI development, public health, and inequality. In 2021, the GYLD program received a reply letter from Chinese President Xi Jinping, encouraging young participants to deepen mutual understanding, build lasting friendships, and contribute to a community with a shared future for humanity.
III. Thematic Focus
Under the theme “Young Leaders: Decoding the Future,” the GYLD Annual Forum 2025 will explore the following key areas:
- Technology and AI-driven solutions to various global challenges
- Opportunities for cross-border collaboration in technology development
- Innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems for technology talent
- Evolving technical skills for young professionals in the workplace
- Gender, diversity, and inclusion in technology
IV. Format and Activities
The Forum will include:
- Opening Ceremony
- Thematic forums
- Interactive workshops and breakout sessions
- Cultural immersion and site visits to technology parks, leading enterprises, and universities in the Haidian District of Beijing, China
- Launch of an initiative, a book, and a report
- Integration with the 10th China Global Think Tank Innovation Forum for cross-generational dialogue
V. Guest Speakers
Guest speakers may include:
- Senior representatives of foreign embassies, international organizations, government, and enterprises in China
- International and domestic young leaders from academia, business, civil society, and government, etc.
VI. Expected Outcomes
Expected outcomes of the forum will include:
- Consensus on the Beneficial and Responsible Use of AI and Technology: Renewing and strengthening global commitment to harness AI and technology for the common good, addressing global challenges and advancing a shared future for humanity.
- Launch of “K-Hub”: Establishing a dynamic platform to support and connect young technology talent.
- Launch of Witnessing China’s Modernization: A book featuring articles contributed by senior experts and young participants of the Global Young Leaders Dialogue.
- Policy Recommendations Report: Synthesizing young leaders and senior experts’ actionable advice during the GYLD Annual Forum 2025 to improve innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems for young technology talents.
- Strengthened global networks among young leaders: Facilitating meaningful connections, partnerships, and collaborative initiatives worldwide, creating lasting platforms for friendship, dialogue, and cross-cultural innovation.
VII. Young Leaders Application
The GYLD Annual Forum 2025 will select 20-30 young leaders from around the world to participate in the full program, with opportunities to take on speaking roles in various segments, including thematic forums, interactive workshops, and the 10th China Global Think Tank Innovation Forum.
Local accommodations and standard meals will be provided for selected young leaders. Additional details, including other forms of support, will be shared at a later stage.
Eligibility: Outstanding young professionals and students aged 18-45 from around the world, with demonstrated passion and leadership experience in global governance, global challenges, and AI and technology, are warmly invited to apply.
Applications should be submitted through this Google Form, no later than 11:59 PM (Beijing Time) on Wednesday, October 8, 2025.
We strongly recommend using a computer or laptop to complete the application form, as it requires responding to several questions and uploading documents.
The GYLD Secretariat will carefully and thoroughly go through each applicant’s profile to assess leadership qualities, motivation, and commitment to the GYLD’s mission and values. For further assessing purposes, some candidate may be invited for an interview. Successful applicants will be notified via email on a rolling basis before October 20, 2025.
VIII. General Participants Application
The Forum is expected to host approximately 150 participants. The application link for organizations and individuals wishing to attend the GYLD Annual Forum 2025 will be released in mid-October.
Due to limited capacity, participants will be selected based on their applications. Please note that travel and accommodation expenses will NOT be covered for the general participants. We sincerely appreciate your understanding and support.
IX. Partnership and Sponsorship
Organizations interested in partnering with or sponsoring the GYLD Annual Forum 2025 are welcome to explore collaboration opportunities. For inquiries regarding partnership, sponsorship, or other forms of cooperation, please contact us at gyld@ccg.org.cn.
X. Contact Information
For all other inquiries, please contact the Secretariat of Global Young Leaders Dialogue at gyld@ccg.org.cn,or Ms. Li at lilanxin@ccg.org.cn
XI. Learn More
Learn more about the Global Young Leaders Dialogue Annual Forum 2024:
- Video: Recap of the GYLD Annual Forum 2024
- Booklet: GYLD Annual Forum 2024 Booklet
AGENDA (Preliminary)
All times GMT+8. The agenda is subject to updates.
NOV 18 (TUE.) Arrival & Immersion
All Day: Arrival of young leaders
13:00 – 18:30: Field visits to technology parks, enterprises, and universities in Haidian
18:30 – 20:30: Welcome dinner (hotpot) & cultural exchange
NOV 19 (WED.) GYLD Annual Forum 2025
09:00 – 09:30: Registration for workshops
09:30 – 10:45: Workshop I – The Future Workplace: Human–AI Collaboration
11:00 – 12:15: Workshop II – Her Tech, Her World: Women in Technology Industry
12:15 – 13:00: Networking Lunch
14:00 – 14:30: Registration for the GYLD Annual Forum 2025
14:30 – 15:30: Opening Ceremony
15:45 – 17:00: Thematic Forum I – Young Leaders’ Solutions: Technology and AI Addressing Global Challenges
17:15 – 18:30: Thematic Forum II – Young Leaders’ Strategies: Innovation and Entrepreneurship Ecosystems
18:30 – 20:30: Networking Dinner & Cultural Evening
NOV 20 (THUR.) 10th China Global Think Tank Innovation Forum
All Day: Participation of young leaders in the Think Tank Forum (Dialogue and Q&A sessions between young leaders and senior experts)
CHINESE