The 10th INTECOL International Wetlands Conference was successfully held in the Changshu International Conference Center, Jiangsu Province during September 19-24, 2016. The Conference was hosted by 5 institutions (including Nanjing University, the Ramsar Convention Implementation Office of PRC, the International Association for Ecology, the Ecological Society of China (ESC) and the Wetlands International), co-organized by 10 institutions (including the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, the United Nations Educational; Scientific and Cultural Organization - Man and the Biosphere Programme (UNESCO-MBP), the United Nations Environment Programme - International Ecosystem Management Partnership (UNEP-IEMP), the Management Office of Major Science And Technology Program for Water Pollution Control and Treatment, the China Wetlands Association, the Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS), the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the SEE Foundation, the Forestry Bureau of Jiangsu Province and the Agriculture Committee of Suzhou City), and jointly undertaken by the People's Government of Changshu City and the Nanjing University Ecological Research Institute of Changshu.

About 800 delegates from more than 10 international organizations and 72 countries and regions attended the Conference, including more than 300 foreign guests. The Conference had 11 specially invited plenary lectures and 71 parallel sessions covering global change, biodiversity, ecosystem services, biogeochemical processes, ecosystem monitoring, biological invasion, sewage treatment, wetland valuation, sustainable wetland management, etc. During the Conference, 420 speakers carefully prepared and delivered 510 reports by centering on the themes such as "construction and management of wetland parks", "the role of wetlands in mitigating global pollution process", "wetlands affecting climate and water quality as a biogeochemical hot", "wetlands making cities more beautiful", "river and lake ecological restoration and wetland technology", etc. Their presentations had forward-looking, academic and practical contents, the audiences had a strong sense of participation, the participants enjoyed a warm and active atmosphere with questions and answers, and the exchanges and discussions received good effects.

This Conference had many highlights:

I. Diverse participants and significant social effect

This Conference brought together domestic and foreign leading experts, scholars and local administrators, including Ania Grobicki, Deputy Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention Secretariat; R. Eugene Turner, Jos Verhoeven and Jennifer Ann Davis, Co-Chairmen of the Wetland Working Committee, International Association for Ecology; Jane Madgwick, Chief Executive of the Wetlands International; Gillian Davies, President of the Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS), Xu Ming, Vice Chairman of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee of CPPCC and Deputy Secretary of the CPC Leading Group; Zhang Yongli, Deputy Administrator of the State Forestry Administration; Chen Jun, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and President of Nanjing University; Ma Guangren, Director of the Ramsar Convention Implementation Office of PRC; Xia Chunsheng, Director of the Forestry Bureau of Jiangsu Province; Liu Zhiquan, Inspector and Deputy Director of the Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Environmental Protection; Liu Shirong, President of the Ecological Society of China (ESC); Wang Ying, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Professor at Nanjing University; Fu Bojie, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Director of the Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Gunther Geller, President of the German Society for Ecological Engineering; Brij Gopal, Honorary Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), India; William J. Mitsch, Director of the Everglades Wetland Research Center of the Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU), U.S.; Kimberli Ponzio, Former President of the Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS), etc.

This Conference provided a platform for experts, scholars and administrators to communicate and interact. Through academic discussions, discipline exchanges, questions and answers, etc., it inspired thinking, broadened horizons, and played a role in science popularization, publicity and education while transmitting and exchanging scientific knowledge.

II. Released the Changshu Declaration and advocated wetland protection

After two years of drafting and revisions, the Changshu Declaration on Wetlands was adopted during the Conference. For the first time in the history of the INTECOL International Wetlands Conference, a consensus was released in the form of a "Declaration" of historic significance. The Changshu Declaration is an important outcome of this Conference. It expounds the important role of wetlands, the global significance of wetland-related work, the relationship between wetlands and cities, and the great significance of wetlands for human development. It appeals to financial institutions, private operators, government departments and the general public to care for wetlands and protect our homes.

III. Informative conference in flexible forms

The Conference gathered domestic and international top experts as its 11 specially invited plenary speakers: Doctor Ania Grobicki, Deputy Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention Secretariat; Ma Guangren, Director of the Ramsar Convention Implementation Office of PRC; Professor Robert Costanza, Ecological Economist at the Australian National University (ANU); Professor Nancy Dise, Britain's Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH); William J. Mitsch, Professor at the Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU), U.S.; Professor Jos Verhoeven, Co-Chairman of the Wetland Working Committee, International Association for Ecology; Professor Betsy Damon, Founder of the Keepers of the Waters, U.S.; Professor Richard Hobbs, Ecologist at the University of Western Australia (UWA); An Shuqing, Professor at Nanjing University; Professor Steve Polasky, Ecological Economist at the University of Minnesota, U.S.; and Professor Max Finlayson, Wetland Ecologist at the Charles Sturt University, Australia. During the Conference, admirable parallel sessions were held.

IV. Diversified display types and remarkable achievements in science popularization

The Conference showed the protection and construction of wetlands in China in various forms, including an exhibition on China's wetland-related achievements, an inter-sessional visit to wetlands, and a post-conference visit to the wetlands around the Taihu Lake. During the Conference, the "China Wetland Achievement Exhibition" was open throughout the whole course, and vividly displayed the overview of wetlands in China, Jiangsu and Changshu and the achievements in their protection and restoration through videos, images, texts and other ways. The inter-sessional visit was launched on September 22, and the sites visited included the Nanhu Wetland Park, the Rural Wetland of Jiangxiang Village, the Rural Wetland of Chenhaixu, the Rural Wetland of Nicanglou, the Shajiabang National Wetland Park, the Shanghu National Urban Wetland Park, the Taihu Lake National Wetland Park, the Lihu National Wetland Park, and the Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve. Experts in the delegation spoke highly of the Nanhu Wetland Park and its science museum, the Shajiabang National Wetland Park, the Rural Wetland of Chenhaixu, the Rural Wetland of Nicanglou, etc., and said that the construction of them made very remarkable effects and they were expected to be as the models of wetland construction. Among them, Nicanglou and Chenhaixu, which are typical representatives of rural wetlands, vividly illustrate the concept of "all-in-one of production, life and ecology" in rural wetlands. After the Conference, the international leading experts in the delegation visited the Suzhou Taihu Lake National Wetland Park, the Wuxi Lianghong National Wetland Park, the Tianmu Lake National Wetland Park, the Jiaxing Nanbeihu Wetland Park and the Chongming Dongtan Wetland of International Importance. The experts marveled at the different features and representative management level of the wetland construction around the Tai Lake, and hoped that domestic and foreign scientific research institutions could carry out further cooperative research on this.

V. Put forward important modes and led the explorations in the industry

During the Conference, the experts and scholars highly affirmed the following three important wetland-related modes proposed by the Nanjing University Ecological Research Institute of Changshu: Rural Wetland, Wetland City and Smart Wetland. Rural Wetland: For a long time, ponds, reservoirs, lotus root fields, rice fields and canal system occupy a very important position in rural wetlands. It can be said that rural wetlands is the lifeblood of rural economy, and people can make full use of these wetlands to obtain maximum economic benefits. Rural wetlands have the mode characteristics of "all-in-one of production, life and ecology", i.e., the harmonious coexistence of production, life and ecology. Through the proposal of the concept of "rural wetland reconstruction", the public is urged to protect and rationally use rural wetlands, construct the living and spiritual habitats, and achieve the harmony between man and nature. Wetland City: Nowadays, with the constant development of ecological protection, wetland construction and urbanization, the restoration of urban wetlands is an inevitable choice to consolidate the foundation of modern urban development. Wetland protection needs to be mainstreamed into the process of urbanization. By advocating that "wetlands make cities better", advice and suggestions can be proposed for China's urbanization development from the perspective of ecological protection. Smart Wetland: With today's growing popularity of Internet technologies, how to apply Internet technologies in the field of wetland-related work has become an important topic. Through the use of the Internet, the changing status of wetlands can be better monitored. Besides, a scientific development system of smart wetlands can be built for science popularization, protection, restoration and utilization through mining and analysis big data as well as comprehensive comparison and analysis.

VI. Offered various kinds of awards and rewarded special contributions

The People's Government of Changshu City was awarded as the "Best Example of Wetland Construction" by the International Association for Ecology for its successful example of wetland protection. The Ramsar Convention Implementation Office of PRC was awarded the "Outstanding Contribution Award" for its outstanding contribution to the preparatory work of the Conference. At the same time, the Ecological Society of China (ESC) conferred the title of "National Model City of Ecological Construction" to the People's Government of Changshu City. On September 20, the Wetland Working Committee of the International Association for Ecology awarded the "Outstanding Wetland Scientists". The prize of "Outstanding Wetland Scientists" started from the 7th INTECOL International Wetlands Conference (2004). This year's winners included An Shuqing, Professor at Nanjing University; Jan Kvet, Professor at University of South Bohemia, Czech Republic; and William J. Mitsch, Professor at the Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU), U.S.; they were honored for their enormous contributions in the fields of science, education, application and international academic exchange, etc.

At the closing ceremony, the Outstanding Presentation Award and the Outstanding Exhibition Award were awarded to young scholars so as to encourage them to make in-depth explorations and offer suggestions in the wetland-related fields.

VII. Extensive media publicity and great social influence

The Conference attracted more than 50 national, provincial, municipal publicity media, including CCTV, Xinhua Daily, China Daily, www.shidicn.com, people.cn, gmw.cn, www.yangtse.com, www.most.gov.cn, etc., and thus obtained extensive media publicity, and enabled the public to know more about the current trends and significance of wetland-related science and management.

VIII. Built a platform for exchanges and promoted international cooperation

Although the Conference was closed, it will still provide a platform for the exchange and sharing among experts, scholars and administrators. A total of 547 Chinese and foreign academic papers in the fields of wetland protection, wetland restoration and wetland management were included in the Conference. After being evaluated by the expert committee, a collection of papers will be compiled and published after the Conference. Several special journals will be organized to publish these academic papers, so as to display the latest achievements of international wetland research and promote academic exchanges and cooperation in the field of wetland.

The 10th INTECOL International Wetlands Conference in 2016 is a great and successful event with many highlights. The successful holding of the Conference is the results of the cooperation of all the sponsors, co-organizers and undertakers, the hard work of all the department leaders, staff and volunteers, and the active participation and warm response of all the participants. It is not only a valuable treasure, but also a valuable opportunity. We hope that wetland experts and scholars have the courage to innovate and explore in future researches; we hope that the wetland work can be constantly improved and perfected with the concerns and support of governments, universities, research institutes and the broad masses of people.

Conference site