Around 140 world-class award winners, including 61 Nobel Prize laureates, will participate in the third World Laureates Forum in Shanghai from Oct 30 through Nov 1, according to organizers.

The forum, which was initiated in 2018 by the Hong Kong-based World Laureates Association (WLA) and organized by the Shanghai government, is focused on boosting science development, international cooperation and young talent development.

Under the theme "technology, for the common destiny of mankind", the forum will focus on major scientific and technological challenges faced by mankind and related innovations across the world.

According to Wang Hou, secretary-general of the WLA, most of the international scientists are participating in the forum through online platforms because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Roger Kornberg, the 2006 Nobel Prize winner in chemistry and the chairman of WLA, and Michael Levitt, vice chairman of WLA and Nobel Prize winner in chemistry in 2013, will be present in Shanghai for the forum.

Scientists who will share their views at the forum include Harvey Alter, who won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his contribution to the discovery of the hepatitis C virus, and Andrea Ghez, the 2020 Nobel Prize winner in Physics for a supermassive black hole discovery at the center of the galaxy.

This year, a summit will be held to gather experts to discuss how to fight against viruses. Nobel Prize laureates in economics will share insights into how countries can recover from the pandemic as well.

Themes such as agriculture, biodiversity, and quantum science and technology will also be discussed at special sessions. In addition, conferences will be held to facilitate an exchange of ideas between young pioneers in science and world-class scientists.