Against the backdrop of the current complex and volatile international landscape, establishing a highly symbiotic innovation ecosystem based on International Joint Research Centers is highly beneficial. This approach will further enhance the innovation capacity and sustainable development capabilities of China’s research institutions. This paper employs the TOE (Technology-Organization-Environment) framework and builds upon the concepts of symbiosis and innovation ecology. It systematically examines the factors influencing the strength of symbiosis within innovation ecosystems from technological, organizational, environmental, and safeguard mechanism perspectives. It is demonstrated that constructing a highly symbiotic innovation ecosystem using the TOE framework can significantly improve the R&D capabilities, management efficacy, and resource integration capacity of International Joint Research Centers. This paper also explores approaches for building such symbiotic innovation ecosystems within International Joint Research Centers, including specific implementation strategies and relevant policy recommendations, providing references for enhancing international science and technology management practices.

This study examines 43 policy documents on science and technology achievement transformation issued by Tianjin Municipality, analyzing them through a two-dimensional framework of "policy tools - policy objectives" to dissect structural characteristics and optimization pathways. Findings show: (1) Imbalanced policy instrument structure: Supply-side (49.74%) and environmental instruments (46.56%) dominate, while demand-side instruments account for merely 3.70%, resulting in weak market pull; (2) Overemphasis on technology transfer at the expense of industrialization: Policies disproportionately focus on technology transfer and application (69.31%), with weak support for industrialization stage (4.76%); (3) Insufficient adaptability between policy tools and transformation stages: The R&D phase neglects quality enhancement (“quality characteristics of outcomes” instruments: 7.14%), while industrialization relies excessively on short-term “funding support” without long-term fiscal and taxation mechanisms; (4) Absence of implementation rules weakens policy effectiveness. Recommendations include strengthening demand-side instruments, balancing three-stage policy allocation, establishing a dynamic “stage instrument” adaptation mechanism, and refining supporting rules to improve policy effectiveness.

In recent years, developed economies have intensively launched targeted high-tech strategies in semiconductors, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies,new materials, bioeconomy, and clean energy, aiming to comprehensively enhance their scientific innovation capabilities and industrial competitiveness. Through systematic analysis, this study identifies that these economies primarily adopt three strategic focuses:1) strengthening foundational and applied technologies,2) accelerating commercialization of scientific achievements, and 3) building digital infrastructure. Key implementation measures include establishing cross-departmental coordination mechanisms, providing diversified funding mechanisms and tax incentives, developing talent attraction-cultivation toolkits, and deepening multilateral international collaborations. This paper proposes actionable recommendations to bolster China’s indigenous innovation capacity, including enhancing top-level strategic coordination, accelerating breakthroughs in core technologies, optimizing innovation ecosystems, and expanding global partnerships. 

Key aerospace science and technology laboratories act as the core carriers of technological innovation in the aerospace domain, and the level of their technological innovation capability directly dictates the speed of technological breakthroughs and the international competitiveness of the aerospace industry. Against the backdrop of intensifying global competition in aerospace science and technology, accurately assessing the innovation strength of laboratories and formulating science-based management strategies have become critical prerequisites for advancing the tackling of core technologies in the aerospace field. This paper focuses on the establishment of an evaluation index system for the technological innovation capability of key aerospace science and technology laboratories, explores the evaluation methods integrating quantitative and qualitative analysis, conducts in-depth research on management strategies for upgrading innovation capability, and puts forward optimization directions, aiming to provide valuable references for enhancing the innovation efficiency of key aerospace science and technology laboratories and facilitating the high-quality development of the aerospace industry.

National strategic scientific and technological capacity is a core element supporting China’s pursuit of high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and its leadership in future global tech competition. In recent years, domestic scholars have systematically explored its conceptual foundations, institutional evolution, operational mechanisms, and pathways for optimization. In terms of connotation, research has focused on the essential characteristics, modular components, and functional positioning of national strategic S&T capacity. From an institutional perspective, scholars have analyzed its historical development, policy transitions, and the coordination among various institutional units. Regarding operational mechanisms, studies have progressively expanded from organizational forms and resource allocation to multi-actor collaborative governance. As for optimization pathways, scholars have proposed future-oriented ideas for institutional restructuring and policy refinement. Overall, existing research provides a foundation for understanding national strategic S&T capacity. However, challenges remain, including fragmented theoretical paradigms, insufficient systemic analysis, and limited explanatory power across governance levels. Future research could advance by deepening theoretical construction, integrating institutional logic, and expanding comparative multi-case studies, thereby offering theoretical support and practical guidance for the high-quality development of China’s strategic scientific and technological capacity.

CNS journals—Cell, Nature, and Science—serve as key indicators of the global landscape of basic research, with their publication patterns reflecting shifts in international scientific strength and frontier directions. Drawing on data from the Web of Science and InCites platforms, this study analyzes Article publications in CNS journals from 2015 to 2024 across multiple dimensions, including country and city contributions, disciplinary structure, research hotspots, international collaboration, and author characteristics. The results show that the United States maintains its leading position, though its share is declining; China exhibits rapid growth, with strong performance in materials science and physics, but continues to face structural weaknesses in life sciences and health-related fields. Emerging research hotspots are increasingly concentrated in artificial intelligence, virology, nucleic acid chemistry, and two dimensional materials, alongside expanding international collaboration networks. Based on these findings, the study proposes policy recommendations to strengthen original research capabilities, optimize support mechanisms for early-career researchers, and enhance cross-border and cross-sector collaboration.

Since 2022, facing the challenges from declining R&D capability index, escalating geopolitical tensions, and the disruptive leap of emerging technologies, Japan gradually reforms its S&T systems under the blueprint “crisis driven, security bound, application oriented, capability rooted”. At the national level, the creation of the “Key and Advanced Technology R&D through Cross Community Collaboration Program” (K-program) and the AI Safety Institute marks the first time innovation policy has been tightly fused with comprehensive national security, while other important reforms—front-loading commercialisation, rebuilding the innovation ecosystem, and optimizing the research environment—bridge the traditional science-to-economy gap. At the institutional level, RIKEN and AIST serve as flagship models, by adopting matrix-style research organisations, “data + AI” paradigm, full-chain industry–university–institute start-up connect, and rigid research-security governance to strengthen their ability to deliver governmental missions. The reform measures on one hand address the current crises over R&D investment, talent, and security, while on the other hand seeking to secure future frontiers, revitalize industries, and sharpen competitiveness.