One of the predecessors of Nanjing Agricultural University (NAU) was the College of Agriculture of the University of Nanking, a Christian university founded in China by the Methodist Church. The University of Nanking comprised three parallel colleges—liberal arts, science, and agriculture—of which agriculture and forestry were pioneering disciplines in China and the university’s most distinctive fields, renowned worldwide. As expressed in the University of Nanking’s anthem: “Lofty and grand, the three colleges stand, a palace of arts on our hallowed land — For liberal arts, for science, for agriculture.” President Yuguang Chen once wrote that “the University of Nanking’s growing reputation, both nationally and internationally, owes much to the agricultural sciences.” In his later years, he emphasized that the College of Agriculture “focuses on practical application over empty talk” and bequeathed his property to the university. Following his wishes, his children donated RMB 5 million toward the construction of the Jinling Research Institute at NAU. Dr. Qingsheng Fan, in his eighties, led the fundraising and oversaw the establishment of the institute, fulfilling President Chen’s final wishes.
In 1994, at the initiative of the University of Nanking alumni both at home and abroad, alumni associations fully deliberated and unanimously agreed to establish the Jinling Research Institute at NAU. This initiative aimed to leverage the talents of alumni and to promote the university’s fine traditions and academic ethos. In March 1995, a preparatory committee of 112 alumni was formed. In April 1995, the Ministry of Agriculture approved the establishment of the institute at NAU with Document No. Nongrenfa [1995] 21. The foundation of the institute was laid on July 21, 1996, and on October 3, 1998, the Yuguang Building was completed and the bronze bust of President Chen unveiled, marking the formal establishment of the Jinling Research Institute. The institute integrates NAU’s nationally key disciplines, national key laboratories, engineering centers, and ministerial/provincial key laboratories related to agricultural life sciences, supporting research and talent cultivation.
In recent years, the Jinling Research Institute has served as a symbol of the University of Nanking’s legacy at NAU. It has played an active role in talent training, scientific research, social services, and international cooperation across multiple disciplines. Leveraging these platforms, NAU has contributed to national priorities such as food security, rural revitalization, and ecological civilization, achieving significant results in crop breeding and cultivation, plant and animal disease prevention, soil sustainability, and agricultural and rural governance.
In the field of agronomy, NAU has established a nationally key discipline in crop science. Its first-level crop science discipline received an A+ rating in the fourth national discipline evaluation and has been consecutively selected for the national “Double First-Class” initiative. It offers three undergraduate programs and two “Jin Shanbao” experimental classes, and establishes an integrated Bachelor–Master–Doctor training pathway. The field boasts six national-level platforms, including the State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, the National Center for Soybean Improvement, the National Engineering and Technology Center for Information Agriculture, the National Field Scientific Observation Station for Rice Germplasm Resources, the National Soybean Biological Breeding Industry-Education Integration Innovation Platform, and the China-Kenya Belt and Road Joint Laboratory on Crop Molecular Biology, along with 26 ministerial/provincial-level platforms. NAU has undertaken over 700 national and ministerial/provincial research projects, earning numerous awards: one First Prize and five Second Prizes of the National Science and Technology Progress Award, two Second Prizes of the State Technological Invention Award, 24 ministerial/provincial science and technology achievement awards, and two technologies listed among the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs’ Top Ten Leading Agricultural Technologies. NAU has established cooperative relationships with more than 30 universities and research institutions worldwide, including Cornell University, University of California Davis, Michigan State University, Wageningen University, National University of Singapore, and Kyoto University.
In the field of plant protection, NAU’s academy ranks among the top domestic institutions and has exerted significant international influence. It hosts a nationally key discipline in plant protection, rated A+ in the fourth national evaluation. It operates ten national and provincial research platforms, including the National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Green Pesticide Development and Application Technology, the Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Crop Diseases and Pests, and the Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management on Crops in East China, Ministry of Agriculture. It has developed an innovative talent training model that integrates undergraduate and graduate education with research, fostering a virtuous cycle between teaching and scientific research. Through the National Training Center for Crop Pest Forecasting and the National Training Center for Monitoring Crop Pest Resistance to Pesticides, it organizes annual national training programs, having trained over 4,200 social personnel as plant protection professionals. Extensive collaborations have been established with institutions including Cornell University, University of Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, Oregon State University, University of California Riverside, Wageningen University, Rothamsted Research (UK), and the James Hutton Institute (Scotland), hosting a series of high-level international academic conferences.
In the field of horticulture, NAU balances basic research and applied technology development. Horticulture was ranked A in the fourth national discipline evaluation. It hosts one Ministry of Science and Technology Innovation Team, two Agricultural Ministry Outstanding Agricultural Talent and Innovation Teams, and multiple national and provincial research platforms, including the Key Laboratory of Biology and Germplasm Creation of Horticultural Crops in East China, the Key Laboratory of Landscaping, the Engineering Research Center for Horticultural Crop Germplasm Innovation and Utilization (Ministry of Education), the Jiangsu Provincial Engineering Center for Flower Germplasm Innovation and Utilization, the National Pear Industry Technology R&D Center, and the National Pear Improvement Center (Nanjing Branch), and the Key Laboratory of Flower Biology and Germplasm Creation. It has received multiple awards, including two Second Prizes of the State Technological Invention Award, two Second Prizes of the National Science and Technology Progress Award, and over ten First Prizes of provincial/ministerial. NAU co-founded the all-English international journal Horticulture Research with the Nature Publishing Group, which now ranks first in its field by impact factor.
In the field of agricultural economics, NAU enjoys nationally recognized strengths and distinctive features. Agricultural economics and management is a nationally key discipline, receiving an A+ rating in the fourth national evaluation. NAU emphasizes cultivating students with strong academic skills, comprehensive abilities, international perspectives, and dedication to the rural economy, winning multiple national awards for teaching and textbooks. It has won five Second Prizes of the National Teaching Achievement Award and one Second Prize in the inaugural National Teaching Material Development Awards. Three doctoral dissertations have been awarded “National Excellent Doctoral Dissertation.” Student teams have earned over 300 international and national awards, including the IFAMA International Case Competition Gold Award and the National College Student Entrepreneurship Plan Competition Gold Award, while alumni have made significant contributions to regional and national economic development. NAU actively engages in multi-level domestic and international academic exchanges, hosting high-level international conferences, and co-organizing the Zhongshan International Academic Forum with International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the University of Göttingen.
Looking ahead, NAU will continue to leverage the Jingling Research Academy to integrate the university’s top disciplines and innovative resources. Upholding moral education as the foundation and agricultural development as its mission, NAU aims to cultivate top-tier innovative talent, advance agricultural science and technology, serve rural revitalization, and promote global food and agriculture governance, accelerating its progress toward becoming a world-class agricultural university with distinctive strengths.
