Liu Jichen: Youth efforts in addressing zero hunger
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Editor's Note
Tsinghua University plays an active role in promoting the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by nurturing innovative talents, enhancing research, among many other important ways.
This piece will feature Tsinghua student Liu Jichen's efforts in promoting the SDGs and addressing zero hunger.
Liu Jichen, a graduate of Schwarzman College, Tsinghua University, is one of the young leaders of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In 2018, he founded the “Clear Plate” App, which encourages the public to reduce food waste through artificial intelligence technology.
In September 2020, as one of the 17 young leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals endorsed by the United Nations, Liu embarked on the journey to make China's voice heard on the international stage. In November of the same year, Liu was selected as one of the Forbes U30.
Liu Jichen
The idea of a “Clear Plate”
In 2017, Liu discovered an interesting phenomenon when eating at a restaurant. If a customer manages to finish the meal without food waste, the waiter will give a “Xifu” card, and if the customer accumulates six cards, the restaurant will give some refreshments as a reward. “I think it's a particularly good idea, but people might misplace the cards easily. So, it would be better if they could be replaced with an online tool,” Liu said.
With the support of a group of classmates and a professor specializing in artificial intelligence, Liu organized a project team and officially established a company in 2018. It was during this period that the “Clear Plate” App came into existence. “Leveraging technology is the proactive solution for our generation to combat food waste.” Liu said.
His interest in the food waste issue and sustainability stems from two undergraduate courses at Tsinghua. One is Professor Qian Yi's Fifteen Lectures on Ecological Civilization. “By understanding the nature and origin of ecological civilization, I realized that it is a new paradigm of development.” The other course is Ecological and Environmental History by Ms. Mei Xueqin, a professor in the Department of History. “The class invited the founder of an NGO that promotes public environmental awareness, which made me more aware that everyone can contribute to the environment,” Liu said.
During the first six months at the company, Liu and his team embarked on nationwide travels to gather cutlery data for machine learning and algorithm generation. In October 2018, they launched the “Clear Plate” App.
Liu Jichen shared in the theme group class
Now, the user base of the “Clear Plate” App has expanded to 10 million, and the users have taken zero food waste actions more than 100 million times. Besides Clear Plate App, Liu also had some other innovation projects. He worked together with a game designer to design a board game that responds to the SDGs, which was distributed to more than 300 organizations and has achieved a good educational impact. “We put the realization of social value first while adopting commercialization methods for independent development,” said Liu. For him, the company is positioned as a social enterprise that seeks to continuously work towards the betterment of society and our lives.
Discovering major issues
from details
In 2020, Liu became one of the 17 young leaders of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). When it comes to the original intention of the declaration, Liu describes a very clear vision, namely to inspire and empower everyone to take action against food waste. He hopes to build an international clear plate movement for reducing food waste.
His vision aligns with the four UN's Sustainable Development Goals. “Firstly, ‘Clear Plate’ helps to reduce food waste and carbon emissions, which are linked to SDGs 12 Responsible Production and Consumption and SDGs 13 Climate Action. Reducing food waste as well as the corresponding meal donation campaign is linked to SDGs 2 - Zero Hunger. Secondly, “Clear Plate” unites all sectors of society in a joint campaign, which is in line with SDG 17: promoting partnerships for the SDGs," explained Liu.
Liu Jichen was selected as a UN Young Leader
Being the only Chinese among the 17 youth leaders, Liu carries with him a strong sense of responsibility. “In addition to being a good youth advocate for the ‘Clear Plate’ action, I should also act as a Chinese youth representative to better tell stories.”
After being endorsed as a youth leader, Liu has participated in dozens of international conferences thus far. What impressed him deeply was the Youth Forum of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in April last year. At the main forum, Liu Jichen had a conversation with the administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) about how young people can contribute to the SDGs.
“Change is not far from everyday life, just like how the ‘Clear Plate’ idea arose from a small detail in a restaurant, which in turn became relevant to major issues such as food security and climate change.” Liu said.
Liu Jichen spoke at
the UN Economic and Social Council Youth Forum
Bringing young people
together to make an impact
“The SDGs are a mission that can bring young people together to make an impact." Through participating in these related activities, Liu has the opportunity to have dialogues with people from different cultures, countries, and races, and such a cross-cultural environment also exists in his program, the Schwarzman Scholars of Tsinghua University.
Liu Jichen participated in UN Day Activities in Beijing
In his sophomore year, Liu learned about Schwarzman Scholars and was deeply moved by its theme, “21st Century China is not an elective, but a mandatory course.” From then on, he had the desire to enroll in Schwarzman Scholars. Therefore, he chose to apply for Schwarzman Scholars back in 2021 without hesitation.
“Compared to those official occasions, communicating with foreign classmates at Schwarzman Scholars is more in-depth, which gives me a more objective external perspective on China’s global affairs,” Liu said.
“No matter what industry or profession you are in, global competence enables you to think about problems from a global perspective, and it also enables you to favor a collaborative approach with multiple subjects in solving problems. The ‘Clear Plate’ is a good example of adopting a model of cooperation among governments, public organizations, and businesses to promote SDG.” Liu added.
After graduating in July 2023, Liu chose to return to his hometown, Yunnan to work as a civil servant.
“‘Clear Plate’ has reached 10 million users, and we have built a good team to operate this App. Now it's time for me to find another path to contribute more to sustainable development goals. Yunnan is currently moving towards the green development pattern, which fits well with my mission.” Liu said. From October onwards, he has been working in a village in Mojiang Hani Autonomous County. In the future, he hopes to make more contributions to Yunnan's SDGs progress.
Liu's Speech on 2024 Schwarzman College Alumni Forum
TsinghuaRen | Liu Jichen: Youth efforts in addressing zero hunger
Writer: Wei Xiaowen
Editors: Liu Shutian, Gillian Tang, GP
Designer: Wei Xiaowen
Reviewers: Chen Ken, Lin Yuan