The opening ceremony was hosted by IOB Director Prof. Chi-Te Liu. NTU Vice President Prof. Shih-Torng Ding recalled the difficulties faced during the early years of IOB; Dean of the College of Bioresources and Agriculture Prof. Yu-Pin Lin encouraged IOB to strive toward the goal of becoming a world-class institute; former Dean of the College of Bioresources and Agriculture Prof. Huu-Sheng Lur traced the development of IOB since its establishment; and Director of NTU Press Prof. Chun-Che Chang expressed his appreciation for the collaboration with IOB and wished IOB a happy 20th anniversary.
The morning program featured a keynote talk by Mr. Portnoy Zheng, Co-founder of PanSci, titled “Five Things I Learned While Going Undercover in Science.”
In the afternoon, Dr. Shuichiro Takahashi, Co-founder of Leave a Nest Co., Ltd., delivered a talk connecting microbial ecology, environmental sustainability, and social responsibility, reflecting the company’s concept of “Knowledge Manufacturing”—combining knowledge with knowledge to solve unsolved problems.
The program also featured sharing sessions by seven IOB alumni: Tze-Jung Yeh, Chia-Chun Chang, Chih-Yun Yu, Chiao-Wei Lin, Yen-Hsin Chiu, Sook-Kuan Lee, and Almanzo Aeterna K. Through 10-minute presentations, they shared memories of their time at IOB, discussed the skills and abilities students should develop during their studies, and reflected on the opportunities and challenges they have encountered in their careers.
Looking ahead, IOB will continue to strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration across colleges and departments, as well as academia–industry collaboration, contributing to biotechnology talent development and the advancement of Taiwan’s biotechnology industry.

Group photo of IOB faculty, students, guests, and alumni.