Beijing Academy Students Present Projects at Fifth Future Learners Conference

The fifth Future Learners Conference took place on May 23–24, 2026, at the Xigang Future Learning Center in Qinhuangdao. In line with the Ministry of Education's AI + Education Action Plan, its theme was AI-Empowered Experiential Learning. Experts in education and brain science, psychology and artificial intelligence discussed innovative teaching and AI education, educational assessment and mental health.



More than 200 teachers worked with experts from different disciplines to explore practical approaches to project-based courses informed by educational theory and teaching tools. An exhibition of student projects attracted particular attention.

BAID representatives Feng Jingyan and Lin Zhilu, together with Wang Zitong and Zhang Xinyue, presented four interdisciplinary projects. Combining engineering and art with technology and community service, their work demonstrated creativity and practical commitment, earning praise from attendees.

An Interactive Model of the Grand Canal's Waterworks

The students designed a working model of the Nanwang Water Diversion Hub, known as the Heart of the Canal, on the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. It addressed a limitation of static museum displays: visitors often struggle to understand how historical waterworks functioned. The model offered an engaging, scientifically informed way to explore ancient engineering.



Drawing on historical documents, the team reconstructed Daicun Dam and Dougong Dike, along with the Xiaowen River. Pumps and sluice gates, together with water storage structures, demonstrated how the system replenished water in dry periods and released excess water during the rainy season. Angled embankments moderated flow, curved channels reduced its force, and a pointed divider directed water north and south.

Visitors operated the sluice gates and observed changes in flow, learning how the historical system sent seven parts of the water north toward the imperial capital and three south toward Jiangnan. The experience connected engineering with history and cultural knowledge through direct participation.



Art and Business: The Forbidden City Fragrance Exhibition

The students developed an immersive exhibition concept, Fragrance of the Forbidden City, Memories Through Scents, combining artistic design and sensory psychology with commercial planning. Touch and scent offered new ways for visitors to engage with the Forbidden City's cultural heritage.



The proposal included three distinct exhibition areas:

• Brocade Walls · Tactile Zone: Visitors handle replicas of silk fabrics and architectural bricks and tiles, learning how materials expressed hierarchy and ceremony in the Ming and Qing courts.
• Four Court Fragrances · Olfactory Zone: Specialist scent devices recreate imperial incense and help visitors discover fragrances associated with the Forbidden City.
• Capital Fragrance Workshop · DIY Zone: Visitors mix their own fragrances and explore traditional incense culture.

Conference guests enthusiastically tried blending essential oils to create personal fragrances. Designed with different audiences in mind, the project proposed a contemporary, varied way to make the Forbidden City's cultural traditions accessible to the public.



LoreLens: An AI City Guide

As cultural exchange expands, international visitors still face difficulties understanding local languages and cultural context. Students independently developed LoreLens, an AI tour guide application, to help visitors explore Beijing.



Using image recognition and generative AI, the application offers the following features:

• Photograph a landmark to receive detailed commentary on its history and culture.
• Record moments from a journey with one tap and preserve personal travel memories.
• Receive personalized guidance through intelligent algorithms for more accessible cultural exploration.

LoreLens aims to make Beijing's history and culture easier for visitors from around the world to understand through technology that reduces language and cultural barriers.



A Sustainable Animal Rescue Project by the BAID Humanity Club

The BAID Humanity Club's project began with rescuing Xiaomizhou, a stray cat on campus. It has developed into a repeatable, sustainable approach to youth community service encompassing animal protection and commercial operations, academic research and ecological education.



Students established procedures covering feeding and medical care, sterilization and adoption. They also designed wooden shelters to improve stray animals' living conditions. Sales of student-designed merchandise help fund the project's continuing operations.

The team documented its experience in an academic paper in English, outlining a standardized approach to animal rescue led by young people. Its work expanded into mental health and environmental protection through animal-assisted activities and ecological art exhibitions. A platform supporting new charity projects helps other initiatives develop.

The team has rescued seventeen stray cats, with a recovery rate of 83.3%. Its work connects research with practical service and explores benefits for both people and animals.



Learning Through Practical Work

The four projects demonstrate learning through investigating actual problems and developing practical responses. Guided by Learning to Acquire and Learning to Coexist, Learning to Pioneer and Learning to Live, BAID students combined independent inquiry with hands-on work, developing AI literacy and creative thinking while considering people's needs.



Students identified problems in everyday life, combined knowledge from different disciplines, and developed their own responses beyond classroom study. In an era when AI makes information readily available, the ability to recognize problems and solve them, create confidently and care for others, can support students throughout their lives. These abilities also help them put Better Me, Better World into practice.