On October 26-27, 2023, the 2nd Asia Transportation Ecology Forum(ATEF) was successfully held jointly by the Chinese Academy of Transportation Sciences (CATS) and the China Sustainable Transport Innovation Center in Anhui province, China. This hybrid virtual and in-person forum was co-organized by the China Highway & Transportation Society (CHTS’S ESD), Transport Working Group (TWG) of IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group, Zoological Society of London (ZSL), and Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). About 200 researchers and practitioners from China, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Malaysia,  Philippines, Israel, Myanmar, Pakistan, India, Bhutan, Singapore, South Africa, Brazil, the United States, Denmark, Romania, Portugal, Greece and other countries attended the forum in person or virtually.

In the opening remark for the forum, Prof. Jiding Chen, the vice president of CATS, introduced the outline of the forum, the members of the International Advisory Committee of ATEF, and the launching of the ATEF website. Shuangcheng Tao, the deputy director of the Centre for the Environmental, Water and Soil Protection of CATS, and Rob Ament, Co-chair of IUCN WCPA-CCSG Transport Working Group, delivered keynote speeches respectively on "Ecological Protection and Restoration in Road Construction" and " An overview of the IUCN’s 2023 technical report on addressing ecological connectivity during road, railway and canal development", respectively. The five sessions of the forum were chaired respectively by Dr. Aili Kang of WCS, Dr. Qilin Li of the Hainan Tropical Ocean University, Deputy Director Shuangcheng Tao, Deputy Director Xinjun Wang and Dr. Yun Wang of the Centre for the Environmental, Water and Soil Protection of CATS.

More than 20 experts in China and abroad made presentations on various themes, including policy and management of green transportation; transportation and biodiversity; transportation and ecosystem; best practices and case studies of ecological conservation in transportation infrastructure and operation projects. These experts were from Convention on Migratory Species (CMS), Asian Development Bank, Infrastructure and Ecology Network Europe (IENE), Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine in Japan, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, McFarland Johnson in USA, Department of Highways of the Ministry of Construction in Myanmar, WWF-Pakistan, Royal Commission of AlUla in Saudi Arabia, Road Ecology Research

Society of Japan, African Conference for Linear Infrastructure & Ecology (ACLIE), Beijing Forestry University in China, Northeast Forestry University in China, Yunnan University in China, Chengdu Institute of Biology of Chinese Academy of Sciences in China, China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group Co. Ltd in China, World Wide Fund for Nature Beijing Office, Tongji University in China, and Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research of Chinese Academy of Sciences in China.

By the end of the forum, roundtable discussion was held to discuss the Opportunities and challenges to enhance Transportation Ecology in Asia. Dr. Rob Ament, the co-chair of IUCN WCPA-CCSG Transport Working Group, suggested that the organizing committee of ATEF should be more involved in conferences on other continents and learn from their experience. Wendy Collinson-Jonker, the co-Chair of ACLIE, suggested the forum strengthen exchanges and cooperation with developing countries and regions such as Africa and South America. Lazaros Georgiadis, the member of the Governance Board of IENE and Centre for Research & Technology Hellas (CERTH)/Hellenic Institute of Transport (HIT)/Greece, expressed a strong desire to cooperate with CATS to

jointly promote exchanges and cooperation in the field of transportation ecology research between Asia and Europe. Dr. Yoichi Sonoda, Representative Secretary of Road Ecology Research Society of Japan, Dr. Aili Kang of WCS, Dr. Shu Chen of ZSL, and Dr. Qilin Li of Hainan Tropical Ocean University, and other experts have put forward valuable opinions and suggestions for the development of transportation ecology in Asia.

In the closure speech, Prof. Jiding Chen highlighted that transportation ecology has become a research hotspot in the field of ecology and sustainable transportation. More and more research institutions, experts and scholars pay close attention to and actively participate in related research and practice. In the next step, the ATEF working committee will invite more experts and practitioners from all continents to join the International Advisory Council of ATEF, develop mechanisms to support the sustainability of ATEF operation, and look forward to hold the 2025 Asia Transportation Ecology Forum.