The launch ceremony of the activities for the Laiyang Dinosaur Discovery Centennial Commemoration is held in Laiyang city in Shandong province on May 21. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The launch ceremony of the activities for the Laiyang Dinosaur Discovery Centennial Commemoration was held in Laiyang city in Shandong province on May 21.

During the ceremony, the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Laiyang to build the Laiyang Cretaceous National Geological Park. The Laiyang branch of the Palaeozoological Museum of China and the Laiyang base of the Fossil Preservation Joint Research Center were also unveiled.  

The event attracted more than 20 experts, including Zhou Zhonghe and Xu Yigang, academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and scholars from the basic science center of the National Natural Science Foundation of China.  

As the birthplace of Chinese paleontological scientific research, Laiyang is the first place in China where scientists discovered dinosaur fossils, dinosaur eggs, pterosaurs, insects and plant fossils.

The city has three famous fossil biotas: the Jehol biota, the Laiyang duck-billed dinosaur biota and the dinosaur egg fossil biota.

Laiyang has since last year been cooperating closely with higher scientific research institutions and invested 10 billion yuan ($1.42 billion) to boost the development of the cultural tourism industry by promoting its reputation as a paleontological research hub.

The city is developing a dinosaur-themed industrial cluster that features scientific popularization activities, study tours, cultural relics, museums and cultural tourism.