In the fight against COVID-19, more than 42,000 medical workers rushed to aid Hubei Province, the epicenter of the virus outbreak, of whom 12,000 are the post-90s generation, and a considerable number are even born after 1995 and 2000. They have fully demonstrated the courage and responsibility of Chinese youth in the new era.

Hou Weimin, a research fellow from the Institute of Marxism at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that the contemporary Chinese youth has realized that the destiny of the individual is inseparable from that of the nation. The performance of the young people in this fight against the epidemic shows that, as a young generation, they have matured and gained a high sense of mission and responsibility, Hou added.

When Wuhan put out the announcement to look for youth volunteers, more than 7,000 people signed up in less than 12 hours. From donations to emergency services, from caring for special groups to psychological counseling services, from spreading epidemic prevention knowledge to providing translation service... the young generation has demonstrated that their contribution should not be underestimated.

Lei Ruipeng, a professor of philosophy at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, said that in addition to the frontline medical workers, post-90s generation researchers put forward a series of targeted countermeasures and suggestions for the fight against the epidemic in different stages.

In Lei’s opinion, it is vital to for young people to care about the society, the nation and the fate of mankind, and establish people-oriented, life-prioritized values. With such a mindset, young people will be able to shoulder their own missions and responsibilities in times of crisis, for the sake of the destiny of the nation, and for the sake of the lives and health of the people.

Lei noted that young people should not be limited themselves to the theoretical studies, rather the group should strive to combine theory with practice in academic researches. Only when we acquire problem-solving mentality, can we promote innovation and locate problems from the roots, study them with depth and provide feasible solutions to them in the end.

Zhang Xiaomeng, vice president of the School of Marxism at Renmin University of China, said that to inspire youth innovation and creation, schools and the whole society need to work together to create a good environment for the growth and development of young people. To be specific, we need to create opportunities and platforms for young people to receive training, increase knowledge and grow into talents, while fostering a positive whole society ethos.