It is with great pleasure that I welcome all of you to the Second International Conference on Management Science and Engineering Management (ICMSEM 2008), held here in the historic and dynamic city of Chongqing, China, and graciously hosted by Chongqing Business and Technology University. I would like to express my sincere thanks to our hosts for their thoughtful arrangements and generous support.

Since its inception, the ICMSEM series has sought to build an international platform for the exchange of ideas, methods, and innovations in the field of Management Science and Engineering Management (MSEM). This year, we are proud to have accepted 87 carefully reviewed papers, representing contributions from China, Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and beyond. These papers have been grouped into nine major thematic areas, including Uncertainty Decision-Making, Supply Chain Management, Industrial Engineering, Financial and Enterprise Management, and Environmental Resource Management. All accepted papers have been published by World Academic Press and indexed by ISTP Compendex, ensuring their reach and recognition in the academic community.

Our theme reports this year touch on timely and thought-provoking topics. For instance, Mr. Nick Palousis presented an innovative approach to assessing sustainability risk in product development, Prof. Shaorong Sun offered a unique perspective on benefit-seeking behavior and resource efficiency, and Prof. Guohua Chen contributed a compelling model for portfolio selection under uncertainty. These works demonstrate the growing relevance of MSEM in addressing both theoretical and applied problems in a changing world.

What makes this year’s conference especially memorable is not just the depth of academic exchange, but the context in which it takes place. Chongqing, located at the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing rivers, is a city of mountains, fog, and remarkable vitality. The post-conference tour to the Three Gorges has offered our participants an unforgettable experience—where the grandeur of China's natural beauty meets the reflection of historical memory and engineering achievement. As the ancient Chinese saying goes, “One who has not seen the Three Gorges has not truly known the beauty of rivers and mountains.”

We believe that such moments of shared exploration outside the formal sessions also strengthen our scholarly community. They provide space for informal dialogue, cross-cultural understanding, and the seeds of future collaboration. In this spirit, I encourage you not only to listen and present but also to connect—with new ideas, with colleagues from different backgrounds, and with the world outside the conference hall.

Thank you once again for your presence and participation. I look forward to fruitful discussions, thought-provoking insights, and the building of lasting academic friendships during your time in Chongqing, China.

Prof. Dr. Dr. Jiuping Xu
General Chair
President of the International Society of Management Science and Engineering Management
Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics and Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry
November 4, 2008