Song Chaozhi, Deputy Director General of SBSM, headed a SBSM delegation and visited the International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC) in the Netherlands recently. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed during the visit, which stipulated the cooperation between SBSM and ITC in short course training and degree studies for SBSM staff, and cooperation in other related fields in the period of 2008-2013. Song Chaozhi met and had talks with some students from China at ITC and also visited the Geomatic Business Park of the Netherlands.

After the visit in the Netherlands, Song Chaozhi, as the Executive Vice Chairman of the National Steering Committee for the 21st Congress of International Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS), attended the ISPRS council meeting held in England. He reported the preparation work for the Congress, and listened to the opinions and suggestion by the council members. Prof. Ian Dowman, President of ISPRS, gave high remarks on the efforts for the preparation work by the Chinese government and surveying and mapping organizations. He expressed his confidence in a successful congress to be held in Beijing. Prof. Dowman also showed his understanding on the problems caused by the revaluation of the RMB and promised to give supports in solving these problems.