ROME, March 26 (Xinhua) -- The first Sino-Italian Biodiversity Conference, launched here on Tuesday, created opportunities for scientific cooperation between the two countries, participants said.

       Invited by the Italian National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), a Chinese delegation of some 20 researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) traveled to the Italian capital to discuss biodiversity conservation with their Italian peers.

       The conference focused on common challenges facing the scientific community, solutions adopted, and future collaboration between China and Italy in the monitoring, preservation, restoration, and valorization of biodiversity.

       Emphasizing that both sides have a common language in preserving biodiversity, NBFC President Luigi Fiorentino said that the conference is just the beginning. "I am convinced that together, we will be able to reach new frontiers of scientific cooperation."

       The event will run until March 28.