On the morning of August 13 local time, the WFAS 2026 International Symposium on Acupuncture-Moxibustion officially opened in Bad Zurzach, Switzerland. The Symposium was sponsored by the World Federation of Acupuncture-Moxibustion Societies (WFAS), organized by TCM Ming Dao, Switzerland and Swiss TCM University, and co-organized by the China Association of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and other organizations. Sungchol Kim, Unit Head for Traditional Medicine Norms, Standards, and Systems Integration, WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre; Liu Baoyan, President of WFAS; Olivier Dinichert, Head of the Division of Higher Education and Sports, Canton of Aargau; and other distinguished guests attended and addressed the opening ceremony. David P.J. Hung of the United States, the 96-year-old Honorary President for Life of WFAS, attended the entire Symposium. Nearly 500 participants from 40 countries and regions attended the Symposium, including representatives of WFAS member societies, local acupuncturists, traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, and professionals from related fields. The opening ceremony was co-hosted by Yang Jinsheng, Secretary-General of WFAS, and Robyn Sodders, Director of the Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (DAOM) Program at Five Branches University in California.

In his address, Liu Baoyan, President of WFAS and Academic committee member of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences (CACMS), noted that acupuncture and moxibustion of traditional Chinese medicine, inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, has been passed down for thousands of years. Today, advances in modern science and technology are enabling increasingly in-depth research into its mechanisms, clinical evaluation, and multidisciplinary integration, allowing acupuncture and moxibustion to serve people around the world in increasingly standardized and open ways. He said that the Symposium in Switzerland provides an effective platform for communication and cooperation among the acupuncture-moxibustion communities of China, Europe, and the wider world, and expressed the hope that experts from different countries and fields would build consensus and deepen practical cooperation through acupuncture and moxibustion, jointly advancing the high-quality development of acupuncture-moxibustion worldwide.

Li Yiming, President of TCM Ming Dao, Switzerland, extended a warm welcome to acupuncture-moxibustion colleagues from around the world and expressed the hope that the Symposium would further deepen academic exchange and strengthen international friendship. He noted that the event brings together a wide range of fields, including clinical practice, research, education, prevention, health and wellness, and aesthetic medicine, with a shared commitment to advancing evidence-based development, innovation, and globalization. He emphasized the importance of quality, standards, and reliable evidence in further strengthening the foundations for the development of acupuncture, while promoting deeper integration of traditional Chinese medicine into education, research, and clinical practice in Europe.

Sungchol Kim, Unit Head for Traditional Medicine Norms, Standards, and Systems Integration, WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre, noted that 2026 marks the 16th anniversary of the inscription of acupuncture and moxibustion of traditional Chinese medicine on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. He emphasized that the inscription highlights not only the importance of safeguarding this valuable cultural heritage, but also the responsibility to continue advancing traditional medicine so that it can better contribute to the health and well-being of people worldwide. He further noted that the Symposium represents an important practical contribution to the implementation of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025–2034 and provides a valuable platform for advancing international exchange and cooperation in acupuncture and moxibustion.

Olivier Dinichert, Head of the Division of Higher Education and Sports, Canton of Aargau, said that Bad Zurzach has long placed importance on rehabilitation, prevention, and health promotion. Health, he noted, is not only about treating disease, but also about helping people return to everyday life and improve their quality of life. He commended Swiss TCM University for its commitment to fostering scientific dialogue across different medical traditions, emphasizing that openness and inclusiveness can go hand in hand with scientific rigor. The advancement of medicine, he said, requires sustained research, the development of quality standards, and exchange across countries, disciplines, and medical traditions. He expressed the hope that the Symposium would further promote professional dialogue and cooperation and lead to practical outcomes that genuinely benefit patients.

Andi Meier, Mayor of Zurzach, noted in his address that Bad Zurzach has been closely associated with health and well-being for centuries, making the gathering of acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine experts from around the world particularly fitting for a place with such a longstanding tradition as a health destination. He said that Zurzach has maintained close cooperation with Swiss TCM University and TCM Ming Dao, Switzerland, jointly supporting the local development of traditional Chinese medicine and its exchange and integration with modern medicine. He added that WFAS’s decision to bring an international symposium to Switzerland and Bad Zurzach has brought greater international attention to the area while providing a platform for scientific and academic exchange worldwide.

The opening ceremony was co-hosted by Yang Jinsheng and Robyn Sodders

Following the opening ceremony, the keynote session, featuring presentations by seven experts, was jointly hosted by Ramon Calduch, WFAS Vice President (Spain); Kim Yong-Suk, WFAS Vice President (South Korea); Yu Xiaochun, WFAS Executive Committee Member and President of the China Association of Acupuncture-Moxibustion; Yang Yuyang, Executive Deputy Secretary-General of WFAS; and Gerhard Litscher, Professor at Swiss TCM University.

Zhang Boli, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, delivered an online keynote presentation entitled “The Path toward Standardization, Scientific Development and Internationalization of Acupuncture.”

Liu Baoyan, President of WFAS, delivered a keynote presentation entitled “Acupuncture in International Modern Medical Clinical Practice Guidelines.”

Sungchol Kim, Unit Head for Traditional Medicine Norms, Standards, and Systems Integration, WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre, delivered a keynote presentation entitled “The Global Landscape, Global Strategy, and Key Global Priorities for Traditional, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine.”

Chan Kwok Ki, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Pok Oi Hospital, delivered a keynote presentation entitled “Clinical Research and Standard Formulation of Acupuncture for Smoking Cessation in Hong Kong.”

Michael Hammes, WFAS Executive Committee Member (Germany) and Professor at Swiss TCM University, delivered a keynote presentation entitled “Importance of the Correct Usage of Nomenclature in Lessons of Chinese Medicine in Non-Chinese Languages.”

Sven Schröder, Managing Director of the TCM Centre at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), delivered a keynote presentation entitled “Acral-Centred Acupuncture for Peripheral Neuropathy: Diabetic & Chemotherapy-Induced Neuropathy.”

Thomas Braun, WFAS Vice President (Germany), from the Association of Physicians Trained in Acupuncture and TCM in China (ATCÄ), delivered a keynote presentation entitled “Positioning and Systematization of the Effects of Acupuncture/Moxibustion in Relation to Western Medications.”

Keynote Session Hosts

Under the theme “Acupuncture-Moxibustion: Integration and Innovation for Human Health,” the two-day Symposium featured one plenary session and 10 parallel academic sessions, with nearly 200 academic presentations, 34 poster presentations, and more than 130 papers included in the conference proceedings. An exhibition dedicated to the intangible cultural heritage of acupuncture and moxibustion of traditional Chinese medicine was also held alongside the Symposium, offering participants an opportunity to experience the distinctive appeal of this time-honored medical heritage.

The WFAS 2026 International Symposium on Acupuncture-Moxibustion in Switzerland represents another important step in WFAS’s continued efforts to advance the global dissemination of acupuncture and moxibustion and deepen mutual learning between China and Europe in the field of traditional medicine. It has further strengthened the academic foundations of acupuncture in Europe and helped advance more standardized pathways for its development internationally. The Symposium has also laid a stronger academic foundation and built momentum for the 40th anniversary of WFAS and the 2027 World Conference on Acupuncture-Moxibustion, while providing renewed impetus for traditional Chinese medicine to reach a wider global audience and serve the health and well-being of people worldwide more effectively.