Apart from the aforementioned publications, an international symposium on Yu's impact on 20th-century poetry was also held on the mainland, and an academic conference was held in Taipei. Meanwhile, National Sun Yat-sen University in Kaohsiung and the Chinese University of Hong Kong put on exhibitions of Yu's handwritten manuscripts and other related artifacts.
為了這一日，華人文學圈已經放了一整年的煙火。紙本書外，對岸有「余光中與 20 世紀詩文學國際研討會」，台北有「余光中先生 80 大壽學術研討會」，高雄中山大學和香港中文大學輪流舉辦余光中手稿暨文物展。