21st Century China Center Fall 2016 Newsletter

Sept. 14, 2016

The 21st Century China Program is officially the 21st Century China Center. The renaming from "program" to "center" is a small but momentous change, signifying our growth from an upstart program to an established center with multiple existing programs and new initiatives. Over the past four-plus years, we have grown programmatically, financially and in terms of our ambition. Our goal is still to be the best university-based think tank on China and on the U.S.-China relations. We are grateful to all our faculty, students, supporters and corporate partners for the opportunity ahead to cement our leadership role in policy-relevant research on China and in promoting meaningful dialogue between the two countries across government, academia, business and civil society.

Research and education of students remain the most important part of our mission. We look forward to advancing the field of China studies with a new initiative focusing on creating an infrastructure for data compilation and analytics on China. We work to increase the capacity and reach of our scholars, foster fruitful international exchange and bring insight to pressing and relevant policies. In that spirit, we are delighted to share that GPS also is elevating this mission through the launch of a new degree program that will enroll its first class in fall 2017: Master of Chinese Economic and Political Affairs.

In the last quarter, we convened several conferences with partners across campus and borders, such as a research workshop with China historians at UC San Diego and East China Normal University that focused on modern China, the Fudan-UC Center on Contemporary China's flagship Young Scholars Conference, the first U.S.-China University Think Tank Dialogue on Bilateral Relations, and a gathering of key shapers of China's new policy on religious affairs and other thought-leaders on Christianity in China.

As most graduate students departed for the summer, we welcomed a group of high school students for our inaugural youth program to develop future leaders in U.S.-China relations. Students from American and Chinese high schools simulated problem-solving and diplomatic process on global collaborations such as clean energy and artificial intelligence.

Our partnership with Fudan University is going strong. We are collaborating with the Fudan-UC Center extensively to bring you noted Chinese and American scholars on China and to host academic conferences and policy dialogues on a range of critical issues. As this e-newsletter goes to you today, we have just concluded the Second Annual California-Shanghai Innovation Dialogue at Fudan University.

In the summer, we also launched a new channel for you to stay abreast with expert voices on all things China in the form of a podcast called China 21. Listen anytime and subscribe on all major platforms.

Looking ahead to a new academic quarter, we are delighted to welcome you to our public events, such as the Second Annual Sokwanlok Lecture by Pacific Leadership Fellow Yu Keping on Oct. 10, a renowned scholar and advocate of reform from Peking University. We again join hands with the community in hosting the annual China Town Hall on Oct.18, featuring Melanie Hart from the Center for American Progress, a rising star in the policy world on China and one of our own UC San Diego graduates.

In this important season as American voters choose their next commander in chief and as President Xi Jiping looks ahead to his second term in China, stay tuned to our activities and information that will illuminate the social, political and economic trends in China, and guide the discourse on U.S.-China relations toward greater mutual understanding and collaboration.

To stay up to date on our calendar of upcoming events, please visit china.ucsd.edu or follow us on Facebook and Twitter. We recently joined the Fudan-UC Center on WeChat as "复旦UC" (ID: Fudan-UC-21CC)--connect with us here, as well!

Warmest regards,

Susan Shirk

Chair, 21st Century China Center

Lei Guang

Director, 21st Century China Center

New Master of Chinese Economic and Political Affairs

GPS now offers a Master of Chinese Economic and Political Affairs, solidifying it as one of the premier locations to gain expertise in China and U.S.-China relations. Read more >>

Educating the next generation of U.S.-China leaders

The 21st Century China Center, in partnership with the Global Leadership Institute, hosted high school students on campus for its inaugural American and Chinese Future Leaders Summer Program. Read more >>

Yiqing Xu

Yiqing Xu is an assistant professor in political methodology at the UC San Diego Department of Political Science. He received his Ph.D. in political science at the Massachusetts Institute for Technology, where he conducted research on political methodology and positive political economy, with a special focus on development and institutions in authoritarian countries. His research topics cover causal inference with time-series cross-sectional data, formal and informal institutions, and authoritarian governance. View bio >>

Sokwanlok Distinguished Lecture: "China's Governance in Transition"

Oct. 10, 2016 | Register here
In the second Sokwanlok Distinguished Lecture on China, Yu Keping, a renowned scholar and advocate of reform in China will address the great changes in governance since the economic reform. He will trace the principal lines of governance reform in China since the 18th Party Congress and assess the main challenges going forward.

CHINA Town Hall: Charting a New Course for the U.S.-China Relationship

Oct. 18, 2016 | Register here
China's rapid development and U.S.-China relations have a direct impact on the lives of just about everyone in the U.S. CHINA Town Hall is a national day of programming designed to provide Americans across the U.S. and beyond the opportunity to discuss issues in the relationship with leading experts.

"UC San Diego's Partnerships with China: A Retrospective"

Nov. 1, 2016 | Save the date
Paul Pickowicz, UC San Diego's Distinguished Professor of History and Chinese Studies, presents a rare short film about UC San Diego's official visit to China in 1979, just months after the establishment of formal diplomatic relations between the U.S. and the People's Republic of China. The screening will be followed by reflections from members of the original delegation and a look ahead to the university's multidisciplinary collaborations with Chinese universities and institutions.

"U.S.-China Collaboration on Climate Change"

Dec. 1, 2016 | Save the date
Julio Friedmann of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory will share his extensive experience in collaborations and engagement in China, especially carbon capture and storage, followed by a conversation with GPS Professor David Victor on the future of U.S.-China collaboration on climate change mitigation and clean energy innovation.

Melanie Hart: Oct 18

UC San Diego alumna Melanie Hart is the director of China policy at the Center for American Progress. She will be our local speaker for the annual CHINA Town Hall, in collaboration with the National Committee on U.S-China Relations. Hart focuses on U.S. foreign policy toward China and works to identify new opportunities for bilateral cooperation, particularly on energy, climate change and cross-border investment. Her research also covers China's political system, market regulatory reforms, and how China's domestic and foreign policy developments affect the U.S.

China Focus

China Focus is an online blog and scholarly forum dedicated to providing context for understanding China and U.S.-China relations, run by GPS students. Read more >>

China Research Workshops
This interdisciplinary workshop series features new academic research by visiting scholars, graduate students and special guests. It is co-sponsored by the Fudan-UC Center on Contemporary China. View workshops >>

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Questions? 21china@ucsd.edu

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