China’s Answer to International Poverty Reduction

Chinas Answer to International Poverty Reduction

China Weekly

Issue No. 4， 2019

At the Global Conference on Poverty Alleviation held in Shanghai in May 2004， the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development， the Ministry of Commerce and the United Nations Development Programme signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of Chinas International Poverty Alleviation Center. Over the past 15 years， in the field of international poverty alleviation， what kind of responsibility has the Chinese government shouldered as a major power in the global arena？ What kind of wisdom and actions has China contributed to the international poverty alleviation initiatives？

China has made visible and tangible contributions to international poverty reduction： successfully created a multilevel platform for international poverty reduction exchanges and collaboration to integrate world poverty alleviation cooperation into the framework of its foreign aid， coordinated resources， established a relatively complete Chinese international poverty reduction training system， professional training for sharing Chinas experience in eradicating poverty， dissemination of Chinese culture and wisdom to expand cooperation among international organizations， and deepening the sharing of Chinas experience in poverty eradication with other developing countries.

Urban Reconstruction

China Financial Weekly

Issue No. 9， 2019

The largest urbanization process in human history is being staged in China.

How to achieve “reconciliation” between residents and cities？ In other words， with the continuous enhancement of the urbanization level， how can we meet the growing national demand for a better urban development environment？ We should not only boost the quality of life in urbanization， but also promote the positive succession between the “key incremental quantity” and “core competence”of cities， thus injecting vigor into the high-quality development of economy and society.

China should make the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region， the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area， and the Yangtze River Delta important driving forces for pioneering high-quality progress. The urbanization rates of these regions have reached the level of developed countries， but there is still a gap in the quality of development.

In order to reach the level of world leading urbanization， China must harness new technologies as support， new demands as stimulus power， institutional innovation as a means to accelerate “deep urbanization，” speed up the cultivation of “key incremental quantity” and “core competence” driven by innovation in metropolitan circles and central cities， and make it a vital driving force for social and economic progress.

In short， the cities will be reconstructed.

Transformation of Coal Cities

Oriental Outlook

Issue No. 7， 2019

The transformation of coal cities is a general trend.

In the past， over-exploitation over decades has led to the exhaustion of resources and social anxiety in a slew of cities. The development mode of “building mines before planning，” “exploitation of underground resources before above ground exploitation”and “planning for industries before that of peoples wellbeing” resulted in the detriment of urban space and public life.

Standing at a new historical starting point， supporting the economic transformation and development of resource-based regions is an integral part of the regional coordinated development strategy. In the key period of transforming the mode of development， optimizing the economic structure， and transforming the drivers of economic growth， resource-based cities adhere to the people-oriented and scientific development model. This is the inevitable requirement of high-quality development.

Regardless of the future development path of resource-based cities， it is necessary to grasp the internal links among production space， living space， and ecological space to make production space more efficient， living space more livable， and ecological space more beautiful.

The key to the transformation process lies in respecting the law governing urban development and following the correct guiding principles of urban progress.

The Individualized Society Gets Ushered In

South Reviews

Issue No. 8， 2019

Consider two individuals： one is an engineer on a crowdsourcing platform while the other is an Internet celebrity who makes money by entertaining viewers through eccentric and funny behavior. It would not be too difficult in the past to qualify them as two entirely separate and distinct individuals. However， in the present day， one has to pause and wonder what it is that differentiates them.

The reason why the distinction between the two professions has become blurred at the present lies precisely in the change of platforms. Todays individualization is a genuine manifestation of the reconstruction of the means and relations of production. Information technology and artificial intelligence are commonly applied， dismantling the typical organizational form of industrial society which has lasted for more than 200 years –“throngs of laborers work under the same capital command at the same time and in the same space in order to produce the same kind of goods.”

People can now exist in isolation， assembled by invisible information links into invisible and efficient collaboration， as Paul Virilio， the French philosopher who died last year， put it： “The end of geography.”

Each individual seems to be his or her own boss， but the truth is that the bond itself becomes the owner of everyone.