Is China’s development sustainable?
Published 20 May 2009
Is China’s development sustainable? This question was central to a major international conference held from 16-17 April 2009 in Shanghai, as Professor David Brown, LUMS Professor of Strategy and Information Systems, and Director of the Lancaster China Management Centre (LCMC), describes.
The conference was hosted by Fudan University and organised by the Fudan University School of Management, the Lancaster China Management Centre (LCMC) and the Centre for Corporate Finance and Governance of Brunel University. It is the first time that Fudan, one of China’s elite universities, has collaborated with two British universities on such a high profile event and topic. The aim of the conference was to explore the long-term prospects for China’s industrial sectors in international markets in the context of the sustainability of the environment and welfare in China and the rest of the world.
The conference was opened by Professor Xiongwen Lu, Dean of the Fudan School of Management, and attended by scholars from China, the US, Europe and the UK. High quality contributions underpinned the design of the conference and there were over forty papers given, including from Professors Gary Gereffi, Duke University and Anthony D’Costa, Copenhagen Business School. On the first day four broad but interacting themes framed the contributions – industrial development and sustainability, competition, international trade and the environmental industries.
From the LCMC, Professor Alasdair MacBean gave a plenary address on China’s environmental industries, which explored some key environmental policies and their likely impact within China and on the rest of the world. Included was an analysis of the prospects for China’s renewable energy industries. Taking a different perspective, Professor David Brown examined sustainability in terms of small and medium sized enterprises and their ability to continue to act as a catalyst for growth as has been the case for the last three decades. The particular focus of this input was on China’s efforts to raise information technology competences in China’s SMEs, which is seen by the government to be critical to growth and innovation.
The second day of the conference was unusual and was centred on the Shanghai Zhangjiang High-Technology Park. A visit to the park was hosted by the Wilson Energy Group, one of China’s fastest growing energy equipment companies, and provided an opportunity to link some of the conference themes in the context of the current economy. A special journal and book are planned to capture the output of the conference.
The conference ended with dinner at the Lang Yi Fang, overlooking Shanghai’s Pudong skyline, and coffee at the astonishing Jin Mao Tower. It was the weekend of the F1 Grand Prix and this was the McLaren team hotel – a useful reminder that the debate on sustainable energy still has some way to go!
