China’s Green Movement: Players, Style, and Strategy

Liu Jingfang (Associate Professor, School of Journalism, Fudan University; HYI Visiting Scholar, 2019-20)
Chair/discussant: Karen Thornber (Harry Tuchman Levin Professor in Literature and Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University)

Co-sponsored with the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies

While China is transforming itself into an economic powerhouse, it also suffers from dire environmental degradation and crisis. Behind the notorious images of Beijing’s grey sky and smog-obscured landmarks, frequently portrayed in Western media, what has been done inside of China trying to change the situation? Who has made efforts and how? This talk gives an introduction of the less-known but growing environmental movement undertaken by diverse players in China over the past two and a half decades. It will examine how the multiple agents and institutions of change interact with each other at different levels, engage in special coping strategies, and struggle to activate a green movement of its own style and nature. From a communication perspective, it will examine, both empirically and theoretically, the elements that construct a growing “green public culture” in China and China’s unique path to environmental protection.