The Rise of China

The rise of China is not an accident that occurred overnight. China’s population is over 1.3 billion which constitutes 20% of the world’s population. This means that one in every five people on the earth lives in China. Just from that fact, the rapid growth seems to have been inevitable. Dr.Albert Keidel predicts that Chinese economy will surpass that of United State by 2035, and be twice its size by midcentury. This rapid growth will be based on enormous domestic demand not on exports. The growing economic power of China will shift the center of world’s power to the East. This shift has huge implications for the West and the rest of the world. The last time a new power emerged, the world was very violent. As China’s economy grows, more people will be living in cities, and adopt western life style. The demand for energy therefore will grow exponentially, and with limited resources, economical and political conflicts seem inevitable. The more U.S government tries to hold on to their dominance in Asia, the greater the conflict will likely be. According to the study done by Robert Sutter, there are different opinions on the effects of rising China on the United States. At the one end of the spectrum, there are people who predict that Chinese government will try to marginalize US influence in Asia using their economic power. On the other end, some believe that China will try to find ways to work with US to maintain political stability and further develop their economy. However, Chinese people’ suspicion over U.S. intentions still remains. China continues to invest heavily on developing weapons and running ballistic missile programs that are targeted at U.S. According to Sutter, China is the “only large power in the world preparing to shoot Americans”. The tension and rivalry between the U.S. and China will rise and intensify. As Sachs mentions, I think the best way to avoid unnecessary injustice caused by two superpowers it to build a new kind of global politic based on cooperation across the world. That would mean U.S. and China not abusing their power, which is difficult, but not impossible, especially in the era of global community.

There are also environmental problems to consider. More power plants will be built to meet the energy demand, and they will pollute the earth’s atmosphere and water even more. It seems like China is aware of this issue and is committed to reduce energy intensity by investing heavily in new technologies and infrastructures. According to the New York Times article, China’s cabinet passed measures that would help reduce energy use, including closing thousands of factories with outdated equipment. Although these measures are admirable, I’m curious to see how Chinese government will act when its environmental policies come in the way of economical development. Would they stand firm and pass laws that would prohibit energy intensive practices? I guess the question is whether their environmental policy be “enough”. This is the question that we need to ask ourselves first because we are not doing that great either.

Ultimately, it comes down to what we want and our attitude toward the environment. People who have a close relationship and some sort of emotional attachment to nature tend to appreciate it more. These people are more likely to be more conscious about the environmental issues and act on them. Changing people’s attitude toward the environment will not be successful by throwing numbers at them. People are unlikely to change unless the problems directly affect them, in which point it is too late. We need to start early and help our children to form a good relationship with nature. This cannot be done through textbooks and videos but by encouraging kids to touch and feel, and have fun with nature.