Invitation

by IASS

When: Tuesday, May 30, 4-5pm

Where: IASS, Otto-Nagel-Straße 14, 14467 Potsdam

You are cordially invited to the Lecture

“Comparative Advantage Strategy for Achieving Energy and Environmental Goals in China”

By Yuan Xu
(Associate Professor, Department of Geography and Resource Management, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Tuesday, May 30, 4-5pm IASS, Otto-Nagel-Straße 14, 14467 Potsdam

Abstract:

China is the world’s largest energy producer, consumer and emitter of many major pollutants, creating challenges with unprecedented scales and urgency. The country’s energy development and pollution mitigation have been full of puzzles. Its weak rule of law often results in ineffective policy enforcement and prevalent non-compliance to witness unacceptable energy-related environmental crises. However, China has also become the world’s most significant market of renewable energy, rapidly improved energy efficiency and installed pollution control facilities at astonishing rates. About fifteen years ago, China barely had any internationally visible renewable energy and environmental industries. However, its solar PV, wind turbine and pollution removal industries have emerged to be the world’s biggest. In this talk, I will provide an integrated explanation to connect the micro-level unfavorable performance with the macro-level outcomes. The enforcement of various energy and environmental policies is argued to largely follow a comparative advantage strategy when major related goals were successfully achieved, or to deviate away from it when goals failed.

Bio:

Prof. Yuan Xu is an associate professor in the Department of Geography and Resource Management and leads the Environmental Policy and Governance Programme in the Institute of Environment, Energy and Sustainability, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research centers on energy and environmental policies, especially on their enforcement and compliance as well as related technological innovation and industrial development. Before joining CUHK in August 2010, Prof. Xu received a Ph.D. degree in public policy from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University and was a postdoctoral research associate in the Industrial Performance Center, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also holds an M.S. degree in climatology, a B.S. degree in atmospheric sciences and a bachelor's degree in economics, all from Peking University.