Event Description
China’s towering bridges, gleaming railways, and sprawling factories have improved economic outcomes in record time. But rapid change has also sent ripples of pain throughout the society. This reality—political repression and astonishing growth—is not a paradox, but rather a feature of China’s engineering mindset.
Dan Wang blends political, economic, and philosophical analysis with reportage to reveal a provocative new framework for understanding China—one that helps us see America more clearly, too. While China is an engineering state, relentlessly pursuing megaprojects, the United States has stalled. America has transformed into a lawyerly society, reflexively blocking everything, good and bad. Wang offers a gripping portrait of a nation in flux. He traverses metropolises like Shanghai, Chongqing, and Shenzhen, where the engineering state has created not only dazzling infrastructure but also a sense of optimism.
In an era of animosity and mistrust, Wang unmasks the shocking similarities between the United States and China. He reveals how each country points toward a better path for the other: Chinese citizens would be better off if their government could learn to value individual liberties, while Americans would be better off if their government could learn to embrace engineering—and to produce better outcomes for the many, not just the few.
Event Speaker
Dan Wang, Research Fellow at Stanford University
Event Information
Free and open to the public; registration required. For more information, please visit the event webpage or email Nick Pozek at [email protected] with any questions.
Hosted by the Hong Yen Center for Chinese Legal Studies at Columbia University.
