China’s Greater Bay Area and Ours: Can We Collaborate?

Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

China is rapidly connecting Hong Kong, Macao and nine cities in Guangdong Province into a regional finance, technology, manufacturing and tourism hub of 86 million people. Over the next decade, this Greater Bay Area (GBA) will mature into a global showcase for China’s economic model, “One Country-Two Systems” integration, and Belt and Road development strategy.

GBA hopes to partner with comparable regions worldwide, including the San Francisco Bay Area, in areas such as clean energy, health care, mobility and fintech. A new report by the Bay Area Council and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council assesses the commercial opportunities and political obstacles amid U.S.-China tensions. Join the sponsors of the report for a deeper dive into the report's findings.

About the Speakers

Sean Randolph is senior director of the Bay Area Council Economic Institute, where he served as president & CEO from 1998-2015, and manages its science affiliate the Bay Area Science and Innovation Consortium (BASIC). Randolph previously served as director of international trade for the state of California, and prior to that as international director general of the Pacific Basin Economic Council (PBEC), a 1,000-member Asia-Pacific business organization. His professional career includes extensive experience in the U.S. Government, where he served on congressional staffs, on the White House staff, and in senior positions at the departments of State and Energy. Dr. Randolph holds a JD from the Georgetown University Law Center, a Ph.D. from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (Tufts and Harvard Universities), a B.S.F.S. from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service, and studied at the London School of Economics.

Louis Chan is principal economist for the Global Research Team of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. As the head of the Global Research Team, Louis provides leadership and direction for research on market developments in the Americas and Europe. To provide a macro view for SMEs to formulate export strategies, Louis and his team monitor and evaluate the performance, changing trends and competitiveness of Hong Kong’s trading, manufacturing and service sector, at the industry-specific levels. To facilitate SMEs’ sales efforts, they also keep a close eye on the emerging business opportunities, consumption and sourcing trends, as well as regulatory changes in the Americas, Europe and Central Asia.

Moderator Scott Rozelle holds the Helen Farnsworth Endowed Professorship at Stanford University and is senior fellow and professor in the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. Dr. Rozelle's research focuses on the economics of poverty—with an emphasis on the economics of education and health. Dr. Rozelle is the co-director of the Rural Education Action Project and is an adjunct professor in 8 Chinese universities. In 2008, Dr. Rozelle was awarded the Friendship Award—the highest honor that can be endowed on a foreign citizen—by Premiere Wen Jiabao.

MLF ORGANIZER

Lillian Nakagawa

NOTES

MLF: Asia-Pacific Affairs

SPEAKERS

Louis Chan

Principal Economist (Global Research Team), Hong Kong Trade Development Council

Sean Randolph

Senior Director, Bay Area Council Economic Institute

Scott Rozelle

Helen Farnsworth Professor, Stanford University, and Senior Fellow and Professor, the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies—Moderator

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are currently hosting all of our live programming via YouTube live stream. This program was recorded via video conference on December 9th, 2021 by the Commonwealth Club of California.

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