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Rob_Hugo@PortNWJust heard on the radio this week that in the past year Beijing residents have purchased 45% more automobiles. That's over 400,000 more drivers than a year ago. Not only does this cause more pollution and congestion, but most of these new drivers are completely inexperienced. How do you say "road rage" in Mandarin? Does anybody still want to bike around Beijing?
Ed
AnonymousInteresting statistic......I was thinking during the presentations that THE Environment Team might want to add "Urban Environment" to their topic somehow, maybe this is alread in there but.....I know it is natural to focus on "nature" but we will be in urban areas for the most part and it may provide the opportunity to develop some interesting lessons, including showing some of us on our bikes dodging cars......it also would allow a tie-in to SARS, I think health could be an sub-issue for the Environment Team and to study the SARS case and how China's environment was conducive not only to the creation but also the spread of this disease. I wonder if Environment could be changed to Geography and then utilizing the "5 themes of Geography" as the basis of your study China could be studied through our tour....just a few thoughts on a Friday, have a good weekend everyone. GA
clay dubeOne of the biggest challenges for the Chinese and their government is food production. The NY Times reports today (5/2/04, "China Races to Reverse Falling Grain Production") that since 2002 China has lost 13,500+ square miles of farmland since 2002. In 2003, 2% of farmland disappeared.
We discussed this briefly at the orientation in noting that as in California, some of China's best farmland is being converted into housing developments, retail spaces, and roadways. This is a function of population growth and rising living standards as people seek newer and larger housing. I've seen this with my friends in Shanghai. Many now live in the suburbs, giving up tiny and admittedly shabby housing in the inner city. For some it isn't a huge sacrifice since their jobs are also in the suburbs, but for others it has added dramatically to their commutes, reducing time for family, and contributing (in a small way since all use buses rather than private cars) to added air pollution.
clay dubeTwo books worth looking at to understand how politics, philosophies, and practices have produced an environmental crisis in China:
Vaclav Smil (also author of the excellent, though dated The Bad Earth), China's Past, China's Future: Energy, Food, EnvironmentCurzon Press, 2004.
Judith Shapiro (co-author with then husband Liang Heng of the classic Son of the Revolution), Mao's War Against Nature, Cambridge UP, 2001.
AnonymousThe San Jose Mercury News on Sunday 5/23 had an interesting article on the effect of the Three Gorges product. It highlighted the problems being created now that the Yangtze is not naturally flushing out the pollution from some of these inland waterways. The Goddess Lake for example was scheduled to have a park and public facilities attached to it but due to the industrial pollution that continues to pour into it those plans have been cancelled. The tensions between the national governments attempts to clamp down and the local government's focus on jobs and economic stability is creating an environmental tug of war.
INDUSTRIAL WASTE FLOWING UNCHECKED.... BY Tim Johnson
Interesting that two pages later there is an article about sea animals here in the US dying due to pollution so we better not throw too many stones China's way.
AnonymousFeeling the pinch at the gas pump lately? Blaming it on OPEC? Our Iraq policy (or lack of it)? Oil Company conspiracies? SUV drivers? Well, now you can add China to the list. In the past year China's oil imports have gone up 39% Good old supply and demand. Once again, what happens in their environment happens to ours.
Ed
AnonymousHere's a BBC article on China's environment:
clay dubeFollowing Greg's point about the urban environment -- I've attached a short Xinhua article about plans to nominate Suzhou's old city for world heritage status.
clay dubeGreg, Alison, and I spent some time walking beyond the restored area of Suzhou's old town. Attached is a photo of fuel pollution of the canal.
clay dubeHere's a photo of efforts to keep the waterways clean. A garbage boat trolls outside the small canals of the Suzhou's old town. Note that this effort coincided with the major UNESCO conference in Suzhou.
Here's a link to the UNESCO page on the conference:
http://www.28whc.org/en/home.asp
clay dubeLet's try to keep all environment-related posts in this area.
Interesting article in a recent Christian Science Monitor: http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0902/p14s01-sten.html
North Americans use, of course, a disproportionate share of the world's resources. But many Asians are now wealthy enough to match that consumption. In the article, Mark Clayton draws upon a new book The New Consumers by Norman Myers to suggest that 1 billion from 20 developing nations are ready to use and use.
This came up in our orientation back in April and we discussed it at various times during the trip. Steel, oil, grains... they are all in greater demand thanks to China's booming production and consumption. What will the consequences of greater resource use be for China and for the world?
clay dubePaul has asked about the lecture on daoism. I am afraid I didn't get to hear that one, so I can't help much.
What I can do is direct you to an electronic copy of the Daodejing: http://www.isop.ucla.edu/eas/documents/DaoDeJing.htm.
It may be helpful to look what the document says about striving, about construction, about comparing oneself against others. Isn't keeping up with the Wangs a potentially destructive chase?
Of course, the US and now the world economy depends heavily on consumer spending. Anyone care to speculate on our group's contribution to China's GDP?
Article from China's Xinhua news agency (9/18/04): http://en.ce.cn/Business/Macro-economic/200409/11/t20040911_1740323.shtml
statistics from 2000: http://english.people.com.cn/english/200010/19/eng20001019_53001.html
clay dubeEd mentioned at the follow-up session that he'll be using the Twelve Girls Band for the documentary sound track. Here's a story we published on the band's recent LA show:
http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=13583
Asia Pacific Arts has information on several contemporary Chinese bands with the sort of urban sound Ed wants. Among the greatest is semi-metal head Cui Jian. Check out the APA website at http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu.
clay dubePaul McDermott read the attached editorial from the NY Times and passed it along. Take a look -- we visited the places discussed.
clay dubePaul earlier posted a NY Times article on this subject. Attached is an LA Times article on what farmers are doing to preserve their villages, holdings, and livelihoods. It was published with the title "A Watershed Role for Farmers: Residents of China's Yunnan province, faced with the possible loss of land to a dam, are becoming activists."
How are members of the environment group doing on their curriculum/multimedia projects?