Today has been a long day… longer than a normal school day. The first breakfast meal in Beijing was delicious： 油条，小包子，小混沌. It amazes me how cheap the food here is. 20 Yuan paid for eight people’s food…
Our day was packed with guest speakers starting at 9 am. First, we heard from Dr. Hong Zheng, the Dandelion school principal, who gave us an overview and history of the school. It was first established in 2005 and is still the only middle school for migrant workers’ children, out of approximately 300 schools for migrant children. I was very impressed by what she’s been able to accomplish in just a few years, raising literacy rates, and getting 98% of the students to pass the standardized test in just two years, especially since the first year less than 10% of the students were able to pass the test. Out of ~700 students who apply to the Dandelion school every year, only 200 are accepted, and even those students are already behind in their education, most scoring in the low/mid 30s when the average for public schools are around mid 60s. Most of these children end up going to vocational schools or straight into the workforce. Public high schools are difficult for them to test into, and even if they do, they do not have the money to pay for the tuition.
These children deserve more in life. They have proven through their test scores that they’re not dumb or incompetent; they just need a chance to prove their self-worth. The Chinese government has deprived them of that opportunity, and I find that to be a real shame.
Our next speaker was a project manager at Cisco Systems China and talked about CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). Cisco has been really involved with several projects. One project was the Sichuan 5/12 Earthquake relief. Cisco helped sponsor mobile medical vans, which can go into rural areas. They also offer free psychological counseling to get them through PTSD. Their other project is IT support at schools, etc. They provide IT equipment like SmartBoards for schools and then follow up by training teachers on how to use everything.
Next, Dr. Shawn Shieh talked about grassroot NGO’s in China. They really have a hard time establishing themselves due to Chinese government and people’s distrust. In China, GONGO’s work better, because they already have the government’s approval and financial support. Again, it seemed like the Sichuan earthquake served as a catalyst for bringing all the NGO’s together and developing networking amongst NGO’s across various interests. It was interesting that there were 98 NGO’s based in Beijing, but only 9 in Shanghai. It makes some sense since NGO’s try to work closely with the government, but I think that since Shanghai is the commerce center of the world, it would also make sense for NGO’s to work closely with businesses to get financial support.
Following Dr. Shieh, we heard from Justin Barrow, co-founder of Microcarbon foundation and Climate Action (for profit organization), regarding the current global warming situation. What he is proposing is a very innovative entrepreneurial opportunity. Everything we do in this world will inevitably leave our carbon footprint. In an effort to slow climate changes, we’re attempting to apply carbon offset. People living in impoverished communities may not even have electricity. They can obtain renewable energy sources like solar or wind energy via a loan. Instead of burning coal, they’re now not polluting the environment, and consequently, they receive “carbon credits.” Through a mediator company such as Climate Action, individual donors or corporate businesses can donate money to sponsor these carbon-reducing initiatives and buy the carbon credits. This way, we’re helping these poor communities gain electricity and reduce carbon emission levels. How does this project relate to China? In 2002, China passed the U.S. as the highest carbon emission country. It is projected that in 2035, China’s emission level will be double that of the rest of the world combined. Justin customized a platform and separate company specifically to cater to the Chinese public.
Our final speaker for the day was Dr. Scott Rozelle from Stanford University. I found his talk on the future of Chinese economics fascinating. China’s GDP has been growing at an average rate of 8% a year. Their economic progress over 30 years is that which took the U.S. over 100 years to accomplish. However, what we’re discovering is that only 20% of the population attends college. In the future, if this number doesn’t change, China will be in trouble. The manufacturing industry in China is starting to outsource to other Asian countries like Vietnam. Replacing those jobs are quasi-skilled jobs, which required trained individuals. Without a proper education, these workers cannot operate the technology. What will the unskilled labor population do in the future?
No comments:
Post a Comment