China’s Ambitions in Space

featuring
Ling Xin
Science Reporter
South China Morning Post

Speaker’s summary:
This talk will focus on how space programs are organized in China and how its approach differs from NASA’s. It will trace China’s rapid progress — from low Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars — and what the next five to ten years may hold. The speaker will also examine the growing pains of China’s emerging commercial space sector, and the challenges and opportunities for international collaboration as the country positions itself as a major space power.

Speaker’s Bio:
Ling Xin is a science reporter with the South China Morning Post. Based in Ohio, she mainly covers physics, astronomy, space, and US-China science policy. Her work has also appeared in Science, Nature, Scientific American, MIT Technology Review, and other publications. She has been invited to speak about China’s space program on Science Friday, France 24, and at the International Mars Society convention.

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The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect East-West Center policies or positions.

The China Seminar was founded by Dr. Daniel W.Y. Kwok in 1977. Under his guidance, it became a signature program of the Friends of the East-West Center (FEWC) in 2009. The program provides an informal venue for China experts, such as scholars, diplomats, and journalists, to present talks on aspects of China that interest the community and members of the Friends. Topics include politics, economics, social issues, history, culture, food, arts, and many other subjects.

The Hong Kong Crackdown — Five Years On

featuring
Mark L. Clifford 
President
Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation

Speaker’s summary:
Five years ago, Beijing imposed a sweeping National Security Law on Hong Kong — overnight transforming peaceful protest into “crime.” Since then, nearly 2,000 political prisoners have been jailed; more than 700 remain behind bars today.

Hong Kong has become a case study in authoritarian control — and how the Chinese Communist Party silences dissent. Once-guaranteed freedoms of speech, press, and religion have been dismantled. Lawyers, educators, and elected politicians have been imprisoned, independent newspapers shuttered, and journalists jailed. Our speaker, who had been editor in chief of both of Hong Kong’s English language newspapers, will provide an insider’s account of the city’s dramatic transformation. 

Speaker’s Bio:
Mark L. Clifford is president of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation, an NGO dedicated to democracy, human rights, and the rule of law for the people of Hong Kong. Previously, he was executive director of the Hong Kong–based Asia Business Council, and a board director at Next Digital, the Hong Kong media giant founded and majority-owned by Jimmy Lai. During his twenty-eight years in Hong Kong, he served as editor-in-chief of both English-language newspapers, the South China Morning Post and The Standard, of which he was also publisher. He holds a PhD in Hong Kong history from the University of Hong Kong. Clifford has won numerous journalism, academic, and book awards, and is the author of Today Hong Kong, Tomorrow the World: What China’s Crackdown Reveals About Its Plans to End Freedom Everywhere.

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The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect East-West Center policies or positions.

The China Seminar was founded by Dr. Daniel W.Y. Kwok in 1977. Under his guidance, it became a signature program of the Friends of the East-West Center (FEWC) in 2009. The program provides an informal venue for China experts, such as scholars, diplomats, and journalists, to present talks on aspects of China that interest the community and members of the Friends. Topics include politics, economics, social issues, history, culture, food, arts, and many other subjects.

The Shifting Landscapes of AI in China and the US

featuring
Dr. Jingyan Elaine Yuan 
Professor & Director of Graduate Studies
Department of Communication
University of Illinois at Chicago

Speaker’s summary:
AI is set to drive the next technological revolution—reshaping economies, societies, and the global balance of power. In this talk, Dr. Yuan explores how China and the United States are pursuing AI along divergent paths. The US bets on breakthrough innovation, powered by private capital and tech giants racing to build ever-larger models and cloud infrastructures. China, by contrast, emphasizes rapid diffusion—leveraging open-source platforms to lower barriers, accelerate adoption, and align AI with national priorities and coordinated infrastructure developments. One strategy prizes frontier discovery, the other scale and integration. Together, they are defining a new technological rivalry that will shape the future.

Speaker’s Bio:
Dr. Jingyan Elaine Yuan is a Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her research sits at the intersection of critical media studies, the political economy of technological development, and the cultural process of social change in global and comparative contexts. She is the author of the book The Web of Meaning: The Internet in a Changing Chinese Society (Toronto University Press, 2021), winner of the National Communication Association’s Outstanding Book Award.

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The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect East-West Center policies or positions.

The China Seminar was founded by Dr. Daniel W.Y. Kwok in 1977. Under his guidance, it became a signature program of the Friends of the East-West Center (FEWC) in 2009. The program provides an informal venue for China experts, such as scholars, diplomats, and journalists, to present talks on aspects of China that interest the community and members of the Friends. Topics include politics, economics, social issues, history, culture, food, arts, and many other subjects.