Weekly News Collection

ECONOMICS

Chinese economy expected to grow at 8%

The international symposium themed “the Economic Reform, Transformation and Sustainable Development” was held in Guang­zhou on June 14-15. The Nobel Prize Laureate in Economics Finn E. Kydland, maintained that there remain “great risks” as to the sustainable development of many countries. Dean of HSBC Business School at Peking University Hai Wen posited that Chinese economy will neither become hasty nor sluggish. The average annual growth of its economy is expected to reach 8% in the future years.

SOCIOLOGY

Village protection is of great urgency

Delegated by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Develop­ment of China, the Chinese Folk Literature and Art Society, the China Photographers Association, and the China Literature and Art Foundation jointly held a launch ceremony for the “Filing and Investigation of Traditional Villages Project” in Beijing on June 10. The Vice President of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, and the President of the Chinese Folk Literature and Art Society, Feng Jicai, remarked that the genetic character and the diversity of Chinese civilization are rooted in villages. However, for a long time, due to limited understanding of traditional villages’ cultural values and the lack of textual records for villages, large numbers of precious villages have disappeared during the process of social transformation. Therefore, the protection of traditional villages is a pressing task of great urgency.

COMMUNICATION

Mobile Internet catalyzes China’s social transformation

In early June, The Blue Book of China’s Mobile Internet was re­leased from the “2014 Mobile Internet Development and 5th China Mobile Application Developer Conference” held in Beijing. The Blue Book points out that over the past 20 years the Internet has profoundly changed the mode of production and the lifestyles of Chinese people. As an engine of economic growth and a catalyst of social transformation, the mobile Internet is characterized by extensiveness, intelligence, convenience, and eco-friendliness, facilitating the economic and social upgrade of China with an un­precedented depth and breadth.

URBAN STUDIES

Holistic approach as a new perspective for ‘Smart City’

An international conference titled “Smart City: New Media, Social Participation, and Urban Governance” took place in Shanghai on June 6-7. Jointly held by Shanghai University and the University of Zurich, the conference attracted scholars from China, Germany, Italy and England. Many attendees are concerned about how to en­hance the working efficiency and transparency of government and about encouraging public participation in the process of construct­ing “Smart Cities”. Some scholars maintain that current studies on the “Smart City” in China lack a specialized vision of governance, which demands a “holistic approach” as a new perspective.

EDUCATION

Program to place returned overseas Chinese in professional positions launched

On June 12, the “Temporary Position Serving Program for Re­turned Overseas Chinese” was officially launched by Renmin University. The first group of 30 teachers with overseas education background will be assigned to 16 partner institutions, taking tem­porary posts including management positions, research fellows as well as post-doctorates. The program aims at helping teachers with overseas education or work experience to learn more prac­tice in China.

NEW INSTITUTION

First-ever research institute on social credit in China opened

The opening ceremony for the Research Institute of Chinese Social Credit at Central China Normal University was held in Wuhan on June 7. This is the country’s first-ever non-profit research organi­zation covering social credit and governing responsibility through collaboration cross disciplines and industries. Xu Xingming, the di­rector of the institute, stated that the group, together with relevant government departments, will establish digitalized databases for enterprise credit, release annual reports on the social credit of en­terprises at the central and provincial level, keep track of the credit environment of different regions, and release a credit index.