Breathing Air with Heft: An Experiential Report on Environmental Law and Public Health in China
Lecture by RCC Fellow Erin Ryan
01.07.2019 14:30 – 15:30
Speaker: Erin Ryan (Florida State University)
Location: RCC, Leopoldstraße 11a, 4th Floor Conference Room (room number 415)
This talk explores the gritty intersections of daily life and environmental law in modern China, an industrial powerhouse still struggling to reconcile economic opportunity with breathable air, clean water, healthy food, and safe products. With comparative perspective on analogous challenges in the United States, the presentation reports on these critical domestic challenges for China at a pivotal moment in its reemergence as a dominant world power. China's continued geopolitical rise may well hinge on its ability to respond successfully to the environmental causes of growing social unrest. This overall project shares this story while illuminating the different cultural lenses with which two representative Eastern and Western societies have navigated their relationships with nature, as well as exploring the different approaches they are taking to improve environmental stewardship.