It was a bit like Seattle today in S
hanghai. I started the day with an early run along the Shanghai Bund, a beautiful waterfront promenade. The temperature was perfect and there was a light rain coming down that felt good. Unfortunately, as the day moved along, the rain became a little more than Seattle-like.
Our first–and only–presentation of the day included the Vice Mayor of Hai’an and Peggy Liu of the Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy (JUCCCE).
Hai’an is a city of a million people covering 1,000 square kilometers. The GDP exceeds US$10 billion. The city is dealing with growth issues that come with its expansion of the construction and textiles sectors. Pollution and environmental cleanup are becoming increasingly important issues.
JUCCCE is a non-profit organization endeavoring to accelerate cleantech in China. JUCCCE focuses on convening and activating high-level influencers across all sectors and borders. They put on events and trainings that affect technology development, policy maker training, social behavior.
Our final luncheon took us through rainy backstreets. We closed the day with a marvelous reception at the home of the Consul General in Shanghai, Robert Griffiths.
So ends the official trip. All of us are headed out tomorrow morning to different destinations. There is a lot to ponder.
- Consul General Robert Griffiths with OneEnergy Renewables Travis Bryan
This was my first trip to China. As you may have been able to discern from earlier posts, I am not only interested in cleantech business and policy, but I am trying to understand some aspects of Chinese society and how they make decisions.
I certainly have learned a lot. I am looking forward to finishing some more reading and post-trip debriefings. I will post more on what I have learned in the days to come.
For now, I am headed to Hong Kong for a couple of days with my friend, Hal Calbom, then back home.