Managing Scarcity: Water and Culture in Modern China

Speaker: David Pietz, East Asian Studies, University of Arizona
Panelist/Discussant: Wen-hsin Yeh, History, UC Berkeley

Sponsors: Center for Chinese Studies (CCS), Institute of East Asian Studies

Environmental China Colloquium 4

North China is experiencing a water problem. Nature and culture have both conspired to shape the waterscape of the Yellow River and the North China Plain. What is unique in this region is that local communities and the state in China have confronted this ecological challenge for centuries, often in remarkably creative and effective ways. To be sure, the breakneck pace of economic and social change during the last several decades have added a new dimension to this historical challenge. David Pietz will explore the contemporary challenges of water scarcity in China through the lens of history, leveraging historical experience into a more nuanced view of China’s water challenges and the potential national and international consequences of resource constraints.

Event Contact: ccs@berkeley.edu, 510-643-6321