About the Symposium
Organized by Notre Dame students, the US-China Exchange and Partnership Symposium aims to bring together distinguished speakers from academic, non-governmental, corporate, governmental, and other practitioner sectors to explore actionable solutions to both nations' challenges in environmental policy and sustainability.
Our symposium reflects a broader goal: to foster greater mutual understanding, collaboration, and constructive partnership between American and Chinese students, governments, and experts. We are united by the belief that today’s most pressing issues, such as sustainability, require concerted efforts from both countries, and we hope that the exchange of ideas at this event will contribute to advancing these critical goals.
Schedule
All events are in 1030 Jenkins Nanovic Halls at the University of Notre Dame.
Friday, February 7, 2025
9:00-9:30 a.m. Registration Check-in
9:30-10:30 a.m. Opening Remarks and Keynote Address (free and open to the public)
- Welcome by Symposium Chairs: Esther Lynch '25, political science and global affairs, and Ben Martin '25, political science and French
- Remarks and Introduction by Michel Hockx, Director, Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies and Professor of Chinese Literature
- Keynote Speaker: Mary Gallagher, Marilyn Keough Dean, Keough School of Global Affairs and Liu Institute Faculty Fellow
10:45 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Session 1: Academic Perspectives
- Panelists: Yangyang Cheng, Yale University, and Victoria Shen, Stanford University
- Moderated by Kyle Jaros, Keough School of Global Affairs and Liu Institute Faculty Fellow
12:00-1:00 p.m. Session 2: Conversation with Helen Ni, founder of Green LightYear NGO
- Box lunches provided for registered participants
- Moderated by Esther Lynch '25, political science and global affairs, and Ben Martin '25, political science and French
1:15-2:15 p.m. Session 3: Think-Tank Perspectives
- Panelists: Li Zhu, Director of the Conservation Program, Paulson Institute, and Dr. Jennifer Turner, Fellow of Wilson Center
- Followed by closing remarks
Saturday, February 8
10:00-11:00 a.m. Keynote Address
- Welcome and Introduction: Esther Lynch '25, political science and global affairs
- Keynote Speaker: Richard Yu Zhang, Intel China CTO
11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Session 4: Cross-Cultural Collaboration
- Panelists: Eason Ying '28, Greater China Scholar, Bennett Schmidt '25, active sustainability studies student; and Molly Wu' 27, Chinese student on campus
- Moderated by Esther Lynch '25, political science and global affairs, and Ben Martin '25, political science and French
12:00-1:00 p.m. Session 5
- Box lunches provided for registered participants
- Speaker: Alex Wang, UCLA
- Followed by closing remarks
Organizers and Sponsors
If you have questions about the event, contact the symposium organizers, Esther Lynch and Ben Martin.
This student symposium is sponsored by the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies and the Keough School of Global Affairs.