I have taught both graduate and undergraduate students from a range of fields and majors, first during my doctoral studies at Oxford University, and more recently at the University of Pennsylvania. Course content spans basic political science and international relations theory, Chinese studies, and environmental studies.

My approach to teaching builds on my research by exposing students to big, often competing ideas and encouraging them to identify questions and challenges to engage with more deeply through long-form research papers. This approach is informed both by my work in academia and by my prior experience as a policymaker, which taught me that it is important to absorb and process a great deal of conflicting information from multiple sources and viewpoints.

This class includes an innovative, experiential learning component based on a ten-day trip to the United Arab Emirates. It looks at one of the most important issues facing the world today: China’s climate policy and energy transition, and its impact on global climate change. The course aims to expose students to the driving forces behind China’s position and policy related to climate change, with a strong emphasis on political economy. The course will also examine barriers and challenges related to meeting China’s ambitious climate commitments. An important part of the course will be guest speakers representing the U.S. and Chinese government officials; multilateral institution officials; researchers; journalists; and civil society.

This class looks at one of the most important issues facing the world today: China’s climate policy and energy transition, and its impact on global climate change. The course aims to expose students to the driving forces behind China’s position and policy related to climate change, with strong emphasis on political economy. The course also examines barriers and challenges related to meeting China’s ambitious climate commitments. An important part of the course will be guest speakers representing U.S. and Chinese government officials; multilateral institution officials; researchers; journalists; and civil society.

The course has two major components. The first focuses on the driving forces shaping China’s climate, energy, and environmental policies. This component gives students a common reference point to understand China’s climate and energy policy, and exposes students familiar with these issues to how China’s distinctive political and economic systems bear on climate and energy policy specifically. This first component also emphasizes issues like growing Chinese consumer awareness of and concern for sustainability issues; energy security; and the changing role of environmental activism within China. The second major component focuses on China’s climate, energy, and environmental policies and the positions Beijing has taken in multilateral climate and other environmental negotiations. Emphasis is placed on different future energy and sustainability trajectories, and the policy and other choices involved in choosing one trajectory over another. This component also includes modules on China’s expanding overseas environmental footprint through the Belt and Road and other overseas development initiatives; its role in non-energy-related environmental issues like fisheries and wildlife trafficking; and the growing involvement of Chinese businesses, banks, and other non-state commercial entities in sectoral sustainability efforts.

Over the past forty years, China has become a country of first-rank economic, political, and military importance. But while much of the focus on “China’s rise” has focused on its security and economic dimensions, China’s role in fundamentally global environmental, scientific, and technological issues are increasingly animating politics both within China and outside its borders. This course examines the “China dimension” of key global scientific, technological, and environmental issues and trends. Its focus is global rather than China-specific and will explore the political implications and dynamics of China’s growing role in fundamentally global issue areas and sectors. It moreover focuses not on traditional fields like trade and security, but instead on newer and emerging ones like climate change and artificial intelligence.

This course is conducted in a seminar format, and is divided into two main parts, one focused on environmental issues, and the second on science, technology, and health. Most of each class session is focused on discussion but will also include short overview/framing remarks from the instructor, and many if not all class sessions also feature a guest speaker.