UGEB2151 China’s Mega-Projects in the New Millennium

As the most populous country in the world, China is confronted by the problems of overpopulation, water scarcity, energy shortage, desertification, drought, floods, pollution, and loss of biodiversity. Since 1978 the economy has grown rapidly and as of to date, it has become a rising economic power of the world. However, the environmental and ecological problems have reached a point whereby sustainable growth is jeopardized. To solve the problems of limited resource per capita, as well as encourage economic development, China has implemented and planned for a series of mega projects of far-reaching repercussions, the scale of which is unmatched in the history of mankind. They range from multi-purpose water conservancy projects to renewable energy projects and inter-provincial railway construction. These projects have been conceived for decades yet highly controversial and expensive to build. Meanwhile, China has made a commitment that it will shoulder the responsibility of implementing the 2030 development agenda (17 Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs), and seek solidarity and cooperation to constantly push the cause of global development. This course gives students a general background of these mega-projects, the problems they attempt to resolve, benefits, as well as how these projects trying to meet the SDGs (especially the SDGs 6, 7 and 13 of water scarcity, affordable clean energy and climate actions, respectively), and the potential collaborations with other countries contributing to human well-being. After taking this course, students should have a comprehensive understanding about the occurrence, nature and sustainable solutions of the various environmental problems China is facing.