Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

Former NPR correspondent to discuss trek across China at Miami U.
By Lauren Shellito
The Miami Student (Miami U.)
09/14/2007

(U-WIRE) OXFORD, Ohio — Miami University students will soon be able to experience China — without having to leave Oxford, Fla.

Rob Gifford, former Beijing correspondent for National Public Radio, will discuss his book, "China Road: A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power." The novel discusses his 3,000-mile journey across China on Route 312 (similar to Route 66 in the U.S.) at 3:30 p.m. Sept. 24 in Hall Auditorium.

In his speech, Gifford plans to discuss the adventures in China that led him to write this book, which started out as a seven-part radio series for NPR's "Morning Edition."

"Rob is a very dynamic and interesting speaker, and his experiences can really put faces to the problems and opportunities in China that students hear about so often," said Jenny Callison, director of communications for the Farmer School of Business.

According to his biography on the NPR Web site, Gifford speaks fluent Mandarin, has a Bachelor of Arts in Chinese Studies from Durham University in the United Kingdom and a master's in Regional Studies (East Asia) from Harvard University.

"The business school places international education as one of its top priorities, especially Asia, because Asian countries are quickly rising in the business world," Callison said.

The Farmer School of Business attempts to offer programs to integrate students with Asian culture and values. One such program is the China Business Program, which has students take Chinese, study in China for a semester and complete a summer internship in China. The Farmer School also offers summer programs in Asia, such as the Far East program, which takes students around China to Shanghai, Nanjing, Beijing, Xian and Hong Kong. The Pacific Rim summer study program takes students to China, Japan and South Korea.

"(China is) now the No. 4 economic power in the world (and) there are so many companies that try to invest in China," said David Yen, professor and chairman of Asia business at Miami. "They all have a branches in Shanghai or Beijing, and they are making big profits in Asia, so students need to understand China and its culture to be able to effectively do business there."

Assistant finance professor David Shrider said that not just business students, but all Americans should be learning more about China.

"China is already vital to the American economy, it is important to any American because it is becoming a major power in the world whether for good or bad, and that's what Gifford's book really gets at," Shrider said. "He cleverly poses the question of will China become a superpower or are its problems going to hold it back?"

Gifford is being sponsored through a joint effort on the part of the Farmer School of Business, the Center for American and World Cultures and NPR 88.5/ WMUB. Gifford will also be available for a book signing prior to his speech at 3 p.m. in the Green Room.

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