Small farmer, big field [The Straits Times]

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Angry rice farmers in the Cambodian city of Battambang blocked a major road two months ago after seeing prices fall 25 per cent since their harvest began. They were protesting over the slow pace of government support. Just over a…

“Taiwan’s China Dilemma” by Sharyu Shirley Lin [Book Review]

“Taiwan’s China Dilemma” by Sharyu Shirley Lin [Book Review]

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A few weeks after her inauguration, incoming Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party said that Taiwan would be re-evaluating its trade links with the Mainland. This was expected after the student-led Sunflower Movement had resisted attempts by the…

“East Commerce: A Journey Through China E-Commerce, and the Internet of Things” by Marco Gervasi [Book Review]

“East Commerce: A Journey Through China E-Commerce, and the Internet of Things” by Marco Gervasi [Book Review]

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Google vs. Baidu. Amazon vs. Taobao. Whatsapp vs. WeChat. And, most recently, Uber vs. Didi. There is clearly a divide between China and the rest of the world when it comes to internet companies. Homegrown Chinese tech firms have fought…

Why political apathy is a bigger threat to Hong Kong’s future than independence calls [The South China Morning Post]

Why political apathy is a bigger threat to Hong Kong’s future than independence calls [The South China Morning Post]

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The surprising rise of the independence movement has changed the rhetoric on both sides of the political spectrum: the establishment is now defending public events that criticise the mainland, noting that it is important for Hong Kong people to stay…

How one Hong Kong village has adapted a rural lifestyle for the 21st century [The South China Morning Post]

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It may be hard to talk about anywhere in Hong Kong being in the “middle of nowhere”, but Lai Chi Wo village would probably come pretty close. Nestled within Plover Cove Country Park, and next to the Yan Chau Tong…

Book review: Wish Lanterns illuminates modern China by focusing on six twenty-somethings [Reprints]

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My book review on Wish Lanterns: Inside the Young Lives of China was reprinted in The South China Morning Post on July 7th, 2016. You can find the reprint here.

Wish Lanterns: Young Lives in New China by Alec Ash [Book Review]

Wish Lanterns: Young Lives in New China by Alec Ash [Book Review]

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Despite the fact that they live in one of the world’s most important—and most rapidly changing—economies, the motivations and beliefs of the “post-80s generation” largely remain a mystery. They are certainly not “democrats-in-waiting,” as many hoped they would be. But…

Blue Skies Over Beijing: Economic Growth and the Environment in China by Matthew E. Kahn and Siqi Zheng [Book Review]

Blue Skies Over Beijing: Economic Growth and the Environment in China by Matthew E. Kahn and Siqi Zheng [Book Review]

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The media often portrays China—with some justification—as an environmental hellhole, created by a development program that prioritizes economic growth over everything else. Almost all of China’s major cities have severe air pollution problems. Heavy industry has contaminated large portions of…

Did Occupy Central Really Fail? [The Diplomat]

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Now that Joshua Wong, former student leader of Scholarism and one of the forces behind the Occupy Central Movement, has started a political party, it may be a good time to look back on what initiated this newest phase of…

Marrow by Yan Lianke [Book Review]

Marrow by Yan Lianke [Book Review]

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Marrow is not a new book: the original was written by Yan Lianke in 1999. But, with Penguin China’s new translation of Marrow by Carlos Rojas, this short novella with its rural Chinese setting and its themes of sacrifice is…