China's Ascent: New superpower or New Global System
Date: 25-27 June 2010
The 2010 Wellington Conference on Contemporary China was jointed hosted with the 45th Otago School of Foreign Policy. The conference was held on Friday 25-27 June 2010 at Salmond College in Dunedin. The conference was opened by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Murray McCully. The event had leading national and international China academics and New Zealand figures including Wellington Regional Chamber of Commerce CEO Charles Finny and journalist and analyst Colin James.
Professor David Shambaugh of George Washington University was the conference's keynote speaker. Professor Shambaugh is an internationally recognised authority on contemporary China affairs and the international politics and security of the Asia-Pacific region.
Some of the world's leading scholars on China converged in Dunedin to dissect what the rise of China as a superpower means for New Zealand and the world.
The Conference speakers examined how China had brought about significant changes to international politics, the world economy, global governance, and regional institutions, and debated whether a new China will fundamentally change the rules of the game in the global system.
Co-director of the conference and Director of the New Zealand Contemporary China Research Centre Professor Xiaoming Huang says the rise of China has raised many issues. "Today, China is often seen as a responsible stakeholder in the global system. However there are still concerns about what role it will take in the merging world order and how the country’s growing interests and capacities will shape the way the international system operates."