This post is part of a weekly series introducing GCRI’s members.
Global catastrophic risk is an inherently global issue. Likewise the study and response to GCR benefits from global collaboration. I was thus delighted when Jianhua expressed interest. Jianhua is based in Beijing, but we met in Sydney, at the 2012 World Congress on Risk, sponsored by the Society for Risk Analysis. Jianhua attended the session on global catastrophic risk I chaired and approached me afterwards. Her research is excellent, spanning several aspects of risk analysis. Since Sydney we have been collaborating on a survey gauging public perceptions of GCR in the US and China. Being able to compare data across countries is an exciting opportunity. We’ll be sure to share the results as they become available. Meanwhile Jianhua provides a Chinese perspective on ongoing GCR conversations. But it turns out she’s not completely ‘foreign’ after all: she attended Carnegie Mellon’s Engineering & Public Policy PhD program at the same time as Tony Barrett, which gives Jianhua a unique understanding of the risk analysis worlds across two leading countries. We’re privileged to have her with us. – Seth
Seth Baum: Jianhua, let’s start with the beginning. How is it that you became interested in risk analysis?
Jianhua Xu: Thanks for the warm introduction, Seth. I stepped into the field of risk analysis as a result of a chance rather than a choice. I was offered an opportunity to study and work on risk analysis after being admitted to my Ph.D. program where a great team excels in this field. The omnipresence of risks and the multiplicity of the angles from which risks are looked at drew my attention and aroused my interest. Then I delved into this field.
Seth Baum: Your research covers topics in health, environment and energy. That’s a pretty broad range! Why do all this, instead of focusing on just one area?
Jianhua Xu: It’s a good question. It’s about being a hammer or being a nail. Being a hammer, you can hit nails of various kinds; being a nail, you can be driven very deep in one place with the help of the various hammers. It is just a difference in type. I am more on the hammer side. With the skill set on risk analysis that I’ve acquired, I’m able to explore risk-related issues related to health, environment and energy. Also, health, environment and energy are somehow closely related. By utilizing energy, pollutants are released which is an environmental problem and poses risks to the public’s health. At first glance, it is broad, but it is interconnected.
Seth Baum: As a geographer, I’m personally quite interested in how things compare between countries. You’ve studied risk analysis in both the US and China. Is risk analysis the same in both countries, or are there differences?
Jianhua Xu: Risk analysis is relatively a young field, but it has a longer history in the US. The academy in China is becoming interested in this field, but more systematic and fundamental research remains to be done in a Chinese setting. Also, the risks facing the two nations are a bit different which reflects the differences in natural resource endowment, developmental status and political regimes.
Seth Baum: You’ve also studied how the public thinks about risk in both the US and China. What did you find?
Jianhua Xu: The one study that I’ve done is to test the viability of a deliberative process for integrating stakeholders in ranking risks in a Chinese setting which was introduced and empirically tested with lay groups composed of Americans. We looked the cultural effects involving deference to technical expertise and quantitative analysis, and skepticism toward public participation in policy-making among the two groups. It is found that although there were some hints of cultural differences, neither difference significantly affected measures of the method’s validity or replicability.
Seth Baum: Beijing is a major world city. What’s that like? What does Beijing bring to the world of GCR?
Jianhua Xu: Beijing, to me, is overwhelming large. It has the downsides and upsides of all megacities. Traffic congestion and air pollution are the most tangible ones. Easy access to the various resources, pluralism of the city and job opportunities are attracting to adventurers and ambitious people. Beijing is a city with a long history, and there are quite a few legacies and relics worth of visiting, like the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace. The metro system in Beijing is great, which is my major transportation tool for my daily life. There are quite some academic institutions in the great Beijing area, which provides a unique environment for learning and collaboration.
Seth Baum: Finally, we know a lot of Chinese students come to the US to study and work. I can also say that a lot of American students are interested in spending time in China. Given your own experience in these countries, what would you recommend for aspiring risk analysts?
Jianhua Xu: Yes, lots of Chinese students come to the US to study and work. I also saw more American students on our campus nowadays than that ten years ago when I was a student at Peking University. With my own experience in the two countries, I would suggest them spend a bit time on going out to talk to people and understanding the culture besides the school work.
