You can find my essays and opeds in Foreign Affairs, Journal of Democracy, Lianhe Zaobao (联合早报), Pengpai (澎湃), Project Syndicate, The New York Times, and so on. My writing is named "Best of Print" by Foreign Affairs.
featured essayS
“Autocracy with Chinese Characteristics: Beijing’s Behind-the-Scenes Reforms,” Foreign Affairs, May/June issue (on Is Democracy Dying?), 2018 | Link
Selected by Foreign Affairs as “Best of Print 2018”
Selected by Foreign Affairs in reading list on “How to Understand the United States and China,” 2018
Public lecture based on this essay at Camden Conference | Video
“Can China Survive Its Gilded Age?,” Foreign Affairs, July/August issue (Can China Keep Rising?), 2021 | PDF | Link
China is now in the midst of its own Gilded Age... Chinese President Xi Jinping is attempting to summon China’s own Progressive era—an age of less corruption and more equality—through brute force.
The world is witnessing a curious form of great-power competition today: not a clash of civilizations but a clash of two Gilded Ages. Both China and the United States are struggling to end the excesses of crony capitalism.
china & the world
“The False Dichotomy of Autocracy and Democracy.” Project Syndicate. 28 October 2020. (pdf)
“The Myth of the Tech Race,” Project Syndicate, Special Edition: Beyond the Tech Lash. April 21, 2020. (pdf)
“Demystifying China’s Belt and Road: The Struggle to Define China’s Project of the Century,” Foreign Affairs, May 22, 2019. (pdf)
“What’s Next for the Belt and Road?” South China Morning Post, April 24, 2019.
“China’s Belt-and-Road is a Campaign, Not a Conspiracy,” Bloomberg, Sep 28, 2018.
Invited response to “Will China’s New Debt Diplomacy Strategy Reshape the World?” The International Economy. Winter 2018. (pdf)
chinese political economy
"What is New and Not New About Xi's Common Prosperity Drive?" CSIS Interpret. 27 December 2021. [link]
"Decoding Xi Jinping: How Will China’s Bureaucrats Interpret His Call for Common Prosperity?” Foreign Affairs, 8 December 2021. (pdf)
"Can Xi End China's Gilded Age?" Project Syndicate. 21 September 2021. (pdf)
"China's Economic Headache: Setting Targets for Quality Development." South China Morning Post. 8 April 2021. [link]
“China’s Corrupt Meritocracy,” Project Syndicate. October 4, 2019. (pdf)
“The Real China Model: It’s Not What You Think It Is.” Foreign Affairs. June 29, 2018. (pdf)
innovation & development
“Unbundling Corruption: Why it Matters and How to Do It,” OECD Development Matters Blog, 25 June, 2020. (link)
“Missing the Big Picture on Poverty Reduction,” Project Syndicate. Nov 13, 2019. (pdf)
“Three Fallacies of Embracing Complexity,” UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) Transformation Series. 2018. (Link)
“Which Comes First in Development: Good Governance or Economic Growth? (Spoiler: It’s Neither).” World Bank Governance Blog. 2017. (Link)
“Normatively Weak Institutions Can be Functionally Strong: A Surprising Lesson from China.” OECD Development Matters Blog. 2017. (Link)
“Ending Poverty: What Should We Learn and Not Learn from China,” Brookings Development Blog. 2016 (Link)