home > the cfr think tank > experts > elizabeth c. economy
C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and Director for Asia Studies
Contact Info:
Phone: +1-212-434-9641
E-mail: eeconomy@cfr.org
Location:
New York, NY
Media downloads:
One-page bio (PDF, 56K)
Video clip (CR.MP4, 1.1 MB)
Video clip (WMV, 847K)
Award-winning author of The River Runs Black: The Environmental Challenges to China’s Future. Currently writing a book on the implications of China’s global quest for natural resources.
Expertise:Chinese domestic and foreign policy; U.S.-China relations; global environmental issues.
Experience:Member, Board of Councilors, China-U.S. Center for Sustainable Development; member, Global Agenda Council on the Future of China, World Economic Forum; member, National Committee on U.S.-China Relations; member, Research Council, Institute for International Research at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center for Chinese and American Studies (2000-2002); member, Selection Committee for the Woodrow Wilson Center’s International Scholars Program (1999-2000); Cochair, Woodrow Wilson Center Working Group on China and the Environment (1997-99); member, Selection Committee of MacArthur Foundation Research Writing Competition (1996-98); periodically consults for agencies of the U.S. government; professorial lecturer, SAIS, Johns Hopkins University (1997); Research Fellow, Columbia University (1994); Visiting Assistant Professor of Chinese Foreign Policy, University of Washington (1993-94).
Languages:Chinese and Russian (familiar).
Honors:Received honorary degree from Vermont Law School (May 2008); The River Runs Black named best social sciences book published on Asia in 2003 or 2004 by the International Convention on Asia Scholars (June 2005); The River Runs Black named one of the Cambridge Top 50 Sustainability Books in 2008; profiled in the National Journal’s special report on people whose ideas will help shape important policy issues after the 2004 presidential elections (May 2004).
Selected Publications:The River Runs Black: The Environmental Challenge to China’s Future (Cornell University Press, 2004); China Joins the World: Progress and Prospects (coeditor, Council on Foreign Relations Press, 1999); "The G-2 Mirage," Foreign Affairs (co-author, May/June 2009); Challenges and Opportunities for U.S.-China Cooperation on Climate Change, Testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations; The Internationalization of Environmental Protection (coeditor, Cambridge University Press, 1997); “China’s Olympic Nightmare,” Foreign Affairs, (co-author, July/August 2008); China in Africa: Implications for U.S. Policy, Testimony before the U.S. Senate Committe on Foreign Relations' Subcommittee on African Affairs Hearing (June 4, 2008); "Economic Miracle, Environmental Disaster: The Degradation of the Huai River Basin," What Matters (Sterling Publishing, March 2008); "China's Growing Ecological Footprint: Global Threat or Opportunity for Collaboration?" The United States, Russia, and China: Confronting Global Terrorism and Security Challenges in the 21st Century (Praeger Security International, 2008); "China's Real Environmental Challenge," Caijing Magazine (Annual Edition, 2008); "A Regional Security Complex in East Asia: The Reality and the Potential," The Environmental Dimension of Asian Security: Conflict and Cooperation over Energy, Resources, and Pollution (United States Institute of Peace Press, 2007); Inside China (contributing author, National Geographic, 2007); "The Great Leap Backward?" Foreign Affairs (September/October 2007); "Scorched Earth: Will Environmental Risks in China Overwhelm its Opportunities?" Harvard Business Review (2007); "China vs. Earth," The Nation (2007); China's Environmental Challenge, testimony before the U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission Hearing (February 2, 2006); Environmental NGOs in China: Encouraging Action and Addressing Public Grievances, testimony before the Congressional Executive Commission on China Roundtable (February 7, 2005); "Don't Break the Engagement," Foreign Affairs (May/June 2004); "Interview with Elizabeth Economy: China's Development and the Environment," Harvard Asia Quarterly (Winter 2003); Beginning the Journey: China, the United States, and the WTO, report of the Independent Task Force (codirector, Council on Foreign Relations Press, 2001); "Reforming China," Survival (Autumn 1999); "Painting China Green," Foreign Affairs (March/April 1999); and opeds and book reviews book published in the New York Times, Washington Post, International Herald Tribune, Boston Globe, New York Newsday, and South China Morning Post.
Related Links:
CFR Fellow Elizabeth Economy’s The River Runs Black Named Best Social Sciences Book on Asia
Current Research Projects
Past Research Projects
November 19, 2009
Interview
CFR's Elizabeth Economy says President Obama's first trip to Asia raised his credibility as a partner in the region and exposed insecurities among China's leadership.
See more in Asia, U.S. Strategy and Politics
November 3, 2009
Interview
Ahead of President Obama's Asia trip, CFR experts Sheila Smith, Joshua Kurlantzick, Elizabeth Economy, and Scott Snyder discuss what the president should focus on during his visit to Japan, Singapore, China, and South Korea.
See more in Asia, U.S. Strategy and Politics
October 19, 2009
Transcript
Stephen S. Roach on the future of China's economy and what it means for the rest of the world, as part of the Council on Foreign Relations' China 2025 conference.
See more in China, Economics, Economic Development
October 19, 2009, Washington D.C.
Transcript
Elizabeth Economy and Randall Schriver introduce the Council on Foreign Relations Conference on China 2025.
See more in China, U.S. Strategy and Politics
October 19, 2009
Audio
Listen to Stephen Roach, chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia, paint a picture of China's economic future.
This session was part of a CFR symposium, China 2025, which was cosponsored with the Project 2049 Institute.
See more in China, Emerging Markets, Geoeconomics
October 19, 2009
Video
Watch Stephen Roach, chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia, paint a picture of China's economic future.
This session was part of a CFR symposium, China 2025, which was cosponsored with the Project 2049 Institute.
October 7, 2009
Testimony
Elizabeth C. Economy testifies before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China about China’s efforts in the realm of human rights, the rule of law, and the environment, and the prospects for U.S.-China cooperation on these issues.
See more in China, Democracy and Human Rights, Human Rights, Energy/Environment, Climate Change
September 22, 2009
Interview
CFR's Elizabeth Economy says it is "not unreasonable" to seek binding commitments from China and India on emissions that would take effect a decade from now. She also recommends decoupling China from other developing nations in climate negotiations.
See more in China, India, Climate Change
July 29, 2009
Interview
After the latest high- level dialogue with China on economic, security, and environmental issues, CFR's Elizabeth C. Economy says Washington should prioritize effective rule of law in China. Virtually every other issue hinges on that, she says.
See more in United States, China, Economics, Energy/Environment
June 4, 2009
Testimony
See more in China, Climate Change, U.S. Strategy and Politics
May/June 2009
Foreign Affairs Article — Summary
A heightened bilateral relationship may not be possible for China and the United States, as the two countries have mismatched interests and values.
See more in United States, China
May/June 2009
Podcast
This audio includes readings of selected articles from the May/June 2009 issue of Foreign Affairs.
See more in United States, U.S. Strategy and Politics
May/June 2009
Podcast
From the May/June 2009 issue of Foreign Affairs: Why the United States and China are not ready to upgrade ties.
See more in United States, China
February 26, 2009
Op-Ed
McKinsey & Company
Elizabeth Economy asks, "Can humankind find its way to a world that is cleaner, safer, and fairer than the one we inhabit today?"
See more in China, Energy/Environment, Natural Resources Management
February 19, 2009
Audio
Listen to CFR experts examine U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, the global economy, and the challenges and opportunities that fill the new administration's inbox.
See more in Asia, Economic Development, Trade
February 19, 2009
Video
Watch CFR experts examine U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, the global economy, and the challenges and opportunities that fill the new administration's inbox.
See more in Asia, Economics, Economic Development
February 19, 2009
Transcript
Embarking on her first international trip later this month, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel to Japan, South Korea, China, and Indonesia to reinforce President Obama's commitment to active engagement and discuss the global financial crisis. Join CFR experts Edward Alden, Caroline Atkinson, and Elizabeth C. Economy to discuss U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, the global economy, and the challenges and opportunities that fill the new administration's inbox.
See more in United States, Asia, China, Economics, Business & Foreign Policy, Emerging Markets
February 12, 2009
Transcript
CFR Fellows Paul Stares, Sheila Smith, and Elizabeth Economy discuss Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's upcoming trip to Asia, her first trip in her new role.
See more in China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Public Diplomacy
February 12, 2009
Audio
Listen to CFR experts Elizabeth C. Economy, Sheila A. Smith and Paul B. Stares discuss U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, in advance of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's trip to the region.
December 12, 2008
Interview
Elizabeth Economy, CFR's director of Asian Studies, says that China's economy is now "losing steam very quickly" and that the "global economic crisis is going to make it much harder for China to address its own domestic economic problems."
See more in China, Economics, Financial Crises
Explore the international finance regime with a new interactive from CFR's program on International Institutions and Global Governance.
Identifying international threats and acting on them may be the most difficult job for U.S. policymakers. This report
provides an actionable road map for managing international threats before they erupt into crises and makes a strong case that preventive action is not a luxury but a necessity.
For more than a decade, the United States has mostly watched from the sidelines as Asian countries organize themselves into an alphabet soup of new multilateral groups. In this report, the authors review the relationship between pan-Asian and trans-Pacific institutions and suggest policy guidelines for a new U.S. approach to this new Asian landscape.
Complete list of Council Special Reports
Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.
In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.
In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.
Complete list of CFR Books
For more information on the David Rockefeller Studies Program, contact:
James M. Lindsay
Senior Vice President, Director of Studies, and Maurice R. Greenberg Chair
+1.212.434.9626 (NY); +1.202.509.8405 (DC)
jlindsay@cfr.org
Janine Hill
Deputy Director of Studies Administration
+1.212.434.9753
jhill@cfr.org
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