Thread by @AntheaERoberts

1 - I'm back from 2 weeks in China. Lots of inputs and thoughts to metabolise for my work/writing.

Originally went bc I was giving one of the courses on the Xiamen Academy of International Law, styled as the Chinese/Asian version of the Hague Academy of International Law.

2 - I'm interested by the rise of China as an educational receiving state, not just sending state. Interesting to see about 30-40% of my students were foreign and almost all were from the developing world - India, Bangladesh, Ghana, Solomon Islands etc. Relevant re #geoeducation

3 - Also gave a series of talks in Beijing, including on "Is Int Law Int?" at PKU (thanks to Yifeng Chen), one on "Geoeconomics" at Renmin (thanks to Yang Liu) and one on "ISDS reform" at the Chinese Council for the Promotion of International Trade (thanks to Sienho Ye).

4 - I like presenting in different countries bc the reactions of audiences are often very different in ways that I find helpful for understanding int'l issues in more 3D ways. This was particularly so on the US-China tech/trade war... really interesting responses on geoeconomics.

5 - My talks were often followed by lots of commentators/discussants, sometimes 8 or 12, followed by a dinner, which was a great way to get feedback on ideas, publicly and privately. Many interesting discussions on everything from technology to censorship to geopolitics.

6 - I used a Chinese phone while I was there & pretty much only Chinese apps - exception was WhatsApp to communicate with my family. It was interesting to spend the time on the other side of the Great Firewall. Parallel universe, though of course everyone I dealt with had VPN.

7 - Also visited a number of Chinese technology companies and China's Silicon Valley in Beijing (Zhingguancun). Super interesting ...

8 - I'll be posting a piece shortly on @ejiltalk w @taylor__stjohn about China's new submission to UNCITRAL in support of, among other things, further research on an AB in ISDS reform.

@ejiltalk @taylor__stjohn 9 - Chinese gift giving is truly something to behold. Of many gifts, I will particularly treasure this seal carved with my Chinese name given to me by a good friend @ken_apple_yang who I met in Harvard last year and who very kindly showed me around Beijing.

10 - A few years ago, @BinxinZhang blessed me w/ a beautiful Chinese name 安疏影 or An Shuying, based on a poem about the dappled shadows created by the plum blossom tree - the only tree to flower in the winter. It was a thoughtful choice as Anthea means flower in Ancient Greek.

11 - One thing I thought about a lot when I was in China was the difference b/w the sinologists and the China watchers ... as well as just how much change the people I know from China have seen in their lives ... and what might be to come. I guess we live in interesting times.