(Sept 2): Whether we like it or not, business operates in a political environment. As much as we would just like to stick to business, the activi-ty of political leaders can make business more difficult. This is sometimes because they are ill-informed.
How do we share updated knowledge of China, particularly when the media may be filled with negative and sometimes hate-filled stories? What is said on the US news channel Fox News, what is tweeted by presidents and the ill-informed, and inflammatory statements from some senior policy advisers make it difficult to present alternative viewpoints. And yet it is these alternative viewpoints that are essential in developing a better understanding of policies such as the Belt and Road Initiative. A better understanding means more appropriate policy responses and an improved business environment.
The most significant obstacle in exploring development opportunities is the lack of knowledge about those opportunities and the lack of knowledge of whom to contact and whom to speak too. How do we share the knowledge that is the necessary foundation of the Belt and Road development opportunities? I offered three suggestions at a BRI roundtable in Dunhuang, Gansu province last week.
