The US-China Business Council held a briefing and panel discussion in Shanghai on Tuesday, April 23 on environmental enforcement trends and compliance best practices for companies. 

USCBC Environmental Report Overview

Owen Haacke, Chief Representative of USCBC's Shanghai office, shared details from the Environmental Compliance for US Companies in China report released in March, covering takeaways from interviews with 30 member company representatives and other stakeholders from a variety of industries. The report covers challenges, effective mitigation strategies, and policy recommendations.

Panel Discussion

A panel of experts on China’s environmental policies and enforcement will share recent insights on China’s policies changes and impact on company operations.

• Peter Corne, Managing Partner of Dorsey & Whitney’s Shanghai office, and is Co-Head of the Firm’s U.S.-China Practice Group and the Firm’s Sustainability Practice Group
• Dr. Wang Yong, Chairman of environmental consultancy Mr. E
• Julia Coym, Senior Analyst in Control Risks’ Global Risk Analysis practice 

On April 10, the US-China Business Council (USCBC) and China Investment Promotion Agency (CIPA) of Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) jointly held roundtables with representatives of USCBC member companies and municipal leadership of Jinan, Ningbo, and Taicang. The USCBC member delegation was led by USCBC Shanghai Office Chief Representative Owen Haacke and consisted of 13 senior executives from US companies. MOFCOM CIPA Deputy Director-General Li Yong led the discussion between USCBC members and municipal leadership.

The Jinan delegation was chaired by Vice Mayor Li Zijun and was composed of 8 officials from different government agencies including the Investment Promotion Bureau, Industry and Information Technology Bureau, and Science and Technology Bureau. The Ningbo delegation, led by vice Secretary-General Yan Weiguo consisted of 10 bureau chiefs and directors from the Investment Promotion Bureau, Financial Affairs Office, Bureau of Commerce, and Science and Technology Bureau, among others. The Taicang delegation was headed by Vice Mayor Gao Bin and included officials from the Environment Protection Bureau, Investment Promotion Bureau, and Economic and Technological Development Zone.

The five-hour discussion included three separate roundtable discussions between company representatives and leadership of the three cities, where the group had straightforward and constructive conversations. Discussion covered a range of topics, such as cities’ opening up policies, foreign investment promotion, high-end and intelligent manufacturing, environmental enforcement and compliance, IPR protection, and business opportunities in certain industries.

The Jinan vice mayor mentioned Shandong is promoting several key industries such as big data, intelligent manufacturing, advanced equipment, and biotech. He also emphasized Jinan’s effort in IPR protection, noting that the city is one of the five trademark review centers nationwide and has set up a local IPR court. The Ningbo leadership highlighted city’s port and location advantage, and unveiled its plan to foster industrial clusters in new materials, high-end manufacturing, and in the IT industry. The Taicang vice mayor welcomed more investment, and offered detailed information about Yangtze River environmental policy and enforcement.

After each representative from US companies gave their remarks, municipal officials were able to provide direct feedback.

Josh Keller, Associate Professor of Management at the University of New South Wales, has studied how managers approach cooperation and competition in the US and China, and has discovered that Chinese managers are more likely than American managers to take a "both cooperation and competition" instead of an "either cooperation or competition" approach. Professor Keller will introduce key findings from his research, including explanations for why there are cross-cultural differences and their impact on how individuals manage cooperation and competition within their organization, when working with other firms, or when engaged in diplomatic relations.

While we often think we must choose between whether to cooperate or compete with others, an alternative is to choose both. This understanding could have significant implications for trade negotiations, and the future of the United States’ economic and trade relationship with China.

Mark Cohen is a Senior Fellow and Director of the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology Asia IP project, on the role of intellectual property in the trade war. Mark has unparalleled public, private and academic experience in China’s IP environment. As a former US IP Attaché in Beijing and Senior Counsel to the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Mark brings unique insight on how the US and Chinese governments approach IP negotiations. And having served as general counsel to major multinationals, Mark also offers a valuable corporate perspective for developing strategies to protect IP portfolios in evolving contexts.

As the trade negotiations draw to a close, how will structural issues such as IP be addressed? What may be the low hanging fruit? Will China’s recent IP improvements and legislative reforms have durable impact? And what does an emerging "fortress China" mean for your business?