cover of episode The War for Chinese Talent in America, with David Zweig

The War for Chinese Talent in America, with David Zweig

2025/2/23
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David Zweig: 我长期研究跨境人才流动，特别是中国如何吸引海外人才，以及美国对此的反应。我认为，资源跨境流动会改变其价值，所以人才的输出国和输入国都会对此感兴趣。特朗普政府启动的‘中国行动计划’以及我为一些陷入困境的中国学者担任专家证人的经历，促使我写了这本书。这本书整合了我之前研究中关于‘海外人才选择’和‘中国行动计划’的章节，使其更具时效性。中国吸引人才回国的策略，既包括吸引人才全职回国，也包括利用‘海外人才选择’模式，让海外人才兼职参与国内项目。‘千人计划’就是一个例子，虽然旨在吸引人才回国，但实际效果并不理想，大部分参与者选择兼职而非全职回国。近年来，虽然中国对海外人才的吸引力有所提升，但许多拥有博士学位的中国学者仍在犹豫是否回国，这与个人关系、职业发展等因素有关。中国吸引海外人才的方式，其特点在于规模庞大且由中央政府主导，这与其他国家的做法有所不同。‘千人计划’吸引了大量的海外中国学者参与，其中相当一部分人选择兼职参与，这构成了一个庞大的、与中国保持联系的知识群体。‘千人计划’对全职回国人员的奖励远高于兼职人员，全职人员可能获得实验室、研究团队等资源。许多海外中国学者参与中国的人才计划，主要动机是希望为中国的发展贡献力量，其次是科研合作、经济利益和职业发展等因素。美中关系紧张加剧，使得海外中国学者对参与中国人才计划的风险和收益的认知发生变化，地缘政治因素已成为他们决策考量的重要因素。‘中国行动计划’对美中科研合作产生了严重的寒蝉效应，导致合作项目减少，但与此同时，美国境内的中国学者之间的合作却有所增加。‘中国行动计划’的批评者认为，该计划对具有中国族裔背景的科学家进行了不成比例的针对，造成了种族定型和恐惧气氛。‘中国行动计划’在一定程度上成功地减少了美中科研合作，但这对科学发展和全球合作造成了负面影响。美国对潜在知识产权盗窃和技术转移的担忧并非完全没有道理，但其反应过度，造成了不必要的损害。中国政府将海外学者作为统战工作的重点，这加剧了美国对知识产权盗窃和技术转移的担忧。为了平衡国家安全利益和开放的科学交流，美国应该对科研项目进行分类管理，对不同类型的研究采取不同的策略。 Kaiser Guo: (引导性问题和总结性陈述，篇幅不足200字，故不单独列出) supporting_evidences David Zweig: 'And then chapter eight was suddenly Trump is going with the China initiative...' David Zweig: 'And so I just went looking for a publisher of a short book series...' David Zweig: 'Well, the diaspora option sort of was forced on them to a certain extent.' David Zweig: 'In 2009, he mobilized the entire country...' David Zweig: 'Now the numbers are probably down into the lower 70s...' David Zweig: 'Well, you know, we always say, 中国特色...' David Zweig: 'By the time 2018-19 rolls around...' David Zweig: 'Oh, and then what's the difference between what they offer...' David Zweig: 'And pretty much, I think all of us would say...' David Zweig: 'Well, I think that already...' David Zweig: 'So we can see that the collaboration...' David Zweig: 'Well, I think that's true...' David Zweig: 'So, but let me just add one thing...' David Zweig: 'Well, I think there was definitely something...' David Zweig: 'And so I found that...' David Zweig: 'Well, I have my own suggestion...'

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Shownotes Transcript

This week on Sinica, I chat with David Zweig, a veteran China scholar who is Professor Emeritus from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. We discuss Davis'd latest book, The War for Chinese Talent in America, which looks at Chinese efforts to harness the intellectual firepower of Chinese scientists and engineers who studied abroad, especially in the United States, and bring them — or at least their knowledge —back to China. David's book takes a balanced look at both the very real problems generated by Chinese policies as well as the overreaction by the U.S. Department of Justice in the form of the infamous China Initiative.

3:40 – Why got David interested on this particular topic 

7:07 – The diaspora option

12:09 – The Thousand Talents Program/Plan

18:28 – How the talent programs operate

23:48 – Motivations for Chinese to participate in the talent programs, how geopolitics now impacts these decisions, and what the effect of the China Initiative has been on collaboration 

36:29 – The China Initiative’s climate of fear and the concern for racial profiling 

49:40 – The extent of the validity of U.S. security concerns

57:24 – David’s suggestions for balancing national security interests and open scientific exchange 

Paying It Forward: Dan Lynch) and his book, China’s Futures: PRC Elites Debate Economics, Politics, and Foreign Policy)

Recommendations:

David: It’s a Wonderful World) — The Louis Armstrong Musical in New York

Kaiser: The Invention of Yesterday: A 50,000-Year History of Human Culture, Conflict, and Connection)* *by Tamim Ansary, especially the audiobook read by the author

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