Pictures of the Future    Fall 2007

China’s Road to Sustainable Development

Interview with Wan Gang

Professor Wan, you’ve been China’s Minister of Science and Technology for half a year now. What challenges does China face in these fields?

Wan: You have to look at things from two different perspectives. China has achieved very great economic successes since opening up to the West, and it’s well on the way to industrialization. This progress has led to many positive things—but it’s also created problems in terms of energy security, environmental protection, and climate change. We’re now searching for ways to achieve sustainable development, which is obviously a challenge not only for China but also for all humanity.

What role do technological developments play in overcoming the challenges China faces?

Wan: A huge role, because in order to solve the problems, we need to be innovative. This view is also reflected in the long-term development plan we published in 2006. China is seeking to become an innovation-focused country over the next ten to 15 years. However, it’s not enough to have scientists addressing the problems we face; China’s people need to understand the importance of sustainable development. Our main task at the Ministry of Science and Technology is therefore to support all activities that promote sustainability.

What key technologies are being pushed the most in China today?

Wan: We’re focusing on several different areas, the most important of which are new forms of power generation such as clean coal systems and renewable wind and solar energy. We’re also working on environmental protection and information technology systems. Health care-related research is also important, and this involves everything from biotechnologies and pharmaceuticals to new diagnostic techniques and the development of various types of medical equipment. Finally, we’re conducting extensive basic research into forward-looking technologies such as nanotechnology. Again, I must emphasize that it’s crucial to get the entire population involved in these issues.

How do you plan to do that?

Wan: At the end of May 2007 China became the first developing country to draw up a government concept for addressing climate change. This concept focuses on fundamental, technological, and applications research, and also includes measures for getting the public involved in the process. One way we do this is by explaining to people what could be achieved if everyone turned up their air conditioning thermostat one degree, left their cars home for one day, used environmentally friendly detergents etc. In this way, we sensitize people to the fact that everyone can contribute to environmental protection and help stop climate change.

Industry plays a key role in this regard, since outdated machines in factories can cause significant environmental damage that seriously endangers nature and human health. Modern equipment, on the other hand, operates more efficiently and cleanly…

Wan: That’s correct. Environmental protection also involves making industrial processes more efficient, improving process planning, and combining technologies to create closed cycles. Residual heat from steel production, for example, can be converted to electricity; slag can be processed into construction materials; and cooling water can be purified. This not only eases the strain on the environment and conserves energy; it also creates value. We’re now starting to do such things in China. We know that Siemens is a worldwide leader in environmental protection and the optimization of industrial processes, and that the company continues to lead the way in these areas. Siemens thus has a lot of market potential.

What types of partnerships need to be formed to enable the efficient use of such technologies in China?

Wan: Environmental protection is an issue that everyone around the globe needs to address, and each of us has to do what he or she can to help. In general, it’s important to make the technologies that are already being used in the industrialized nations affordable to developing countries like China. Technology transfer also furthers development and market expansion. The more these technologies are utilized, the more money and energy we can all save. At the same time, China itself has to become innovative through its own power. Still, being an innovative country doesn’t necessarily mean doing everything yourself or reinventing things.

One aspect that is of great concern to international companies is the protection of intellectual property. There’s a feeling that reality still doesn’t correspond to officially stated intentions here. What is China doing to correct this?

Wan: China has made a major effort to address this issue over the last few years. We joined the WTO in 2001, and we’ve also signed international agreements and established a legal system for dealing with these matters. Numerous legal proceedings have been carried out and many court rulings have been made that protect intellectual property in China. We know we still need to do more, and we therefore continue to work hard on further improving our standards. We also know that protection of intellectual property is one of the fundamental conditions for establishing an innovation-focused society. After all, people will only be motivated to develop innovations if they’re certain these will be protected. Chinese companies need to understand that the protection of foreign technologies also guarantees the protection of their own new developments. This realization will ultimately have a greater impact than tougher laws. We’ve made a lot of progress over the last five years in this regard, and the situation will improve even further over the next five.

The Chinese government has traditionally played a major role in technological developments in the country. Now, however, Chinese industry is also becoming a driving force behind innovation. What role would you like to see each of them play in the future?

Wan: The government will support those things it deems important, and it will provide investment accordingly. Take fuel cell vehicles, for example. The technology here is not yet ready for the market, which is why the government needs to fund its development. However, in those situations where a particular technology can soon be launched on the market, the government will simply create favorable conditions for its introduction and then let the market do the rest.

You yourself spent many years doing research at a German university, and also worked as a manager at a German automaker—so you’re familiar with the respective strengths and weaknesses of the East and West. How would you compare conditions in the two societies?

Wan: Europe’s strength—and the strength of Germany in particular—lies in the ability of its industries to develop many products on their own. Siemens offers a good example of this. The company has developed its own strategy for success; it invests at an early stage in innovations and then brings its products to market worldwide. China’s industry, which is relatively young, is still unable to keep up with such processes from either a strategic or a financial perspective. That’s why government support is so important, especially when it comes to bringing companies, universities, and research institutes together. Let’s look at fuel cell vehicles again. The government coordinated cooperation between experts from universities, research centers, and the automotive industry here in order to develop key components and drive systems. We then installed the technology in different vehicles from manufacturers such as Volkswagen, SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Cooperation), and Chery. In doing so, we spread out the technology. I think this type of cooperation is our great strength. When products developed in such a manner are ready for the market, the government will discontinue its involvement.

Just how advanced are fuel cell vehicles in China?

Wan: We finished building our fourth generation at the beginning of this year. It now takes one of our fuel cell vehicles less than 15 seconds to accelerate to 100 km/h, and the top speed is 150 km/h. We will be presenting these hydrogen-fuel vehicles at the 29th Summer Olympics next year in Beijing. Around 20 fuel cell passenger cars and about ten fuel cell buses will be used at the Olympic site, along with 50 battery-powered electric buses and another 300 battery-powered small cars. All of these vehicles are the result of Chinese research projects that we launched five to seven years ago—and now we’ll be seeing the technology used for the first time in real applications.

                                                               Interview conducted by Bernhard Bartsch