The 9th China Entrepreneur Summit 2010

From PRNewswire-Asia 2010-11-09

From December 3 to December 5, 9th China Entrepreneur Summit 2010, the most influential annual business event in China, will be held grandly in Beijing. Themed by “New Business, New Conflicts, New Impetus”, the Summit will be co-sponsored by China Entrepreneur Magazine and China Entrepreneur Club. This year’s Summit will consistently invite entrepreneurs with independent minds and resolute actions, economists with outstanding achievements and politicians with great visions to discuss the most deep and cutting-edge topics in commercial society. It is estimated that over 800 guests from all circles of life will participate in the great event.

Eyes on the “Three-News“ in the “Year of Conflicts“

After repeated discussions by internal and external expert panels, we have finally set the theme of this Summit as “New Business, New Conflicts, New Impetus”. Liu Donghua, Chief of China Entrepreneur Magazine said, “Embracing the second decade of the 21st century, we must make explorations and find solutions for some major problems. For example, what path should Chinese business follow? Where should we seek for impetus? Where should we ask for support? Also, we’re in need of reaching some important common views. The theme is in line with our values, which are healthy, positive and keeping pace with the times.”

“The year 2010 can be named ‘the year of conflicts’, which is partly why we have chosen ‘New Business, New Conflicts, New Impetus’ as the final theme,” concluded Huang Lilu, Editor-in-chief of China Entrepreneur magazine, on the year drawing to an end, when asked about the theme of the Summit.

Huang held that this year was occupied with frequent conflicts: Capital is greatly favored while industry is increasingly left out in the cold; the state-owned enterprises are advancing vigorously while the private enterprises are struggling for survival; the domestic enterprises are enthusiastically marching into international markets while multinational corporations are complaining about Chinese market environments; the misunderstandings of the public towards entrepreneurs remain and the spirits of the entrepreneurs are obviously depressed because of delayed reforms and the lack of social recognition; the new generation of staff formed by post-80s and post-90s individuals are impacting the conservative management modes for many years; conflicts between the family businesses and managers are being aggravated during the course of going public…

Click on China entrepreneur summit for more details.

Chinese students flocking to foreign education fair

By Liang Yiwen  2010-10-25

NEARLY 25,000 visitors packed the Shanghai East Asia Exhibition Hall at the weekend to attend an annual international eductaion fair.

As well as Chinese people seeking to study abroad, some foreign students and parents in the city also attended the China Education Expo 2010 to speak to more than 1,000 delegates of 300 institutes from 22 countries.

“We don’t have this kind of education fair in my home country,” said Francesco Bagnis, a sophomore at the University of Pavia in Italy.

Many international schools wish to enter the growing China education market.

Around 210,000 Chinese students studied abroad at their own cost last year, compared with 160,000 students in 2008 and 129,000 students in 2007.

The number is expected to grow to nearly 300,000 this year, according to the event organizers, the China Education Association for International Exchange.

“We found a lot of interest in studying abroad here,” said Andre Pierre Lepage, the international admissions administrator at the University of Ottawa in Canada.

Many non-English speaking EU counties sent their university representatives to the fair for the first time in a bid to attract local students.

Finland made its first appearance at the fair – France sent 34 higher education institutes, its highest ever number.

The number of Chinese students has kept rising in France and they are the second largest group of overseas students group in the country, according to the French consul general in Shanghai.

However, a traditionally popular education destination, Australia, could see a decrease in the number of students from China this year due to the strength of the Australian dollar and the tightening of immigration regulations.

Read more: http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/?id=452607&type=Metro#ixzz13LGkiJd

Can an international internship change the course of your life?

I joined Shanghai Talk magazine as an assistant editor intern in their China office in January 2006. I had just graduated from University in the United States and was in need of an adventure while gaining professional experience before starting my MBA. China had it all. I had learned Chinese at University and was aware of the immense economic development the country was currently going through.

I had a fantastic time during my internship, had plenty of chances to meet new people through media events, had my articles published and most important, I got a peek of what my future career would be.

While in China, I received my admission to Missouri-Columbia school of journalism, generally considered one of the top journalism schools in the world, well- known for its “Missouri Method.”

I was all set; my internship would come to an end at the end of May and I would head back to the United States during the summer to start my masters program.

Three days before leaving Shanghai, I was scheduled to have dinner at a South-East Asian restaurant. I had met the owner through an interview during my internship and wanted to catch-up before leaving China for good.

The event that changed the course of my young life was about to happen. I was about to leave the place around 1 am, when the owner asked me if I wanted to stay in Shanghai to start a new restaurant with him. He gave me 24h to think about it.

I was bewildered, but very excited about the prospect of learning to do business and enter the “real-life”.

After a sleepless night, I gave him my answer. My internship in Shanghai did change the course of my life, for good.

 

Shanghai for first-timers

If you’re visiting China for the first time and are a little adamant about braving the trenches of an unfamiliar country where you barely speak the language, Shanghai is an excellent city to start with. With reliable public transport systems, Shanghai is relatively safe and can be easily navigated with an open mind and a street smart attitude.

With its steady influx of foreigners and largely open minded locals, it is also a great place to meet new people. Shanghai caters to every type, whether you are an art, culinary, music or nightlife enthusiast. New venues pop up on a weekly basis, replacing those counterparts recently deemed “un-hip” by the fickle masses while events and parties are organized daily to satiate the needs of Shanghaiers. The World Expo also gave the city the much needed nudge to buck up, resulting in a massive city-wide face-lift that turns its landscape into a set out of Blade Runner. The latest in a series of architectural theory-defying skyscrapers is the 128-story spiraling Shanghai Tower, due for completion in 2014.

While comfortably taking on its new identity as China’s melting pot, Shanghai hasn’t forgotten its roots, a revival is underway in the Bund to bring back the glamour of the 1900s, most notably with the reopening of the Peace Hotel and a project by New York’s Rockefeller Group, aptly named RockBund. However, if all these seem a bit much to take at one go, there is always the calmer side of Shanghai found in local neighborhoods to take you back to the simpler, quieter life. From early morning tai chi sessions to the evening dance gatherings in parks, Shanghai is dazzling with its neon lights, and comforting once the lights are off.

Shanghai’s new botanic garden set to open at the end of the month

In an effort to increase greenery in the city, after three years’ construction, the Chenshan botanic park will open just in time for the Expo. At 207 hectares (three times the size of the Shanghai Botanic Garden), it boasts 9,000 species of endangered plants and trees , and eventually 30,000 in order to earn a spot at the world’s top 10 botanic gardens.

Designed by German landscape architect  Christoph Valentien (of the award winning firm Valentien & Valentien), several details of the garden were also inspired by Chinese culture and tradition, for example the design of a hill and a lake, the height of the pavilions, and the setting of the buildings.

A 71.4 m waterfall runs from Chenshan Hill into a deep lake at the Quarry Garden, constructed from an abandoned quarry. The park also has a  special garden that encourages blind people to feel the plants and smell the scents, equipped with an audio system to guide the blind on tours of the foliage.