The Evolving Belt and Road: Risks, Practices, and Institutions

Conference date: 13 December 2019 (Friday)
Conference venue: City University of Hong Kong
Deadline for abstract submission: 15 March 2019 (Friday)

Call for papers

Ever since the Chinese government put forward the Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative, there has been an increasing discussion on its geopolitical, geo-economic and geo-cultural ramifications, and the possible cooperation among dozens of economies across Asia, Africa, Europe, and America. The manifestations of China’s connectivity initiative present a co-evolving venture with various opportunities and risks and is expected to have intriguing impacts on the global political, economic and socio-cultural governance. The complications of multi-faceted projects, as well as the related bilateral and multilateral cooperation at different levels have led to a diversified approach of regional integration and concrete practices. The resulting institutional architectures and implications are invaluable case studies to interrogate how different B&R projects can or cannot shape the current inter-regional developments. For example, it is intellectually intriguing and practically important to investigate whether the emerging green finance arrangement along the B&R has facilitated the sustainability of investment; if the ambitious initiatives in various infrastructure constructions has posed great demand for and resulted in quality project management, and if the “cultural exchange of people” – one of the five principles in Xi’s vision of B&R – attends to the variety of civilizations along the Road.

This one-day conference seeks to enlighten the greater understanding of the evolving risks, practices, and institutions arising from the Belt and Road Initiative and their implications for the sustainable development of communities and their interrelations. It begins with a set of simple but important questions about the risks, and moves on to address the complicated and multi-cited practices, as well as the co-evolving institutional arrangements to resolve the challenges. This processual approach to examine the unfolding of the B&R projects is expected to inform the theorization of national and institutional developmental model, and the strategic choices for the engaging stakeholders. With this framework, we call for papers on B&R research in a broad sense, encompassing topics related, but not limited to 1) the integrative environmental, social and governmental (ESG) analysis of green finance; 2) feasibility concerns and project management for infrastructural constructions; 3) legal and accounting governance for trans-regional trade initiatives; and 4) studies related to the social, community, cultural and environmental developments and international relations.

Given the complications of the topic, it is of great importance to bridge the knowledge between researchers and practitioners. This conference will bring together academics, researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to address issues that pertain to their fields of expertise and practices and to inspire conversation across disciplines, sectors and jurisdictions. As such, the conference will feature a plenary session consisting of key industry practitioners and academics, followed by parallel panels to discuss research papers and industry practices. We welcome paper and panel proposals from different disciplines, from both academics and practitioners, and from various jurisdictions and communities.

Publication opportunities

Papers submitted and presented at the conference will be considered for inclusion in a special volume of peer-reviewed journals (currently under discussion by China Information and Journal of Shenzhen University) and an edited book volume published by Palgrave-Macmillan. The publication arrangement is subject to the final confirmation with the respective journal(s)/publisher according to normal peer-review procedures.

Submission instructions

We call for abstract submissions in Chinese or English for individual paper presentation or organized panel discussion:

• Individual paper: an abstract of not more than 500 words, with a brief biography of the presenter, should be submitted to Dr. Iris Kam via email at cshk.ic19@cityu.edu.hk on or before 15 March 2019. Please indicate “Conference abstract submission” in the subject line of the email.

• Organized panel: an abstract of not more than 1000 words, with a set of brief biographies of all panel members, should be submitted to Dr. Iris Kam via email at cshk.ic19@cityu.edu.hk on or before 15 March 2019. Please indicate “Panel abstract submission” in the subject line of the email. The panel abstract should include an introduction of the panel focus as well as individual paper abstracts.

Accepted abstracts will be notified by CSHK via email before 15 April 2019. Deadline for full paper submission will be on or before 30 August 2019. Details on the registration for the conference will be communicated later.

Convener(s) and contact information

The conference is jointly organized by the Research Centre for Sustainable Hong Kong (CSHK) and the Department of Public Policy of the City University of Hong Kong. A research team of the Centre was funded by the Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office (PICO) in 2017 to engage in a three-year project “Hong Kong Professional Services in the Co-evolving Belt-Road Initiative: Innovative Agency for Sustainable Development.” While this project specifically researches the challenges encountered by Hong Kong professionals to match and take part in the official enthusiasm, it also enlightens a broader understanding of the divergent views and expectations among multiple stakeholders.

The conference will take place at the City University of Hong Kong. No conference registration fee is required but participants should take care of their travel and hotel expenses. For any enquires about the conference, please contact Dr. Iris Kam via email at cshk.ic19@cityu.edu.hk, or visit our website at: http://www.cityu.edu.hk/cshk/ .