Two Issues in Studying Security Environment

To some extent, China’s security environment depends on if it has active creation, understanding, attention and vigilance on the common interests of the surrounding areas and groups of states, and if it could take timely and proper countermeasures. In my personal view, two principles should be taken into consideration. The first principle is

Reflections on China's Neighboring Security Environment

There is a Chinese saying that goes like this, when stormy weather comes, a giant dragon will rise. It is the feature of the present era. When China begins to rise, it will advance at an enormous inertial force. It has become the important factor that influences world future trend. In the meanwhile, changes in international situation also exerted increasing influence on China. Therefore it is of special significance to discuss and assess the international environment that China faces.

The Role of Sports Diplomacy in Advancing Environmental Security in Africa: Case of Forest Conservation in Kenya

Environmental security remains a key challenge in the late 19th through to the 21st century,whose solution has attracted a number of initiatives.Sports diplomacy has achieved great strides in achieving international,regional,and local unity.However,the use of sports diplomacy in achieving environmental security has received much less research attention.This research examines the role of sports in diplomacy in achieving environmental security in Kenya.This study was anchored on the soft power theory and Conservation of Resources(COR)theory which offer frameworks for explaining the role of sports diplomacy in advancing environmental security.The study adopted exploratory research design.The target population was diplomats,marathoners,coaches,environmentalists,conservationists and government officials,academia as well as Water Resources Authority(WRA).The primary data were obtained through open and closed structured questionnaire.The collected data were analyzed through the use of frequency distribution,and thematic analysis.The study established that sports diplomacy advanced environmental security in Kenya,which was better for athletics and volleyball.Environmental security was also enhanced through training,sensitization,conservation efforts,and environmental education.Sport events also allowed a contact-platform for interaction between various groups involved in environment and forest conservation.This study recommends that sports diplomacy should be used in most of the regions in Kenya experiencing environmental perturbations and the current strategies should be applied in the sports diplomacy and environmental conservation as well as security.Further,the government is also encouraged to appoint more sports ambassadors with proper environmental knowledge to help in environmental management.The role of academicians in sports diplomacy and environmental security was found to be minimal where academicians should be at the forefront as the 21st century diplomats are incorporated into sports to be local ambassadors.Perceiving the significance of sports diplomacy and environmental security,there is need for coordination between various county governments to coordinate their efforts and in the process they should bring on board even the non sports actors to boost the role of sports in diplomacy and environment.

Socio-economic development of countries based on the Composite Country Development Index(CCDI)

World experience indicates the existence of significant imbalances in the development of countries.The problem of assessing the rational development of the regional and national economy is becoming urgent,since such assessments can prevent development imbalances across countries.The aim of this study is to elaborate a methodology to assess the countries’socio-economic development by integraring 12 modern indices of socio-economic development into the Composite Country Development Index(CCDI).The methodology of this research was based on a set of key indices that described socio-economic development level in four fields(social development,digital development,economic development,and environmental security)and then these indices were integrated into the CCDI.The study further applied factor analysis and R-Studio software to define the gaps of social and economic development in 59 selected countries using the trigonometric function of the angle sine.The correlation analysis confirmed the existence of a close interrelation among the studied countries.This paper noted that due to the emergence of new priorities,it is necessary to revise the assessment methodology of socio-economic development level and expand them to cover the decisive factors.This was confirmed by the results obtained,demonstrating various combinations of the development level in the four fields and their impact on the CCDI.The scientific contribution of this research is to form a methodology(e.g.,the CCDI)for evaluating the socio-economic development level of countries in the world.

Water environment security indicator system for urban water management

Water environment security （WES） is defined in terms of three aspects： first, that it meets basic demands due to industrial and domestic usage; second, that it protects public health from acute and chronic threats; and third, that measures are adopted to ensure sustainable ecological functioning of freshwater resources. Limitations associated with current water environment security indicators in China -- including inefficiency in terms of environmental monitoring, inappropriate indicators and parameters that do not take sufficient account of local water characteristics, and a lack of management targets -- leads to a failure of effective water management. To achieve better water environment management, a systema- tic approach, encompassing several steps including estab- lish ideal indicator system and narrow down the scope, screen priority pollutants, identify local characteristics and organize discussion workshop, should be followed to establish a comprehensive water environment indicator system. A case study in Suzhou is included to demonstrate the detailed operational procedures used to assess the risks associated with poor management practices relating to water environment security as well as design an appro- priate water environment security indicator system.

Industrial land expansion in rural China threatens environmental securities

China’s rural industrialization has been a major driver for its rapid economic growth during the recent decades,but its myriad environmental risks are yet to be fully understood.Based on a comprehensive national land-use data set,our study shows that the area of China’s rural industrial land(RIL)quadrupled during 1990–2015,reaching 39338 km2 in 2015,comparable to urbanization in magnitude but with a much greater degree of landscape fragmentation which implies stronger ecological and environmental impacts.About 91%of the protected areas in the central China were within 50 km from rural industrial land,thus exposed to industrial disturbances.Accelerated rural industrial land expansion,particularly in regions under high geo-hazard risks,led to dramatically increased environmental risks,threatening the safety and health of both rural industrial workers and residents.Moreover,negative effects from rural industrial land expansion could partially offset the crop production growth in recent decades.The underprivileged rural population in the west bears a disproportionally large share of the increased environmental risks.China urgently needs to design and implement sustainable policies to restrict and reshape its rural industrialization.This study aims to inspire policy makers and researchers to rethink the current model of industrial expansion and improve rural industrial land planning,which is important for achieving the sustainable development goals of China.

Energy internet or comprehensive energy network?

What needs to be developed from the concept of"Smart Grid"is that:when renewable energy sources are absolutely prevailing in power generation,distributed power generation and distributed energy storage systems are widespread across the grid,and electric vehicle charging loads are prevailing in power load demands,how can the power grid support electric power as a core secondary energy source,undertake the role of a bridge between primary energy and end-use energy,and achieve the coordination and the optimization in macro energy perspective;how to guarantee the security of both macro energy and environment as well as the reliability of electricity.If a new term is needed,it should be Comprehensive Energy Network,not Energy Internet.