Shi-Kupfer interview + Weak emissions trading

The human rights violations in Xinjiang are real. In fact, they even meet some criteria for genocide. This is what the renowned sinologist Kristin Shi-Kupfer from the University of Trier is telling us. Her voice carries weight. As a German professor, she works independently and compiles verified knowledge. She has checked the relevant publications for their credibility and supplemented them with her own research. In an interview with Felix Lee, she now accuses German corporations of naivety by feigning ignorance about the treatment of Uighurs. The interview is of particular interest for managers due to two other intriguing statements: Trade is still useful – and Germany’s behavior still has considerable influence on the country’s conduct.

A certain amount of hypocrisy – this time on climate policy – also surrounds emissions trading. Later this month, Chinese power companies will also be included in trading. However, as Nico Beckert analyses, the emerging economy finds itself in the same dilemma as Europe does. It has long been a consensus that the burden can be distributed fairly and efficiently through a market mechanism but both economic areas are reluctant to effectively reduce permitted emissions. After all, they wish to avoid burdening precious economic growth. That is a pity, because in China, as in Europe for that matter, this instrument is an important weapon in the battle against global warming.

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Finn Mayer-Kuckuk