Contributions from individuals with unique perspectives to share. Hear from everyone, from experts and commentators to those whose voices are often marginalized.

VOICES & OPINION

voices-&-opinion

Saving China’s Vanishing Fields of Knowledge

Researchers spend decades deciphering ancient texts and understanding bygone science. Now, their once-overlooked disciplines are becoming part of China’s national cultural strategy.

Lü Chuanyi

Skin in the Game: What Makes a Chinese Game Character Feel Real?

Since the arcade era, Chinese fighters have been sexualized, Orientalized, and treated as cultural indicators. Now, Chinese players want authenticity.

Chen Menghan

How China Delivers a 14-Yuan Bouquet Over 2,000 Kilometers

A simple online flower purchase reveals the supply-chain design behind China’s low-cost e-commerce economy.

Wang Xin

The Chinese Tea That Became a British Joke — and Those That Didn’t 

From prestigious imports to pantomime dames, Chinese tea terms in English reveal a history of admiration, adaptation, and distortion.

Hugo Tseng

How Cantonese Cuisine Became Part of the English Language

From dim sum to char siu, dozens of Cantonese culinary terms have entered the global lexicon, reflecting more than a century of migration, trade, and cultural exchange.

Before China’s First Emperor: Unearthing the Long Rise of the Qin

Over two millennia after its founding, historians still wonder: Why was it the Qin — and not any of the other Warring States — that unified China?

Wu Haiyun

China’s Changing Climate May Be Why Your Garlic Is Moldy

Most of the world’s garlic is grown in China. But this year, unusual weather conditions this past fall, winter, and spring challenged the country’s farmers.

Li Weitan

At World AI Forum, Four Signs China’s AI Industry Is Growing Up

This year, China’s biggest AI conference showed an industry racing to cut computing costs, put AI agents to work, manage new risks, and find business models that can last.

Cai Yiwen

The Soybean That Built Northeast China

Long before China imported soybeans from Brazil and the United States, the crop powered the country’s economy in the northeast, shaping industry, empire, and the fate of many small towns.

Wang Hanyang

The Many Lives of Chaoshan

Once known mainly for its merchants and overseas networks, Chaoshan is back in the spotlight. This series examines how the region’s past and present offer insights into modern China.