Chen Jining

Not to be confused with Chen Jiming.
In this Chinese name, the family name is Chen.
Chen Jining
陈吉宁
Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai
Incumbent
Assumed office
28 October 2022
MayorGong Zheng
Preceded byLi Qiang
Mayor of Beijing
In office
27 May 2017 – 28 October 2022
Party SecretaryCai Qi
Preceded byCai Qi
Succeeded byYin Yong
Minister of Environmental Protection
In office
27 February 2015 – 27 June 2017
PremierLi Keqiang
Preceded byZhou Shengxian
Succeeded byLi Ganjie
President of Tsinghua University
In office
20 February 2012 – 28 January 2015
Preceded byGu Binglin
Succeeded byQiu Yong
Personal details
Born (1964-02-04) 4 February 1964 (age 60)
Gaizhou, Liaoning, China
Political partyChinese Communist Party
SpouseCathy Hu[citation needed]
Alma mater
Occupation
  • cademic
  • environmental engineer
  • ecologist
  • politician
Scientific career
FieldsCivil engineering
ThesisModelling and control of the activated sludge process: towards a systematic framework (1993)
Doctoral advisorM. B. Beck

Chen Jining[a] (born 4 February 1964) is a Chinese environmental scientist and politician who has been serving as Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai and member of the 20th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party since October 2022.

Chen graduated from the Imperial College London with a PhD in environmental systems analysis in 1992. Staying at the Imperial College after his graduation, he completed his postdoctoral studies in 1994 and served as an assistant researcher from 1994 to 1997. In 1998, he returned to his undergraduate alma mater Tsinghua University in Beijing to serve as vice chair of the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering. He then served as the university's vice president from 2006 to 2007, executive vice president from 2007 to 2012, and president from 2012 to 2015.

Joining the Chinese government in 2015, Chen served as Minister of Environmental Protection of China from 2015 to 2017, Vice Mayor of Beijing from 2017 to 2018, and Mayor of Beijing from 2018 to 2022. In October 2022, he was appointed as the Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai and joined the CCP Politburo.

Early life and education

Chen was born and raised in Gaizhou, Yingkou, Liaoning province in Northeast China. His ancestral home is in Lishu County, Siping, Jilin.

Chen started his undergraduate studies at Tsinghua University in 1981. From Tsinghua University, he received a Bachelor of Engineering with a major in civil and environmental engineering in 1986 and a Master of Science in environmental engineering in 1988. Chen traveled to the United Kingdom for graduate studies at Brunel University London in 1988. Chen transferred to Imperial College London in 1989, where he graduated with a Doctor of Philosophy in civil engineering in 1992.[1][2][3]

After receiving his doctorate, Chen worked at Imperial College London as a postdoctoral researcher from 1992 to 1994 and as an assistant researcher from 1994 to 1998.[4][5][3]

Academic career

In March 1998, Chen left England to serve as deputy director of the Department of Environmental Engineering at Tsinghua University in Beijing. He was promoted and served as the department director from 1999 to 2006.[6]

In February 2006, he was appointed as vice-president of Tsinghua University, a year later, he was promoted to become the Executive Vice-president. He concurrently served as Dean of the Graduate School of Tsinghua University from January 2010 to February 2012, Dean of the Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University between January 2010 to July 2011.

In February 2012, Chen was appointed president of Tsinghua University, he remained in that position until January 2015, when he was appointed Minister of Environmental Protection of China.[7][8][9]: 47  At the time of his appointment, he was the youngest member of Li Keqiang's cabinet.[8] In 2015, he was also a member of the judging panel for the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering.

Political career

Ministry of Ecology and Environment

Chen succeeded Zhou Shengxian as party secretary of the Ministry of Environmental Protection on 28 January 2015.[10] He was appointed minister later that year,[11] becoming the youngest national minister at the time, at age 50.[12]

During his term, Under the Dome, a film about air pollution in Northern China, was released. Chen praised the film and thanked its producer.[13] Under the Dome was initially promoted by Chinese state media, but all mentions were removed and the film was censored in March.[14][15] Chen subsequently stopped mentioning the film in all public events.[16][17]

In September 2015, Chen pledged to make eight agencies affiliated with the Ministry independent by the end of next year, or revoke their qualifications otherwise.[18] In March 2016, the Ministry of Environmental Protection announced major internal reforms, transitioning from hitting environmental targets to exercising comprehensive governance.[19] Chen held an emergency meeting in October 2016 after Beijing was put on yellow smog alert.[20] In January 2017, he inspected the monitoring of emissions on highways and industrial areas.[21]

Beijing

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Shanghai Chinese Communist Party Secretary Chen Jining in Shanghai on April 25, 2024.

In May 2017, Chen was appointed acting Mayor of Beijing, becoming the 17th person to hold the office since the founding of the People's Republic of China.[22][23] Chen became a deputy to the 12th National People's Congress in March 2018.[24]

In February 2020, amidst the growing COVID-19 pandemic, Chen visited several companies in Zhongguancun to check on their operations.[25] He was awarded the Silver Olympic Order after the 2022 Winter Olympics.[26]

Shanghai

Chen became a member of the Politburo after the 20th Party Congress and was appointed Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai, succeeding Li Qiang who became a standing member.[27] As party secretary, Chen has visited the CCP's historical sites and repeatedly mentioned Xi Jinping's political theories.[28]

In April 2023, Chen met with former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou.[29] In May 2023, after instructions by Xi, Chen convened a meeting to call for an "upgraded version" of the waste disposal scheme first implemented in 2019.[30] In the same month, he met with JPMorgan Chase chief executive Jamie Dimon. In June 2023, Chen met with Tesla, Inc. CEO Elon Musk, where he encouraged Musk to increase investment in China.[31] In July 2023, Chen convened a meeting of the Shanghai Municipal Committee to relay a decision made by the CCP leadership on Beijing to put Dong Yunhu, director of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress Standing Committee, under investigation.[32]

He met with US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in August 2023.[33] He met with US Senators led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in October 2023, where he called for "healthy and stable" China–US relations.[34] In 2024, Chen was in the forefront of efforts to reassure foreign investors amid concerns about the economy.[35] In November 2024, he met with Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, where both sides pledged to increase ties.[36]

Notes

  1. ^ Chinese: 陈吉宁; pinyin: Chén Jíníng

References

  1. ^ PhD graduate 1993 - Chen Jining - website of Imperial College London
  2. ^ Chen Jining Archived 2018-07-06 at the Wayback Machine - website of Tsinghua University
  3. ^ a b "二十大代表中的留学人员（四） - 中国留学人才发展基金会". www.cosdf.org.cn. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
  4. ^ "Chen Jining: Environmental Protector". China Pictorial. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  5. ^ Bo Zhiyue (2015-03-04). "China's New Environmental Minister: A Rising Star". The Diplomat.
  6. ^ "陈吉宁简历 _中国网". guoqing.china.com.cn. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
  7. ^ "State Council Appoints Dr. Chen Jining President Tsinghua University". Tsinghua University. 2012-02-21. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02.
  8. ^ a b Zhou Qunfeng (September 2016). "Chen Jining: Green Warrior". News China. ISSN 1943-1902. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  9. ^ Hu, Richard (2023). Reinventing the Chinese City. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-21101-7.
  10. ^ "陈吉宁任环保部党组书记 曾赞学生捍卫PX词条". 网易. Archived from the original on 2015-01-31. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  11. ^ "陈吉宁被任命为环境保护部部长". 网易. Archived from the original on 2015-02-27. Retrieved 2015-02-27.
  12. ^ "清华大学校长陈吉宁获任环保部长 成李克强政府最年轻"阁员"". Guancha. 2015-02-28. Archived from the original on 2017-12-01. Retrieved 2015-03-01.
  13. ^ "环保部长：我完整看了《穹顶之下》 柴静没给我增加压力". ent.ifeng.com. Archived from the original on 2022-11-15. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  14. ^ "上海媒体员工因《穹顶之下》被停职". Financial News (in Chinese (China)). Sina North America. 2015-03-06. Archived from the original on 2016-02-15. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
  15. ^ "第一财经雇员因泄露中宣部密令被停职" (in Chinese). Voice of America. 2015-03-06. Archived from the original on 2016-02-15. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
  16. ^ "环保部长陈吉宁回应雾霾治理(实录)" (in Chinese (China)). Caixin News. 2015-03-07. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-15.
  17. ^ "中国环保部长记者会回避柴静雾霾片" (in Chinese (China)). Voice of America. 2015-03-09. Archived from the original on 2016-02-15. Retrieved 2016-02-11.
  18. ^ Gan, Nectar (1 September 2015). "Crusading Chinese official who took on polluters returns to oversee industry eco-reviews". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  19. ^ Li, Jing (3 March 2016). "China's environment ministry unveils restructuring plan aimed at making it more effective". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  20. ^ "Beijing on pollution alert as smog season sets in". South China Morning Post. 2 October 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  21. ^ Zhuang, Pinghui; Zhou, Laura (7 January 2017). "Schools in smog-choked Beijing to install air purifiers". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  22. ^ 陈吉宁任北京代市长. Sina News (in Chinese (China)). 2017-05-27. Retrieved 2017-05-27.
  23. ^ "China's Yin Yong named acting Beijing mayor - state media". Reuters. 2022-10-28. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
  24. ^ 全国人大代表信息-陈吉宁 (in Chinese). National People's Congress. Archived from the original on 2014-01-03. Retrieved 2013-03-06.
  25. ^ Liu, Zhen (10 February 2020). "Chinese cities keen to get back to work but coronavirus concerns grow as workers return". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  26. ^ "IOC thanks Beijing 2022 for memorable Olympic Winter Games". International Olympic Committee. 2022-02-21. Retrieved 2022-02-21.
  27. ^ "China Names Beijing Mayor Chen Jining As Shanghai Party Boss". Bloomberg News. 28 October 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  28. ^ "上海市委书记陈吉宁瞻仰中共一大会址". www.guancha.cn. Archived from the original on 2022-11-16. Retrieved 2022-11-16.
  29. ^ Chung, Lawrence (5 April 2023). "Former Taiwanese leader Ma Ying-jeou in Shanghai as PLA Navy launches strait patrols". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  30. ^ Cai, Vanessa (20 June 2023). "How China's leader Xi Jinping is resetting his agenda with a greater focus on 'bread and butter' policies". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  31. ^ "Musk Asked to Boost Investment in Shanghai by Top Party Official". Bloomberg News. 2023-06-01. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
  32. ^ Zhuang, Sylvie (13 July 2023). "Shanghai legislation chief Dong Yunhu purged in China corruption investigation". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  33. ^ Shepardson, David (August 30, 2023). "US Commerce chief leaves China on upbeat note after 'uninvestible' remark". Reuters. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  34. ^ Wang, Amber; Han, Bochen (9 October 2023). "US senators defy backlash at home to test China's engagement first-hand". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  35. ^ Ren, Daniel (24 October 2024). "Shanghai's economy, under pressure from weak property and stock markets at home, banks on external demand drivers in 2024". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  36. ^ Wu, Willa; Ren, Daniel (6 November 2024). "Hong Kong's John Lee confident over Shanghai ties, says focus on economy not politics". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
Educational offices
Preceded by President of Tsinghua University
2012–2015 		Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by Minister of Environmental Protection
2015–2017 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Mayor of Beijing
2017–2022 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai
2022– 		Incumbent