2024 University of Chicago China Forum - Session 3 - Energy & Sustainability + Fireside Chat

Coco Zhang

Ms. Zhang is an economist at International Netherlands Groups, mainly responsible for research in Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG), particularly regarding the United States. Before joining ING, she worked at the Eurasia Group. Ms. Zhang holds dual master's degrees in Energy and Environment from Columbia University and International Public Management from Sciences Po Paris.

Jianping Fang

Vice President of CIMC ENRIC. Mr. Fang is responsible for integrated energy systems solutions business. He graduated from Tongji University, majoring in Thermal Energy and Dynamic Mechanism as well as Business Administration, and obtained BS and MBA degrees. He joined the Group in January 2023 and served as Vice President. He used to serve as multiple managing roles in institutes such as Shanghai Astronautics Energy Co., Ltd, Shanghai Institute of Space Propulsion, Shanghai Aerospace Smart Energy Technology Co., Ltd.

Yong Wang

Associate Professor of Economics, Academic Deputy Dean and Director of Domestic Development Cooperation Department of the Institute of New Structural Economics at Peking University. Before joining PKU, he worked at the Department of Economics at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and the World Bank. Yong obtained his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago. His main research fields are Economic Growth, Macro Development, China and India's Economy and Political Economy. He publishes academic papers on journals including Journal of Development Economics and Journal of Monetary Economics, and is an author of eight books including Thoughts and Debates on New Structural Economics (Peking University Press). Yong serves as an Associate Editor for China and the World Economy (SSCI) and Economic Modelling (SSCI). He is a recipient of the First Prize of National Academic Research in Humanities and Social Sciences in Chinese Universities by the Ministry of Education of China (2020), the Inaugural Peikang Chang Young Scholar Award in Development Economics (2018), China Young Economist Award (2017), Franklin Best Teaching Award at HKUST(2014), and the Martin and Margaret Lee Prize in Price Theory of at the University of Chicago (2004).  Yong has been invited to present his research at policy institutions such as IMF, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, US Department of State, US Department of Treasury, National Development and Reform Commission of China, and Korea Institute of Finance. He also serves as Secretary General of the New Structural Economics Research Alliance and Consultant of the World Bank.

Tian Xie

General Manager, Strategic Management Center, LONGi Green Energy Technology Corp., Ltd. Dr. Xie is responsible for leading strategic insight, analysis, planning, and initiatives across LONGi group’s business units. He brings a diverse background in physics, material science, technical support, market analysis and sales in semiconductor and photovoltaic industries to his role. Prior to his current position, Dr. Xie was the vice president of LONGi Silicon Wafer Business Unit and managed Sales and Marketing Center. He and his team worked closely with LONGi’s customers all over the world to qualify LONGi’s full silicon materials portfolio, to resolve silicon related issue for present solar cell and module designs, to understand future materials requirements in PV industry, and to maximize customer values. Dr. Xie joined LONGi as a product director in Jan., 2014, and took several responsibilities including quality management and production operation. Before joining LONGi he was a deputy director of Field Application Engineering in MEMC (SunEdison). Prior to that, he held an assistant professor position at Hiroshima Synchrotron Radiation Center, Japan and was a research associate at Max-Plank-Institute of Microstructure Physics in Halle, Germany. Dr. Xie received a B.S. in Physics from Lanzhou University in 1998 and a Ph.D. in physics from Hiroshima University of Japan in 2004. He is studying in an “Executive Education” project of Peking University Guanghua School of Management now.

Zhigang Zheng

He is a professor and doctoral supervisor of finance in the School of Finance, Renmin University of China. He is director of applied finance (Renmin University of China). Senior research fellow of RDCY, contributing editor of“Securities Market Herald”, academic committee of  Pangoal Institution ,and independent director of listed company. He has doctor degree of Economics (Guanghua School of Management,Peking University.His research areas include corporate governance, executive pay design, SOE reform. He is supported by “Program for New Century Excellent Talents” of the Ministry of education. He received the Excellent Doctoral Dissertation of Peking University, and the Huang Da - Mundell prize in Economics.

Dennis Chookaszian

Dennis Chookaszian is the former chairman and CEO of CNA Insurance Companies, which was a $17 Billion multi line insurer with 20,000 employees. In his 26 years at CNA, Chookaszian served in numerous other executive capacities, including chief financial officer, president and chief operating officer where he was responsible for all property, casualty, life, health, and investment operations, and chairman of the Executive Committee. He was also chairman of the Agency Management Services subsidiary of CNA, and chairman of Intergroup, the HMO operation of CNA. Prior to joining CNA, he was a management consultant with Deloitte for eight years working on various financial and systems related assignments. He also served as Chairman and CEO of mPower, an internet startup providing electronic financial advice for management of 401K plans.

John Paul Rollert

Adjunct Associate Professor of Behavioral Science at University of Chicago Booth School of Business. John Paul Rollert's teaching and research focus on the intellectual history of capitalism, the ethics of leadership, and the application of empathy to law, business, and politics. He is also interested in the political economy and moral philosophy of Adam Smith. Rollert's academic writing has been published by Critical Inquiry, Raritan, The Journal of Law, Culture and the Humanities, Business and Society Review, Common Knowledge, Modernism/modernity, Society, and The Yale Law Journal, and he also has forthcoming work in the Business and Professional Ethics Journal. In addition to his academic work, Rollert frequently writes on business, law, and politics for a variety of popular publications. He writes the In-House Ethicist for the Chicago Booth Review, and his work has been featured in The New Republic, Harper's, Fortune, Bloomberg, The Washington Post, Slate, The Paris Review, and The New York Times. For writing featured in The Atlantic, he was recognized by the Society of American Business Editors and Writers in its 2017 “Best in Business” Competition. A graduate of Harvard College, Rollert earned his JD from Yale Law School and a PhD from The John U. Nef Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago. Since 2005, he has taught courses at Harvard in ethics, politics, and leadership.