President Clinton Comes to Beijing

About a month back, I got an email forwarded to me by a friend announcing Bill Clinton would be coming to Beijing to speak at a conference!

1,000 RMB ($161) later, three colleagues and I were sitting in a ballroom in the Central Business District of Beijing waiting for Clinton to speak!

Obviously, I'm very EXCITED about getting my audience badge!

Clinton was the keynote speaker of the 2nd China Philanthropy Forum.

CLINTON

So, here's an outline of what he spoke about.  First off, he changed my understanding of philanthropy.  I used to think it simply was "giving money" and so I thought this conference about developing philanthropy in China was simply a talk about "how to get people to give money."  But he defined philanthropy as that area between what government can provide and what the private sector can produce. This usually comes in the form of non-governmental organizations (NGO's).  These NGO's can address issues faster and at lower costs than governments can.

Clinton talked about how politics/governments address and answer 1) what to do and 2) how much does it cost.  What NGO's have the luxury and ability to do is to address these issues with how to do it best.  That because there are no shareholders (as in a private sector) that NGO's have the ability to try methods and fail. This trial and fail allows for learning and establishment of best practices.  NGO's empower by answering the "how" question.

Standing Room Only

Clinton then went onto address the relationship between China and the USA and their ability to shape the future. He talked about the amazing generation we just had/are in in which 500 million Chinese have been brought out of poverty. However, Clinton talked about the problem on inequality.  There is too much concentration of wealth at the top.  Therefore, the issue for BOTH countries is how to have a vibrant growing economy that is shared amongst everyone. At this point, he made a jab at the American financial system which brought about the financial shock of 2008 and spelled out how the excessive instability of the modern world leads to people being risk averse. The lack of risk taking thereby slows down economic growth, which is what we need. 

Question and Answer.  I really like the way Clinton is sitting in this picture.

Clinton then went on to talk about climate change and the sharing of scarce resources.  He had a great quote and that is that we "must share in positive terms or suffer in negative ways." That the great problems of the world have to be solved by working together and that comes best, most often, with NGO's and therefore philanthropy must be encouraged and developed as a mean to solve the worlds great issues.

Disagreements are normal, Clinton stated, but we as humans have the capacity to resolve them without violence. People are best because unlike many animals, we have the ability to achieve consensus. We have heart, diversity of ideas and a sense of duty.  NGO's are groups committed to solving problems without the issue of politics or profits.

The conference was an all day affair. However, there was a VIP dinner and I happened to know the woman working at the PR firm organizing it and got put on the list.

My invitation!

For some reason, I thought Clinton would be at the dinner and I would get to shake his hand and get a picture.  Nope.  But the dinner was nice and in the craziness of life, I sat next to a professor from a college in Minnesota who works with the Clinton foundation.  She was great and I'll be in touch with her about her work in providing more access to education for disabled Chinese kids.

Overall, Clinton is a great speaker.  He looked tired, though.  He did mention that he had just come from Myanmar.  Although I learned a lot from his speech, I wish that at some point I will be able to hear him give a political speech.  The kind you see him give at conventions or when he was campaigning.  I want to feel that electricity he can bring.  And lastly, of course, the big question of the day.  Did he know if Hillary is planning on running for president in 2016.  His answer?  She is the most able politician and leader in their family!