China’s economic competitiveness and international ambitions often pose a direct challenge to the United States and its global interests. Dr. Kennedy’s long experience in China and his expertise in economics and global governance inform his unique insights into the public policy implications of this strategic competition.
Scott Kennedy is a leading authority on China’s economic policy and its global economic relations. He has been traveling to China for over 30 years and has interviewed thousands of officials, business executives, lawyers, nonprofit organizations, and scholars. His specific areas of expertise include industrial policy, technology innovation, business lobbying, multinational business challenges in China, global governance, and philanthropy.
He is currently at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, D.C., where he serves as senior adviser and Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics and is Director of the Project on Chinese Business and Political Economy,
His articles have appeared in a wide array of policy, popular, and academic venues, including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, China Quarterly, and the Journal of Contemporary China. He is currently writing a book tentatively titled The Power of Innovation: The Strategic Importance of China’s High-Tech Drive. He is also the author of China’s Risky Drive into New-Energy Vehicles (CSIS, November 2018), The Fat Tech Dragon: Benchmarking China’s Innovation Drive (CSIS, August 2017), and The Business of Lobbying in China (Harvard University Press, 2008). Reviewing the latter book, the Far Eastern Economic Review observed that “Tucked away in this well-researched, carefully reasoned piece of scholarship are fresh, insightful observations on both economic and political trends in Chinese society…”
Prior to joining CSIS, Kennedy spent 14 years as a professor at Indiana University (IU), where he established the Research Center for Chinese Politics & Business and was the founding academic director of IU’s China Office.
Kennedy received his Ph.D. in political science from George Washington University, his M.A. in China Studies from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and his B.A. from the University of Virginia.