President Trump’s insurance policies concerning China and U.S. relations have heightened tensions between the superpowers — whether or not over commerce (tariff threats), expertise (TikTok, IP safety), or territorial disputes (Taiwan). Not too long ago, DeepSeek’s success has sparked fears of an AI arms race. Now greater than ever, there’s a have to foster mutual understanding and collaboration between our two nations.
It’s straightforward to deal with the variations that divide us, however my latest experiences in China have satisfied me that the ties that bind us are simply as vital. The US and China ought to launch a federally funded highschool alternate program, modeled after profitable Chilly Battle-era exchanges between america and the Soviet Union, creating a brand new era of leaders for the twenty first century.
My ardour for Chinese language tradition and language started with finding out the martial arts on the age of seven and the Mandarin language at 11. This previous summer season, I had the privilege of visiting China. As a second-degree black belt, I educated with the legendary Jackie Chan Stunt Crew in Beijing, carried out for the Grand Abbot on the Shaolin Temple, and lived alongside kung fu college students at one of the crucial prestigious Shaolin boarding colleges. What struck me most wasn’t simply the bodily rigor or cultural richness — it was the connections I made.
My new mates and I mentioned every thing from faculty and households to motion pictures and music. My conversations in Mandarin revealed how a lot we had in widespread, regardless of rising up 1000’s of miles aside underneath vastly totally different political techniques. I spotted that non-public relationships between younger folks from our two nations might assist thaw the “economic cold war” that threatens to divide the world.
The US and China are at a crossroads. Because the world’s two largest economies, our competitors usually appears zero-sum: One nation’s acquire seems to be the opposite’s loss. The truth is that we face shared international challenges, from local weather change to technological innovation to making sure international stability. Cooperation could be the important thing to addressing these points successfully. And whereas authorities officers and enterprise leaders usually meet with skepticism and distrust, highschool college students deliver curiosity, openness and a contemporary perspective to the desk.
Think about a program the place 50 highschool college students — 25 from america and 25 from China — spend a summer season collectively every year, alternating between the 2 nations. In america, college students might go to Washington, D.C., tour historic websites corresponding to Gettysburg and Mount Vernon, and have interaction in leadership-building applications corresponding to Mannequin UN.
In China, college students might study China’s historic and trendy historical past by way of visits to the Nice Wall, the terracotta warriors in Xi’an, and cultural landmarks in Beijing. By means of these shared experiences, they’d acquire a deeper understanding of one another’s cultures and kind lifetime bonds.
This pilot program might start with 5 years of funding, enabling 250 college students — future leaders in politics, enterprise and science — to hold ahead the teachings of mutual respect and collaboration. These younger leaders might turn out to be ambassadors for peace, fostering relationships that face up to the pressures of geopolitics.
In the course of the Chilly Battle, instructional exchanges between america and the Soviet Union eased tensions and constructed mutual understanding. At present, the stakes are simply as excessive. By offering younger folks with the chance to study from one another, we are able to plant seeds of belief and cooperation which may sometime develop into insurance policies of partnership fairly than rivalry.
My time in China deepened my perception within the potential for a shared future. Collectively, america and China can create applications that empower our younger folks to turn out to be companions in constructing a greater world.
Logan Spinner is a tenth grader at Crystal Springs Uplands College in Hillsborough.
