Dialogue between Beijing Students and an American Mayor

As arranged by the Beijing People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (the BPAFFC), students of Beijing No. 4 High School (BHSF) had a face-to-face conversation with Mr. Andy Beerman, mayor of Park City, Utah, the USA, on February 1, 2018. After listening to the introduction of the exchange program between BHSF and Park City High School by U.S·China Peoples Friendship Association, Utah Chapter, mayor Beerman and students of BHSF had a Q&A session.

Mayor Beerman asked a question first: “To reduce pollution, we have begun promoting public transportation since last year. It is said that China also has similar environmental pollution problems, is it true?” Students answered: “Yes. Environmental pollution is also a problem highly concerned and urgently needed to be addressed in China. To control the smog problem in Beijing, the government is actively taking various measures, such as shutting down polluting factories and encouraging the use of public transportation and electric vehicles. Environmental management needs time and we are still on the way.”

Mayor: “How is the development of clean energy, such as solar and wind energies, in China?” Students: “The use of solar and wind energies is basically related to regional factors. China’s large wind and solar power plants are mainly concentrated in the northwestern region, which benefits from the natural environment with abundant sunshine, open field and sufficient wind. To balance the energy mismatch among regions, China has also built cross-region grids to support the huge energy consumption and cover the energy shortage in the eastern coastal areas.”

Students: “You just mentioned that many rich people moved here because of the beautiful scenery of Park City. But compared with other big cities, such as Salt Lake City, Park City seems to lack in educational, medical and other resources. What’s your opinion?” Mayor: “Park City seems to be far away from political and economic centers such as Salt Lake City, yet as a matter of fact, schools of Park City are the best in Utah. The hospital of the city was built ten years ago and is now perfect. The reason why our city is developed like this is because many rich people are living here, and they are committed to building it to a better city and have provided a lot of financial supports.”