As early as August 2013, President Xi Jinping gave a speech on the Party’s media and publicity work, calling for innovative concepts, content, and methods. President Xi urged the nation to amplify the voice of China on the international stage by telling stories about the country in an engaging and persuasive manner. 

In exactly the same vein, the bilingual book series Americans in Shanghai is a creative effort to introduce China to the world through insightful and refreshing storytelling about Shanghai. Catering to a wide audience, the books adopt the unique angle of the American expat community in the metropolis. While answering the call of the central government, the books also shed light on the scope and depth of subnational exchanges and city diplomacy. 

The Americans residing and working in Shanghai have become an important contributor to the city’s development. A closer look at this demographic leads to helpful clues as we try to chronicle Shanghai-US exchanges systematically and comprehensively. As an indispensable part of the history of Shanghai, these Americans’ inspiring stories also give us insights to China-US relations, and the growing capacity of cities in shaping global collaboration. 

The 10 people profiled in this edition are both active participants and front-row witnesses to everyday people-to-people exchange between China and the US. They are:

Robert Theleen, founder of ChinaVest

James McGregor, Chairman of APCO Greater China

Jonathan Woetzel, senior partner at McKinsey & Company

Paul Swenson, owner of The China Hand Consulting

Andrew Bolstein, Vice President of Operations at Shanghai Disney Resort

Barbara Edelstein, arts professor at New York University Shanghai 

Alec Haavik, saxophonist

Antonio Graceffo, lecturer at Shanghai University

James Scott, Performance Director of Shanghai Sharks basketball team

Todd Siena, Managing Partner and co-founder of Avia-Tek