China expert and author Daniel A. Bell will argue the benefits of the Chinese-style political meritocracy in a panel discussion Monday, Oct. 19, at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy. The event takes place at 5 p.m. in lecture hall 04 and is free and open to the public.Over the past three decades, China has developed a system for selecting political leaders that emphasizes meritocracy over the one-person, one-vote method, Bell says.In his book, “The China Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy” (Princeton Press, 2015), Bell examines the advantages and pitfalls of this system and explores how it might remedy some of democracy’s key flaws. Bell, chair professor of the Schwarzman Scholars Program at Tsinghua University in Beijing and director of the Berggruen Institute of Philosophy and Culture in California, is the author of many books and columns about politics and China. Joe Tham, visiting associate professor with the Duke Center for International Development (DCID) and event coordinator, invited Bell and a panel of experts to offer perspectives on the question: “Is democracy overrated?” Other panelists are:• Loubna El Amine, assistant professor of government, Georgetown University• William Keech, research professor of political science, Duke • Judith Kelley, Kevin D. Gorter Professor of Public Policy and Political Science, Duke • Edmund Malesky, associate professor of political science, Duke Pope “Mac” McCorkle, an associate professor in the Sanford School, will moderate the panel. The event is sponsored by DCID and co-sponsored by several Duke units: the Asian Pacific Institute, the Center for International Studies, the Department of Political Science, the Kenan Institute for Ethics, and POLIS (The Center for Politics, Leadership, Innovation and Service).Event parking will be available in Duke’s Bryan Center parking garage or Science Drive visitor lot. A book signing will follow.
