It was the first in a series of gatherings leading up to the public launch in early 2025 of the Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs at SAIS to bring together scholars and policy practitioners to foster deeper understanding and informed policymaking on the evolving role of China in the world. Jessica Chen Weiss, who joined the SAIS faculty in July 2024 as the David M. Lampton Professor of China Studies and inaugural director of the institute, organized the conference.

The formal discussions started with opening remarks by SAIS Dean James Steinberg, as well as Weiss. The daylong deliberations that followed revolved around the understanding that much of the U.S. public and policy conversation is focused on how the United States should counter China and protect against threats to American economic and security interests. Yet, discussions of how to protect American data, infrastructure, technology, and intellectual property have devoted insufficient effort to adding the domestic consequences of measures aimed at strengthening U.S. national security, not only for American workers and businesses but also for the health and vibrancy of U.S. democracy, society, and educational institutions.

Conference participants delved into how U.S. policymakers can get things right at home in their formulation of China policy—in a manner that will define and drive the United States’ ability to succeed over the short and long term. They analyzed the challenges facing the United States in addressing China’s intellectual property theft, surveillance, and other illicit and nonmarket practices—and how policymakers can ensure that efforts to combat these risks do not undermine the very strengths they are meant to protect.

Six discussion sessions were held throughout the day, focusing on such topics as Chinese investment, U.S.-China labor tensions, data security risks, technology controls, renewable technology and industrial policy, the impact of U.S.-China tensions on the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community in the United States, and protecting civil rights in the age of U.S.-China competition, among others.

Memos authored by the conference participants will be published in an edited report in early 2025.