Yin Xiao – Culture editor.

A debate team from Xi’an Jiaotong University in China visited Linfield to partake in a public English-language debate with members of the Linfield Forensics Team on Feb. 23 in Jonasson Hall.
The debate focused on the responsibility and independence of the environment pollution issue in both developed and developing countries, and followed the British Parliamentary Debate format, which breaks debaters into opposing and affirming sides.
The Chinese debate team members were He Xiaoyu, Wang Wen and Li Shenggang. Linfield participants were junior Colin Jones and freshmen Kole Kracaw and Linh Tang.
The Chinese team represented the side that views that developed nations have a responsibility for environmental pollution in developing nations. The opposing argued was that developing nations should be independent and solve their own environmental problems.
Li opened the debate by criticizing the unequal relationship of exports between the United States and China — two prime examples of developed and developing countries — and claimed that the United States should be responsible for the cost of environmental pollution in China based on American companies in China. Kracaw rebutted, saying that China should see the benefit of business trade and the cost of increasing gross domestic product.
The second Chinese participant, He, indicated that China’s GDP per capita was divided by 1.3 billion of population, which cannot equal China’s level of national power.
Linfield representatives Tang and Jones pointed out that China should treat criticism of environmental pollution as international pressure instead of the responsibility of other developed countries, and success of environmental improvement of city’s “odd-even” traffic restrictions (car with odd code runs on odd dates, car with even code runs on even dates) in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Game proved that China can be left to sort out its issues.
Wang explained that the opposing side should consider that Chinese citizens are able to suffer environmental pollution rather than focusing on who has the responsibility of solving pollution, and developed countries still have a responsibility to help developing countries by transferring technology of treatment for the pollution.
“All the debaters were very informed,” sophomore Marc Pereira, a spectator, said of the debate. “I don’t want to say we just give technology over to China for [solving] pollution, but we still have part of the responsibility.”
Jones said the debate seemed competitive, but he got different points of view from the respective country, even though he had no idea about China and Chinese students.
After the debate, Chinese students talked with the audience.
“We are glad to come to the United States to know more American culture,” He said. “Students here are active and easygoing.”
Linfield is the fifth school of the tour for the debaters, but the first school in
Oregon. Chinese debaters also explored the campus and classes, including the Intercultural Communication class.
The International Debate Education Association sponsored the month-long tour for the Chinese debaters.
The Department of Theatre and Communication Arts, along with International Programs, the Department of Modern Languages, the Department of Political Science and the Office of Academic Affairs/Dean’s Speakers Fund also sponsored the debate.