The Center for China and Globalization (CCG) and China Science and Technology Press will jointly host a book launch and seminar for the Chinese edition of the late Joseph S. Nye Jr.’s memoir, A Life in the American Century 一个人的美国百年史, on August 27 at CCG’s Beijing headquarters.
One of the most influential American scholars of international relations, Nye was best known for developing the theory of “soft power.” Over a career spanning academia and government, he served as Chair of the U.S. National Intelligence Council, Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, and Dean of Harvard Kennedy School.
Published shortly before his death in 2025, A Life in the American Century is Nye’s final book and memoir. Drawing on more than eight decades of personal experience, the book intertwines his academic and policy career with some of the defining developments of modern international affairs, including the Cold War, nuclear nonproliferation, globalization, the war on terror, and the evolution of China-U.S. relations.
CCG maintained longstanding exchanges with Nye. In October 2023, he joined CCG’s 8th China Global Think Tank Innovation Forum in Beijing, , arguing that U.S.-China competition must be balanced with cooperation on transnational challenges, where “power with” matters as much as “power over.”
CCG founder Henry Huiyao Wang also maintained a decade-long relationship with Nye through conversations and publishing collaborations, including the 2023 volume Soft Power and Great-Power Competition. In 2024, Nye authorized CCG to translate A Life in the American Century into Chinese.
At the August 27 event, Henry Huiyao Wang will formally launch the Chinese edition. Shen Yonggang, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of China Science and Technology Press Co., Ltd., will deliver opening remarks, while Mabel Lu Miao, Co-founder and Secretary-General of CCG, will give the welcome remarks.
The launch will be followed by a seminar bringing together Chinese and international scholars, experts on China-U.S. relations, publishing professionals, and media representatives. Discussions will focus on Nye’s intellectual legacy, prospects for building a constructive and strategically stable China-U.S. relationship, and the changing global geopolitical landscape.
Event Details
Date: Thursday, August 27, 2026
Time: 15:00–16:30 Beijing Time
Venue: CCG Headquarters, 12 B10, West Wing, Hanwei Plaza, No. 7 Guanghua Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing
Language: Chinese and English, with on-screen caption translation
Registration: Please bring your business card for on-site registration at the entrance.
Agenda
15:00–15:05 | Welcome Remarks
Mabel Lu Miao, Co-founder and Secretary-General of CCG; Part-time Professor at the University of International Business and Economics15:05–15:15 | Opening Remarks
Yonggang Shen, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, China Science and Technology Press Co., Ltd.15:15–15:30 | Book Launch
Henry Huiyao Wang, Founder of CCG; former Counselor to the State Council; Distinguished Professor at China Foreign Affairs University15:30–16:10 | Seminar
(in alphabetical order by surname)
David Blair, former Chair of the Department of Economics, Eisenhower School, National Defense University, United States
Harvey Dzodin, former Vice President and Director of ABC Television; former Legal Counsel to President Jimmy Carter
Li Huailiang, Dean and Professor, Institute for a Community with a Shared Future, Communication University of China
Mabel Lu Miao, Co-founder and Secretary-General of CCG; Part-time Professor, University of International Business and Economics
Ren Xiao, Professor, Institute of Area and Global Governance, Beijing Foreign Studies University
Henry Huiyao Wang, Founder of CCG; former Counselor to the State Council; Distinguished Professor, China Foreign Affairs University
Zhang Guozuo, Director, Research Center of China’s Cultural Soft Power, Hunan University
16:10–16:30 | Q&A
About the Book
Born at the dawn of what came to be known as the “American Century,” Nye witnessed — and at times participated in — many of the major changes in U.S. foreign policy and international politics over the following eight decades. His memoir combines personal recollection, intellectual history, and policymaking experience, providing a window into the evolution of American power and the changing global order.
Rather than offering an abstract theoretical account, Nye draws on episodes from his own career to examine questions that occupied him throughout his life: how power changes, how ideas influence policy, how great powers manage competition, and whether the “American Century” is coming to an end.
About Joseph S. Nye Jr.
Joseph S. Nye Jr. was a distinguished political scientist and one of the most influential scholars of international relations of his generation. He developed the theory of “soft power” and wrote extensively on U.S. foreign policy, power, leadership, and great-power competition.
His major works include Soft Power and Great-Power Competition, Do Morals Matter?, Is the American Century Over?, The Future of Power, and Understanding Global Conflict and Cooperation.
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