Gary Locke, who served as U.S. Ambassador to China, joined President Ana Mari Cauce Monday night in speaking to the UW Men’s Basketball team as part of the team’s preparations for the upcoming trip to China.
Cauce discussed the learning opportunities the student-athletes will have during the trip, which follows coursework with Prof. Shawn Wong. She also highlighted how the Huskies will be ambassadors not only for the University of Washington, but for the many communities they hail from.
During his remarks, Locke discussed the rapid change that the nation has seen over the past several decades, saying China is both one of the most ancient civilizations and the most modern. He also described the mass migration into cities that has taken place, and how the experiences of the team in Hangzhou and Shanghai will expose the students to the urban side of the nation. The way of life in cities is very different to that of rural communities, where a large number of Chinese still reside, even if those communities are only a few miles away, he said.
Locke served as ambassador from 2011 to 2014, following service as U.S. Secretary of Commerce, and before that as Governor of Washington. He and former Governor Chris Gregoire will both take part in many of the UW’s events next month.
The first of these events will take place November 9, when Cauce delivers a speech on the campus of Tsinghua University in Beijing. That will be followed by events in Hangzhou and in Shanghai, including the UW Innovation Summit and the inaugural Pac-12 China Game.