China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) represents the world’s largest comprehensive infrastructure investment program. BRI holds the potential to improve development in a substantial number of places. These environmental, social, economic and health opportunities, however, are not without risk. Any major project development also brings concerns about environmental harm, negative social impacts, community resettlement, the spread of communicable disease and economic inequality.
Impact Assessment (IA) will play a vital role in helping to identify and mitigate negative environmental, social, economic and health risks of BRI projects. IA will also support decision-making to optimize project benefits for local communities and national economies. Done well, IA can enhance development at a large scale. This webinar will bring together the world’s leading practitioners and experts on impact assessment in China to critically examine the challenges and opportunities of the initiative from a variety of perspectives, including:
Many of the proposed projects are slated to occur in developing countries where local capacity and resourcing, as well as regulation to support best practice impact assessment, may be lacking. The 2020 COVID19 pandemic also amplifies pre-existing concerns about the role of health impact assessment in major projects, making this a timely and important topic for discussion.