Is Chinese or English more efficient to read? Studies and anecdotes offer mixed results: one suggests Chinese is faster, another says it’s the same. What do you think?

China just started building the world’s largest dam in Tibet, alarming its neighbors India and Bangladesh, and reigniting a century-old debate: power vs. preservation. Similarly, in the US, from Hetch Hetchy to the Klamath, rivers have long been shaped by human ambition. But sometimes, they run free again.

Philip Tinari speaks about the potential of art to transform lives, even if just for one viewer among thousands. He reflects on how creators can hold space for “a certain kind of magic,” and how his own experience as an American who built a career in China — through language, collaboration, and cultural trust — feels increasingly precious in a time of growing divide. He speaks with James Chau, President of the China-United States Exchange Foundation.