Georgetown College. Georgetown University.

Father McNamara shares his artwork. (Photo caption: Roland Dimaya)
Father McNamara works with knowledge networks, and heads up Georgetown's China Project. (Photo: Roland Dimaya)

"We tend to think of Georgetown as a place, and indeed it’s a grand place, but our networks stretch far beyond Washington, DC."—Dr. Dennis McNamara, S.J.

October 27, 2008

By Akoto Ofori-Atta

Father Dennis McNamara, S.J., Special Assistant for China Affairs to the University President, is an expert in East Asian studies. One would think that nothing would surprise this long-time specialist, but McNamara admits that there is one aspect of Georgetown's relationship with the Chinese people that pleasantly caught him off guard. 

"Matteo Ricci, one of the first 16th century Jesuit missionaries, is widely respected in China," McNamara says, noting that both Georgetown and China share a deep admiration for Jesuit tradition. "Jesuit tradition, something I thought had died in China, is still very strong and alive."

A deep commitment to Jesuit ideals helped inspire Georgetown's China Project, the university's initiative to deepen academic ties with China. The goal is to develop a university-wide engagement with China, building on strengths across campus and alumni networks worldwide. As director of the project in the President’s Office, McNamara's main duties are to organize research projects and convene the semi-annual conferences with the Central Party School of the Chinese Communist Party. Additionally, he is developing research activities with the Institute of Industrial Economics and the Institute of Sociology in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, as well as an upcoming publication around the theme of innovation in policy and technology.

The China project is based in both capitals, with McNamara dividing his time between Washington and Beijing. He last visited China in July, where he witnessed first-hand the electricity and excitement behind the preparation of the 2008 Olympic Games. 

Post-Olympic China, a subject of premier interest to scholars and policy makers, was a topic of discussion at the October 21st semi-annual conference on national development strategies. A tour of Atlanta is scheduled to follow the conference, McNamara noted, as the Chinese are hoping to learn from Atlanta’s success in integrating its Olympic facilities into the life of the city. He hopes that this interest is indicative of a new relationship between China and the US.
 
"This kind of experience that the United States has is very valuable for China, but also enables us to put China in a perspective where we are learning from them," McNamara says. "We get to see where we can partner with them, and that's something that Georgetown can do that's very hard for the government to do."

McNamara, who is also Park Professor of Sociology and Korean Studies in the Sociology Department, says spearheading the China Project is a natural fit for him, as his research and career have been deeply based in East Asia—mainly in Korea and Japan. McNamara’s goal is to coordinate Georgetown’s resources and ties in Korea and Japan around China to create a strong regional knowledge network. He notes that Georgetown has clear advantages in achieving this goal: its renowned reputation in international affairs and its location in the nation's capital.

"Georgetown's relationship with China is very extensive," McNamara says. "In terms of research, Georgetown is not just a place, but it's an intellectual forum that has the convening power to draw together global networks of intellectuals and policy-makers in a way that very few other institutions can."  

The idea of Georgetown as an "intellectual forum" is the cornerstone of what McNamara hopes to achieve.  As the goals of the China Project extend beyond research discoveries in technology and policy innovation, it will be very difficult for the relationship with China to reach its highest potential unless "we move beyond the notion of Georgetown University as simply a place," he says.

"The main challenge of this project is that it's sometimes hard for people to think of Georgetown as a convening power; a force of intellectuals spread across the world," McNamara says. "We tend to think of Georgetown as a place, and indeed it’s a grand place, but our networks stretch far beyond Washington, DC."

In addition to the China Project, McNamara is working on a manuscript entitled Knowledge Networks and the New Asia: Japan’s Next Challenge. The study focuses on the shift from offshore assembly networks to knowledge flows in Japan's regional production chains across China, South Korea, and Thailand.

"This fits in with the China Project because knowledge networks are really my focus," McNamara says. "It's coming out of this basic, concrete study with what used to be technology transfer and stretching it into topics that I am not an expert in."

And as McNamara prepares for The China Project's conference, he believes that it will provide a platform for US policy makers and Chinese government to forge a strong alliance that will secure both countries' futures.  He hopes that the 2008 presidential candidates are open to that discussion.
   
"If I could convince [Obama or McCain] that the academy can play a critical role in architecting and shaping a US-China relationship that they should not be afraid of," McNamara says, "I think Georgetown would have made a contribution to the world that no other can make."

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