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The Most Dammed Country in the World
In twenty short books, Penguin brings you the classics of the environmental movement.
The courageous, unflinching speeches and writings collected in The Most Dammed Country in the World detail the devastating human and environmental cost of China's economic rise.
Over the past 75 years, a new canon has emerged. As life on Earth has become irrevocably altered by humans, visionary thinkers around the world have raised their voices to defend the planet, and affirm our place at the heart of its restoration. Their words have endured through the decades, becoming the classics of a movement. Together, these books show the richness of environmental thought, and point the way to a fairer, saner, greener world.
The courageous, unflinching speeches and writings collected in The Most Dammed Country in the World detail the devastating human and environmental cost of China's economic rise.
Over the past 75 years, a new canon has emerged. As life on Earth has become irrevocably altered by humans, visionary thinkers around the world have raised their voices to defend the planet, and affirm our place at the heart of its restoration. Their words have endured through the decades, becoming the classics of a movement. Together, these books show the richness of environmental thought, and point the way to a fairer, saner, greener world.
89 pages, Paperback
Published August 26, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
January 31, 2022
Deja vu all over again? My first trip to China, in 1998, began with a short (US) Embassy introduction to the Three Gorges Dam project, soon followed by a stay in (an exquisite hotel in) Chongqing, overlooking the Yangtze River (although, most days, the air quality was so bad, you couldn't actually see all the way down to the river). I've been intrigued by the Three Gorges undertaking ever since because, well, it was one of the largest and most ambitious infrastructure projects ... anywhere ... ever, and, uh, gee, it's just a wee bit controversial (and even more so in the current discussion of climate change, etc.).
Bottom line: if you're unfamiliar with China's Three Gorges Dam ... and the innumerable issues related to it, this makes for interesting reading. If you've been following it for a while, much of the content is dated, the whole is somewhat repetitive, and, in some ways, it merely scratches the surface. Having said that, when originally published, much of this advocacy was incredibly important (even if it had minimal impact in China).
Side note: next time you're in Las Vegas, be sure to squeeze in the day trip to the Hoover Dam, and, don't pass up the opportunity to look down from the utterly exquisite O'Callaghan-Tillman Bridge. But I digress.)
Full disclosure: I've only been to China four times (not counting trips to or through Hong Kong), and, while each trip has permitted some amount of pleasure and tourism, they've all been work/business trips, first and foremost. To the extent I've been warmly received and, conceptually, been accorded distinguished guest status, (which, among other things, means I've been fed extraordinarily well,) I can't say my experience has been a normal or generic one.... Not that that's particularly relevant here....
And, of course, these essays and speeches are cobbled together to create Volume 11 in the Penguin Green Ideas collection, which I'm finding well worth the investment ... and the minor hassle of acquiring it... Sadly, as my local independent bookstore confirmed, it is not available for sale (in the slipcase collection) in the U.S. (but it's not that difficult to order it from a UK supplier).
Bottom line: if you're unfamiliar with China's Three Gorges Dam ... and the innumerable issues related to it, this makes for interesting reading. If you've been following it for a while, much of the content is dated, the whole is somewhat repetitive, and, in some ways, it merely scratches the surface. Having said that, when originally published, much of this advocacy was incredibly important (even if it had minimal impact in China).
Side note: next time you're in Las Vegas, be sure to squeeze in the day trip to the Hoover Dam, and, don't pass up the opportunity to look down from the utterly exquisite O'Callaghan-Tillman Bridge. But I digress.)
Full disclosure: I've only been to China four times (not counting trips to or through Hong Kong), and, while each trip has permitted some amount of pleasure and tourism, they've all been work/business trips, first and foremost. To the extent I've been warmly received and, conceptually, been accorded distinguished guest status, (which, among other things, means I've been fed extraordinarily well,) I can't say my experience has been a normal or generic one.... Not that that's particularly relevant here....
And, of course, these essays and speeches are cobbled together to create Volume 11 in the Penguin Green Ideas collection, which I'm finding well worth the investment ... and the minor hassle of acquiring it... Sadly, as my local independent bookstore confirmed, it is not available for sale (in the slipcase collection) in the U.S. (but it's not that difficult to order it from a UK supplier).
September 24, 2021
Intresting, but rather repetitive, as there are several pieces on the same topic (The Three Gorges Dam). And it would have been good to get a more recent update on the impact of the dam.
July 14, 2022
Interesting, but I was expecting more information about the environmental situation in China.
It is a whole different (huge) scale, of course, but sadly, some sections could easily have been written about Portugal:
"When the West (which used to be a pioneer in the damming of rivers ) stopped building dams, why did China continue to build such a massive dam on a river which is over-exploited, over-populated and intensely damaged?"
It is a whole different (huge) scale, of course, but sadly, some sections could easily have been written about Portugal:
"When the West (which used to be a pioneer in the damming of rivers ) stopped building dams, why did China continue to build such a massive dam on a river which is over-exploited, over-populated and intensely damaged?"
July 12, 2022
Interesting, but repetitive. Dai Qing is obviously a brave/ formidable critic of the Three Gorges Dam, but this book is a very shallow summary of the issues associated with it. It's based on a collection of her speeches and could have used more context/ history. Given the amount of info it does provide, it could have been edited to be even shorter.
It was republished in 2021, but hasn't been updated since 2010, so I had to go and find updates on construction + some of the issues mentioned on my own afterwards.
It was republished in 2021, but hasn't been updated since 2010, so I had to go and find updates on construction + some of the issues mentioned on my own afterwards.
January 3, 2022
Interesting!
Although I did have a high expectations for these short essays they were still intersting, some of the information was repeated throughout but that did not detract or diminish my interest. I would have liked a more indepth essay, I guess I will need to widen my reading or lower my expectations.
Although I did have a high expectations for these short essays they were still intersting, some of the information was repeated throughout but that did not detract or diminish my interest. I would have liked a more indepth essay, I guess I will need to widen my reading or lower my expectations.
September 18, 2022
Other than most reviewers, I did not find this essay compilation about one of the biggest infrastructure projects ever repetitive at all.
On the contrary, Dao Qing fearlessly and convincingly argues against the Three Gorges Dam from all possible angles - not merely the rather obvious ones of an environmentalist!
It simply is a compilation of essays on the same topic, so the general information does indeed not change - yet her various reflections shed light on a number of perspectives around the history and development of the Dam.
The 6 essays of in total 90p. provide a highly interesting inner-Chinese critique of this over-dimensioned project. Thus, Dai Qing adds up important insights to the better-known critiques of Western environmentalists.
To pick out two outstanding aspects, the author reflects upon the contradiction of the Dam to traditional Chinese philosophy as well as the ever-changing, yet never free possibilities to critisize such a monstrous project from within China.
Whoever seeks a 2022 update or a list of the species facing extinction thanks to the project should better stick to the internet.
If you want to understand how Chinese debates work, these 90 pages have a lot to offer.
[English language]
On the contrary, Dao Qing fearlessly and convincingly argues against the Three Gorges Dam from all possible angles - not merely the rather obvious ones of an environmentalist!
It simply is a compilation of essays on the same topic, so the general information does indeed not change - yet her various reflections shed light on a number of perspectives around the history and development of the Dam.
The 6 essays of in total 90p. provide a highly interesting inner-Chinese critique of this over-dimensioned project. Thus, Dai Qing adds up important insights to the better-known critiques of Western environmentalists.
To pick out two outstanding aspects, the author reflects upon the contradiction of the Dam to traditional Chinese philosophy as well as the ever-changing, yet never free possibilities to critisize such a monstrous project from within China.
Whoever seeks a 2022 update or a list of the species facing extinction thanks to the project should better stick to the internet.
If you want to understand how Chinese debates work, these 90 pages have a lot to offer.
[English language]
July 22, 2023
Very palatable while being incredibly informational. It was nice to read about a huge environmental project/ event that isn't discussed much (in my personal experience at all) in Western education and conservation circles. I find the author's work and passion to be bold and inspirational. A great and concise collection of essays to get introduced to some of the projects and their environmental implications happening in China, as well as the associated history and policies that guide these outcomes. Keen to look more into the Three Gorges Project and other associated projects because of this book!
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March 20, 2025I finally finished this small book after starting it at the end of January this year... Yep, it took me a while. While I obviously understand why there were discussions within this book about the political system in China and the role that it plays in environmental and social impacts, sometimes I found it a bit dry. I bought this book because I care about the environment and, while I also care about the repercussions of this reckless government, I really wanted the focus to be the environment. Obviously, there were sections speaking on this, I just wanted... more? Especially when it's been published as part of a series called 'Green Ideas'. Regardless, I found plenty of the information fascinating and have taken pictures to annotate sections (I can't bring myself to physically annotate, sorry).
May 16, 2022
Interesting but rather repetitive and out of date.
October 25, 2021
A collection of speeches by the Chinese dissident Dai Qing, famous for her sharp criticism of China's unrestrained fast-paced development, which manifests itself with megaprojects that do not consider people's necessities, environmental consequences and budget limits. In most of these speeches, she explains why specific megaproject of the "three gorges Dam" is an illogical environmental and societal threat, result of years and years of corruption and close-minded politicians who wish to have success in CCP by promoting grandiose projects.
Even if the topic is very interesting and Dai Qing's criticism is important, If I could go back I wouldn't spend 8€ on a - very cute - 80 pages collection of speeches that lack contextualisation and sometimes depth, as there is no introduction to them nor conclusion.
Even if the topic is very interesting and Dai Qing's criticism is important, If I could go back I wouldn't spend 8€ on a - very cute - 80 pages collection of speeches that lack contextualisation and sometimes depth, as there is no introduction to them nor conclusion.
October 24, 2021
A short collection of essays about the environmental impact of the Three Gorges dam. Mad to read about people basically playing a game of Civilization with an actual country. The book is a little bit repetitive since each essay recaps the essential facts, but each of them also adds new layers to the story.
November 18, 2024
Convincing polemic against the Three Gorges Dam 三峡大坝. Like dam(n), I knew it was bad, but sheesh. I would have liked greater detail and citations, but this is a collection of speeches which I presume are more strongly referenced in her written work. It's a shame this information is also all about 10 years out of date, because from some brief googling the situation has only gotten worse since.
I had no idea 4 million people have been forcibly resettled to make way for the dam -- the population of an entire European nation, say, or of a provincial third tier Chinese city. I also had no idea it took so long to take the dam(n) thing going, that it has unquestionably failed at its primary purpose of major flood control (exacerbated by the climate crisis), at generating even a third of the promised electricity, AND that it pissed off everyone in Chongqing to boot.
The CCP's 2011 report acknowledges "urgent problems", which is probably about as close as you'll probably get to an official recognition that the dam is an unmitigated clusterfuck. Another 200 billion RMB black hole to add to the environmental apocalypse that has been the cost of China's incredible development since the Gaige Kaifang 改革开放.
The first couple of essays are weakened with poorly aged assertions (references to "shared universal values", "globally, authoritarian governments are on the decline", lol, etc) that I'm sure had every "China expert" on the Euro-American circuit smugly nodding back in the day. However, Dai Qing did literally get jailed for speaking up about this, so if anyone gets a free pass for "end of history" liberalism, it's her, and any other Chinese author in a similar boat.
My knowledge of China's environmental issues is heavily filtered through
1. My experiences of city life / the young professional environmental sphere here in Beijing and previously Shanghai;
2. Chinese journalism; and
3. Western China-criticism;
the first being very narrow and subjective, and the latter two both frequently propaganda. So I'd very much like to pick up some more criticism like this, from Chinese writers from within China.
Gripe: when are English translations going to start including Chinese characters for quoted phrases, or at least the tones with the pinyin? Are we so fundamentally allergic to bilingualism as a culture or are we just that Chinaphobic???
I had no idea 4 million people have been forcibly resettled to make way for the dam -- the population of an entire European nation, say, or of a provincial third tier Chinese city. I also had no idea it took so long to take the dam(n) thing going, that it has unquestionably failed at its primary purpose of major flood control (exacerbated by the climate crisis), at generating even a third of the promised electricity, AND that it pissed off everyone in Chongqing to boot.
The CCP's 2011 report acknowledges "urgent problems", which is probably about as close as you'll probably get to an official recognition that the dam is an unmitigated clusterfuck. Another 200 billion RMB black hole to add to the environmental apocalypse that has been the cost of China's incredible development since the Gaige Kaifang 改革开放.
The first couple of essays are weakened with poorly aged assertions (references to "shared universal values", "globally, authoritarian governments are on the decline", lol, etc) that I'm sure had every "China expert" on the Euro-American circuit smugly nodding back in the day. However, Dai Qing did literally get jailed for speaking up about this, so if anyone gets a free pass for "end of history" liberalism, it's her, and any other Chinese author in a similar boat.
My knowledge of China's environmental issues is heavily filtered through
1. My experiences of city life / the young professional environmental sphere here in Beijing and previously Shanghai;
2. Chinese journalism; and
3. Western China-criticism;
the first being very narrow and subjective, and the latter two both frequently propaganda. So I'd very much like to pick up some more criticism like this, from Chinese writers from within China.
Gripe: when are English translations going to start including Chinese characters for quoted phrases, or at least the tones with the pinyin? Are we so fundamentally allergic to bilingualism as a culture or are we just that Chinaphobic???
May 9, 2023
This is not a real review, just some thoughts I like to write down.
Das ist keine richtige Bewertung, nur ein paar Gedanken, die ich aufschreiben wollte.
An sich interessanter Abriss über den Drei-Schluchten-Staudamm, jedoch ist er zum einen repetitiv und zum anderen schon eher veraltet, mit dem letzten Stand von 2010. Gerne hätte ich hier noch einen Zusatz zur aktuellen Lage gesehen. Auch befasst sich ein grösserer Teil mit der jüngeren Geschichte Chinas und wie die politische Lage entstanden ist, dass so ein riesiges Projekt, dass eigentlich von unterschiedlichsten Seiten kritisiert wurden, möglich war. Neben den sozialen und kulturellen Auswirkungen bleiben die umwelttechnischen Abschnitte eher auf der Strecke und bleiben oberflächlich, obwohl dies das Kernthema dieser Serie als Ganzes sein sollte. Auch wurde die Art und Weise der aktivistischen Tätigkeit, deren Auswirkungen und Konsequenzen von Dai Qing nicht dargelegt und ihre Rolle in der Thematik blieb für mich unklar.
Das ist keine richtige Bewertung, nur ein paar Gedanken, die ich aufschreiben wollte.
An sich interessanter Abriss über den Drei-Schluchten-Staudamm, jedoch ist er zum einen repetitiv und zum anderen schon eher veraltet, mit dem letzten Stand von 2010. Gerne hätte ich hier noch einen Zusatz zur aktuellen Lage gesehen. Auch befasst sich ein grösserer Teil mit der jüngeren Geschichte Chinas und wie die politische Lage entstanden ist, dass so ein riesiges Projekt, dass eigentlich von unterschiedlichsten Seiten kritisiert wurden, möglich war. Neben den sozialen und kulturellen Auswirkungen bleiben die umwelttechnischen Abschnitte eher auf der Strecke und bleiben oberflächlich, obwohl dies das Kernthema dieser Serie als Ganzes sein sollte. Auch wurde die Art und Weise der aktivistischen Tätigkeit, deren Auswirkungen und Konsequenzen von Dai Qing nicht dargelegt und ihre Rolle in der Thematik blieb für mich unklar.
October 16, 2022
A collection of various speeches Dai Qing has given about China’s poor environmental record, in particular, related to the evidence of hubris and corruption corresponding to China’s elites’ execution of the Three Gorges Dam project. This information has been floating out there for some time as this project has been in the news since the mid 1990s, but this is a high dose of the all the reasons this project was wrongly conceived in the first place. China has its own unique style of corruption which maintains its authoritarian power dynamics. It’s rooted the nations’ culture and empiric history. I familiarized myself with this first with my formal art history education, but it was helpful to have a contemporary journalist affirm the lessons/observations made so many years ago. Authoritarianism is woven into the fabric of Chinese power, plain and simple. Each culture has their own unique dispositions, I suppose.
January 23, 2022
3.5/5
The first book I read from this series and I found it very informative (not just about the dams, but also about the history of China). It‘s shocking as well. Still, some parts were repetitive and I would have loved to get more recent information.
The first book I read from this series and I found it very informative (not just about the dams, but also about the history of China). It‘s shocking as well. Still, some parts were repetitive and I would have loved to get more recent information.
January 24, 2023
For someone who knows nothing about this topic, and has very loose knowledge of modern China, I found this super interesting. You can tell Qing is truly pained by what is happening and the devastating effects of this monstrosity.
October 20, 2021
A good introduction to the feelings surrounding the Three Gorges Dam project, interested to find out more.
April 23, 2022
Insightful, slightly repetitive as it is a collection of speaches and articles.
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