Elizabeth Economy

Elizabeth Economy is the C.V. Starr senior fellow and director for Asia studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Dr. Economy has published widely on both Chinese domestic and foreign policy. Her most recent book, with Michael Levi, is By All Means Necessary: How China’s Resource Quest is Changing the World (Oxford University Press, 2014). She is also the author of the award-winning book The River Runs Black: The Environmental Challenge to China’s Future (Cornell University Press, 2004; 2nd edition, 2010).

Dr. Economy is a frequent guest on nationally broadcast television and radio programs, has testified before Congress on numerous occasions, and regularly consults for U.S. government agencies and companies. She writes about topics involving China on CFR’s Asia Program blog, Asia Unbound, which is syndicated by Forbes.com.

Dr. Economy serves on the board of managers of Swarthmore College and the board of trustees of the Asia Foundation. She is also on the advisory council of Network 20/20 and the science advisory council of the Stockholm Environment Forum. She is a member of the World Economic Forum (WEF)’s Global Agenda Council on the United States and served as a member and then vice chair of WEF’s Global Agenda Council on the Future of China from 2008 to 2014.

Dr. Economy received her BA from Swarthmore College, her AM from Stanford University, and her PhD from the University of Michigan.