Last Wednesday Scott Wightman CMG (FCO, until recently Director Asia Pacific) visited Sevenoaks School to give Year 9 a lecture on the world’s rising superpower, China, which we are currently studying in Geography.

He impressed upon us the significance of China to our own futures. We learnt a lot about the dynamic nature of China, its industry and its huge size; for example, China has more than 60 cities with a population of over one million, and China’s economy is thriving whilst ours is shrinking. He also told us a lot about the pollution in China, which is home to the world’s most polluted city, Linfen, and how in 2010, China was the world’s biggest producer of greenhouse gases.

It was a fantastic opportunity to meet an expert on China, and a thoroughly enjoyable experience for everyone in our year.

Tom Buhl-Nielsen